Coins and tokens tend to get all the attention. Everyone wants more money and the modern world is all about incentives. But permissions are more primal. The social order of animals depends on who is allowed to do what. There is permission by force: top ape makes young ape eat last so young ape beats top ape and eats first. There are soft permissions set by example: Rick Rubin likes pro-wrestling so it’s okay for me to like it too. Then there are collective permissions, the subject of this ess...

Coins and tokens tend to get all the attention. Everyone wants more money and the modern world is all about incentives. But permissions are more primal. The social order of animals depends on who is allowed to do what. There is permission by force: top ape makes young ape eat last so young ape beats top ape and eats first. There are soft permissions set by example: Rick Rubin likes pro-wrestling so it’s okay for me to like it too. Then there are collective permissions, the subject of this ess...

In I776, Thomas Paine wrote “the cause of America is, in a great measure, the cause of all mankind.” The nation has never fully lived up to its promises and it probably never will, but the idea itself was a good one. It was the idea that there would always be a seat of power, and that seat must be occupied, but it did not have to be held by a single man or family. Instead, a place could exist where “Law is King.” Regardless of how you feel about America’s past and present, and what ideals it ...

In I776, Thomas Paine wrote “the cause of America is, in a great measure, the cause of all mankind.” The nation has never fully lived up to its promises and it probably never will, but the idea itself was a good one. It was the idea that there would always be a seat of power, and that seat must be occupied, but it did not have to be held by a single man or family. Instead, a place could exist where “Law is King.” Regardless of how you feel about America’s past and present, and what ideals it ...

Blockchains exist because Bitcoin solved the Byzantine General’s Problem. The thought experiment is this: imagine a city under attack by four generals. If all the generals attack at the same time, they are guaranteed to win and capture the city. If they attack at different times, they lose. They can send each other messages, but one of the generals is a traitor. There is no way to tell whether a message is legitimate and from one of the honest generals, or if the message is, in fact, a trick ...

Blockchains exist because Bitcoin solved the Byzantine General’s Problem. The thought experiment is this: imagine a city under attack by four generals. If all the generals attack at the same time, they are guaranteed to win and capture the city. If they attack at different times, they lose. They can send each other messages, but one of the generals is a traitor. There is no way to tell whether a message is legitimate and from one of the honest generals, or if the message is, in fact, a trick ...

NFTs are objects that last forever in the Ethereum universe. It’s easier and more fun to think of Ethereum like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The difference is Ethereum lives on the internet, involves real money, and in this universe, no one controls the story. Each NFT is a kind of Infinity Stone. There can be many versions of an Infinity Stone, but each one has its own history. Each one has its own timeline and its own path, interacting with different characters. The World Heavyweight Cham...

NFTs are objects that last forever in the Ethereum universe. It’s easier and more fun to think of Ethereum like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The difference is Ethereum lives on the internet, involves real money, and in this universe, no one controls the story. Each NFT is a kind of Infinity Stone. There can be many versions of an Infinity Stone, but each one has its own history. Each one has its own timeline and its own path, interacting with different characters. The World Heavyweight Cham...

There is a giant clock inside a mountain in Texas called the Clock of the Long Now. The clock was built to be as sturdy as possible using physical elements– stone and steel – to guarantee its longevity. It is meant to keep time for 10,000 years and designed to function with as little human intervention as possible. Ethereum uses a different approach to longevity, prioritizing adaptability over fixed structures. Instead of hard physics, it uses a soft strategy of combining scarcity and stories...

There is a giant clock inside a mountain in Texas called the Clock of the Long Now. The clock was built to be as sturdy as possible using physical elements– stone and steel – to guarantee its longevity. It is meant to keep time for 10,000 years and designed to function with as little human intervention as possible. Ethereum uses a different approach to longevity, prioritizing adaptability over fixed structures. Instead of hard physics, it uses a soft strategy of combining scarcity and stories...

Sam Altman, the guy behind the company behind ChatGPT, also helped start a project called Worldcoin. The purpose of Worldcoin is to support Universal Basic Income (UBI), which is the concept of giving money to all people on a regular basis. Maybe it’s obvious A.I. will replace most jobs and without jobs, even soul-crushing bullshit ones, there would be chaos. Or maybe, even though some people would work less, they would also have a better chance to practice that, much promised pursuit of happ...

Sam Altman, the guy behind the company behind ChatGPT, also helped start a project called Worldcoin. The purpose of Worldcoin is to support Universal Basic Income (UBI), which is the concept of giving money to all people on a regular basis. Maybe it’s obvious A.I. will replace most jobs and without jobs, even soul-crushing bullshit ones, there would be chaos. Or maybe, even though some people would work less, they would also have a better chance to practice that, much promised pursuit of happ...

Most people get into crypto for the money. Either to get rich, or as a protest. Getting rich is relative. To some, it means freedom from a type of dread: “When each bill hitting the mat no longer represents an existential threat you are freed from an inhibiting and oppressive form of daily fear” as Zadie Smith puts it. Many have already had a taste of being early on some new coin or token or NFT. Or creating a platform, a community, a piece of art that both lives in an alternate system and is...

Most people get into crypto for the money. Either to get rich, or as a protest. Getting rich is relative. To some, it means freedom from a type of dread: “When each bill hitting the mat no longer represents an existential threat you are freed from an inhibiting and oppressive form of daily fear” as Zadie Smith puts it. Many have already had a taste of being early on some new coin or token or NFT. Or creating a platform, a community, a piece of art that both lives in an alternate system and is...

Every system is a machine. A set of rules and moving parts meant to serve its users. But there are times when the machines we use become hopelessly outdated and ineffective. The economy, the financial system, these are machines – tools – meant to circulate money around and allow people to live richer lives. But if the machine keeps pushing all the money to the top or if it breaks like it did in 1929 or 2008 or whatever year the next major malfunction occurs, then we should have a backup plan....

Every system is a machine. A set of rules and moving parts meant to serve its users. But there are times when the machines we use become hopelessly outdated and ineffective. The economy, the financial system, these are machines – tools – meant to circulate money around and allow people to live richer lives. But if the machine keeps pushing all the money to the top or if it breaks like it did in 1929 or 2008 or whatever year the next major malfunction occurs, then we should have a backup plan....