There are many blogs or articles on the web which cover from technical to fun facts about Bitcoin. We offer to you herewith seldom known interesting facts about Bitcoin. Without further delay let’s get on with the list.
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1. Will the Real Satoshi Please Stand Up?
There has been a cloud of secrecy that surrounds the name Satoshi Nakamoto. No one knows who the real person is behind this pseudonymous inventor’s name. Analysis that focus on the time of the original white paper launch, language style used and the language of the codes that were created are being closely studied to get any hint about his/her origins. Many have claimed to be the legend who created the Bitcoin and in turn the technology of Blockchain on which it runs.
Australian businessman and billionaire in his own right, Craig Wright claimed the same. He came close but, couldn’t do the one thing that would have erased any doubts in the public’s mind. He couldn’t cryptographically sign the first block of Bitcoin data, created by the real Satoshi. Termed a fraud, he at least got press and a book deal out of it!
2. The Most Influential man in the Bitcoin Universe?
Before you mind jumps to the answer Satoshi, let us make one thing clear. No. it is not him. The answer is ‘Bitcoin Sign Guy’. If you don’t know about him, he is this superstar who trolled the Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen by showing a notepad with the words “Buy Bitcoin” while on national television LIVE! To market a stateless currency on this platform took guts. For his brave act, Twitter and other social media platforms exploded in his support. A friend of this name-less genius created a wallet for him, which resulted in more than $ 16000 as funds. The entire Bitcoin community considers him a hero. So do we.
3. Bitcoin can’t be Banned!
No matter what your country’s government says, or the central bank says, ‘BITCOIN CAN’T BE BANNED’. This hostility towards Bitcoin is only because it works outside the jurisdiction of the traditional banking system and this irks them to no end. Bitcoin is based on this fundamental design which can be tweaked as time and technology grows,but cannot be outright banned. As long as you have an internet connection and a Bitcoin wallet, you can engage in Bitcoin. The countries that say they have banned them or are still unsure about their stance, fear the independence that Bitcoin provides the citizens. Mine or trade to your heart’s content. No one can take this right away from you!
4. Bitcoin Are Traceable
No matter how many, so called, ‘experts’ claim that Bitcoin are anonymous, they forget to mention the fact that Bitcoin in themselves are traceable to a wallet. The cops in the Silk Road case, found friends in the Blockchain that it was stored on. The prosecutors working on the case, employed white hat hackers (ethical hackers) to trace the Bitcoin back to the wallet that was being used by the Silk Road gang. What few know is that every Bitcoin transaction is publicly recorded in the collective Blockchain, giving researchers an easy view of how many Bitcoin are there in any account at a given time. So, the next time you hear anyone say that Bitcoin can help them get away with shady dealings, remind them, that it’s how a gang as notorious as Silk Road was brought down. They can be too. How is that for an amazing fact about Bitcoin!?
5. Who Runs the world? FBI !
After Satoshi himself, who is rumored to have mined 1 Million Bitcoin way back in 2009, it is the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) that technically owns a whopping number of 174,000 Bitcoin in total. This was made possible after they cracked down the Silk Road drug dealing gang. 144,000 Bitcoin were seized in one wallet and another 30,000 Bitcoin in another wallet which contained Silk Road illicit funds. This record number of Bitcoin are now worth $ 2,426,569,200 at the time of publishing. Wow!
6. Bitcoin Abandoned!
Another amazing Fact about Bitcoin is that, they are limited in numbers. As many people are jumping on to the Bitcoin bandwagon, there is an alarmingly rising number of those who are also forgetting their keys or managing to log out of their wallet without security backup. This results in a whooping 45% of already mined Bitcoin currently lying abandoned on multiple Blockchain with no one to access them or even touch them. That is the beauty and the flaw of the technology behind Blockchain. There are even those who have passed on in life and haven’t transferred their Bitcoin in to the wallet of their next of kin. No matter how much the legal system supports or sympathise with the deceased kin, they are helpless as no technology or supercomputer can crack open a wallet.
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7. Bitcoin Depression: A Reality!
Holding an asset as volatile as Bitcoin is bound to have a lasting effect on one’s mental health. The ‘Bitcoin Regret’ is being studied as a valid mental condition wherein one suffers because they believe they should be a Bitcoin Millionaire right now, only they aren’t because:
a) sold too soon
b) bought too late
c) disregarded friend’s advice
d) lost hard drive holding wallet
e) went all in on feathercoin. ( it is a cryptocurrency that was released as an alternative to Bitcoin)
f) forgot key to the said wallet
Welcome to the club! You are not alone. There is a massive increase in the number of individuals who face some form or another of Bitcoin Regret. There is even a case of reported suicide due to its severe depression in a particular trader. The 24 hours online market adds to the anxiety as the fear of missing out leads to investors to check their phone every 5 mins. The worry of missing out, is taking hold of the minds of individuals. Seek help!
8. Bitcoin Fun: Slang Lang!
Bitcoin community has developed an entire new language. Not a computing language, mind you, but a Slang. A list of which is mentioned below:
- Hodl = Hold Onto Dear Life ( do not sell for a long time)
- Fomo = Fear Of Missing Out ( the state of anxiety in which a miner/trader constantly worries about missing out on the latest information or price value)
- Moon / To the Moon = rise in value that reaches the moon ( this phrase is a sign of the optimism within the Bitcoin community. There are even those who are petitioning Elon Musk of Tesla to take a physical representation of the Bitcoin to the moon in 2020 on one of it’s rockets)
- Rekt = wrecked ( a shortened term for the moment when the value of the Bitcoin plunges and its investors suffer a loss)
Now that you know the slang, get with the gang! How’s that for an interesting fact about Bitcoin!?
9. Bitcoin Greens
Bitcoin is a pretty green currency. There is a lot of hubhub surrounding the so called massive amount of energy that a Bitcoin processing computer needs but, that is an alternative fact. Though, to outright call it a green currency is quite a stretch. When we compare the amount of power that is used in the generation of fiat currency, it compares to a much smaller size. As more technology that surrounds this cryptocurrency increases, be assured that the processor too shall consume lesser power and reach its potential as one of the most efficient way to conduct transaction on a global scale. Take that you naysayers!
There you have it folks. The 9 most interesting facts about Bitcoin. Send in your views in the comment section below.