What you'll learn:
- Understand what Money is and how our current moneraty system works.
- Understand Bitcoin technicals: The Blockchain, Mining, Running a Node, What are cryptos, etc...
- Understand Bitcoin in practice: Buying Bitcoin, Transferring and storing/securing your Bitcoins.
- Understand Bitcoin's relationship with Energy, the Financial Sector, Regulation and how it's governed
- Have a clear understanding regarding: Can Bitcoin be the next form of Money we use.
- Understand what the blockchain and cryptocurrency
We currently live in an era of economic paradoxes that have left an indelible impact on our daily lives.
Interest rateshave soared more than tenfold within 18 months, yet the stock market continues its relentless ascent, while inflation refuses to abate. The younger generations find themselves in a particularly precarious situation today. Despite both adults in a home often holding highly qualified jobs, the dream of a comfortable life with a house and children seems increasingly elusive to an ever larger number. This reveals a widening wealth gap in today’s economy despite the advent of technology that has exponentially increased productivity.
Behind these contradictory observations lies a new monetary context. Between 2021 and 2024, the US deficit ballooned from $27 trillion to $34.4 trillion, marking an almost 25% increase in less than four years. This unprecedented surge in the deficit clearly reveals an acceleration of a tendency that had slowly started in the seventies and that has significantly accelerated after 2009.
At the heart of all of this lies a fundamental tool and technology we all use and interact with every day: money. Our money, the currency we use every day, was also transformed in 1971, a date that marks the beginning of an increasing deficit trend. Interestingly, amidst the turmoil of the 2008 financial crisis, which was the largest of its kind, a mysterious and anonymous individual introduced a new type of money to the world, Bitcoin. A money that was designed and introduced as a way to address the weaknesses and limitations of the new type of money we started using in 1971, FIAT, and the unusual economic paradigm we find ourselves in today. As we navigate these uncertain times, it will be fascinating to see the role Bitcoin, the original and dominant cryptocurrency, will play in shaping our economic future, but in order to understand our current economic context, it is necessary to understand the relationship between money, inflation, the deficit, and Bitcoin.
This course is divided into two parts, examining the history and evolution of money from ancient times to the modern day. The first part will delve into what constitutes money, its failures throughout history, sound principles for a stable currency system, and how paper-based fiat currencies emerged as a replacement for gold-backed standards.
In the second half, we'll turn our attention to exploring a solution, Bitcoin, to the current problems plaguing fiat systems, including inflation, debt, housing bubbles, stock market volatility, and more. This is the First Cryptocurrency, and that relied on - among other technologies - blockchain that was created and is also the largest Crypto by Market Cap. We will explore Bitcoin's design principles, governance model in its decentralized network, and how it can function as a medium of exchange, unit of account, and store of value. Additionally, we'll examine the unique relationship between Bitcoin and energy grids, assess its potential as an investment opportunity, discuss security concerns related to hacking and regulation, and address common criticisms (FUD) surrounding Bitcoin's adoption.
