TechPlus+ | Technology & Development Redux
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Uncertainty and Artificial Intelligence
Read more: Uncertainty and Artificial IntelligenceIn a world where perfect information supposedly rules across the board, uncertainty certainly challenges mainstream economists. While some of the tenets of such assumption have already been addressed – via the theory of information asymmetries and the development of the rational expectations school, for example, uncertainty still poses critical questions. For starters, uncertainty should not…
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Nein Uber in Berlin
Read more: Nein Uber in BerlinArriving in Berlin from Africa via Frankfurt proved to be a nightmare this time around. While the flight and connections were almost perfect, the same cannot be said about my luggage. I checked in one bag at the point of origin and asked the airline agent to confirm my bag will indeed show up in…
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Visa on Arrival
Read more: Visa on ArrivalMy passport seems to profess a deep love for visa stamps. Every time the possibility of travel to another country arises, I can hear its excitement of filling yet another passport page with a brand new and (maybe) shiny visa stamp. The more, the merrier – although blank pages to host additional stamps are becoming…
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Learning about Machine Learning
Read more: Learning about Machine LearningA few months ago, as I was finishing a paper on blockchain technology, I received an unexpected comment on Artificial Intelligence (AI from here on in) from one of the peer reviewers. While addressing the overall topic of innovation in the 21st Century, I mentioned in passing the revival of both AI and Machine Learning…
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The Scale of the Blockchain Scalability Constraints
Read more: The Scale of the Blockchain Scalability ConstraintsAccording to the latest estimates, global Internet penetration was close to 54 percent by the end of 2017. That is roughly 4 billion people. Figures for the number of unique cell phone users show that 5 billion people have access to the technology.1 BTW, this means that 1 billion people have a cell phone but…
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Have You Ever Seen a Blockchain?
Read more: Have You Ever Seen a Blockchain?A silent but intense competition seems to be taking place when it comes to defining blockchain technology. A Google search for the question “What is blockchain” yields over 120 million possible results. This number includes thousands of guides, videos, FAQs and other “educational” material on the subject. A shining example is a video depicting a…
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Bitcoin Inequality
Read more: Bitcoin InequalityIn the short and medium-term, technology and inequality seemed to be positively correlated. In the long term, however, things are not as clear-cut. With the right policies and democratic institutions in place, technology could become a catalyst to reduce income and wealth inequality. Historical evidence from the last century clearly supports this claim. Will digital…
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Blockchain Mining Costs and Revenues
Read more: Blockchain Mining Costs and RevenuesIn a previous post, I pushed the idea that mining is part of the blockchain economy’s real sector. Unlike financial speculation, mining requires investment in hardware, electricity, space, human resources, etc. This also applies to small miners who will undoubtedly have to defray a lower investment amount but can join a mining pool to share…
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Checking ICOs, Again
Read more: Checking ICOs, AgainIt has already been three months since I last checked the ICO scene. At the time, I suggested ICOs were probably slowing down. New data seems to confirm this but all points to other trends not detected before. Figure 1 presents the latest data ending on 31 May. 159 ICOs were successfully completed between March…
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The Real Sector of the Blockchain Economy
Read more: The Real Sector of the Blockchain EconomyMost cryptocurrencies are now over 60% down from their December 2017 peak. While prices are still quite volatile, the trend for the last five months is decidedly downwards. While some still expect a recovery to the glorious days of last year, others see overvaluation all around accompanied by a financial bubble about to burst. Comparisons…
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Blockchain Mining Revisited
Read more: Blockchain Mining RevisitedBlockchain mining cannot catch a break when it comes to environmental sustainability. This is especially true for Bitcoin mining that seemingly has an insatiable appetite for electricity. A recent paper suggests that by 2020 Bitcoin mining will consume as much energy as Australia. While these estimates are not exempt from criticism, mining does not appear…
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Case Study: WFP Building Blocks Jordan Refugee Pilot
Read more: Case Study: WFP Building Blocks Jordan Refugee Pilot[I wrote this edited draft case study for a larger blockchain research project led by The GovLab. The final project report included a shorter version of my draft.] 1. Overview Launched in January 2017, the World Food Program Building Blocks blockchain initiative targets over one hundred thousand refugees living in the Azraq camp in Jordan.…
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Democracy and Capitalism: Friends or Foes?
Read more: Democracy and Capitalism: Friends or Foes?The post-WWII era can be arguably defined as the golden age of democratic capitalism – at least from the perspective of developed or industrialized countries. Rebuilding Europe and pumping capital into Japan triggered a prolonged economic boom until the 1980s, notwithstanding the 1973 oil crisis. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 opened new…
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Algorithmic Inequality
Read more: Algorithmic InequalityDisruptive. One of the attributes that most use to describe in minimalistic terms the potential impact of new and emerging information and communication technologies (ICTs) in society. While its actual meaning can vary from one person to another, disruption is usually linked to dramatic short-term change where old and obsolete technologies, processes and institutions -not…
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Blockchain Technology is not a Monolith
Read more: Blockchain Technology is not a MonolithMany observers seem to assume blockchain technology is an immovable monolith. While such assumption does help when trying to explain how the technology works to the general public, this is not the case when describing the actual status of the technology. Rapid and agile innovation is one of the core traits of blockchains, backed by…