Digital gold
by Nathaniel Popper · first published 2015
42% recommend58% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Readable history of Bitcoin's early years told through its people and stories; useful context for anyone wanting to understand how cryptocurrency developed and why it matters.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"A New York Times technology and business reporter charts the dramatic rise of Bitcoin and the fascinating personalities who are striving to create a new global money for the Internet age. Digital Gold is New York Times reporter Nathaniel Popper's brilliant and engrossing history of Bitcoin, the landmark digital money and financial technology that has spawned a global social movement. The notion of a new currency, maintained by the computers of users around the world, has been the butt of many jokes, but that has not stopped it from growing into a technology worth billions of dollars, supporte
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…Tapscott, Alex Tapscott](https://www.amazon.com/Blockchain-Revolution-Technology-Chan...) [The Business Blockchain by William Mougayar](https://www.amazon.com/Business-Blockchain-Practice-Applicat...) [Digital Gold by Nathaniel Popper](https://www.amazon.co.jp/Digital-Gold-Bitcoin-Millionaires-R...) If you want to dig deeper, read [Mastering Bitcoin by Andreas M. Antonopoulos](https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Bitcoin-Unlocking-Digital-C...).
on “Ask HN: Best resources to to understand BTC/Blockchain and its implications?” ↗The World Is Flat by Tom Friedman. Digital Gold by Nathaniel Popper. Inner Engineering by Jaggi Vasudev. Sapiens by Yuval Harari. Zero to One by Peter Thiel.
on “Ask HN: What are some interesting books you read in 2017?” ↗…Bitcoin may be in a bubble, and it scares me. But it amazes me how little people think, before that kind of pattern matching. I read the paper about 2 years back, after reading Nathaniel Popper's book 'Digital Gold...' which presents the history of cypherpunks, leading upto Satoshi's white paper. The book was enjoyable to read. And the paper's brilliance was stunning. That said, when I think of it deeply, it does…
on “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System (2008) [pdf]” ↗…Keigo Higashino. Enjoyable read - contrasts a Physicist and a Mathematician trying to out think each other in a crime context (reference to Maths/Physics are just pop-level so don't expect too much) 5) 'Digital Gold...' by Nathaniel Popper - Currently reading (very enjoyable at around 41%) - Captures the history of evolution of Bitcoin. Also made me sad for various people for different reasons, e.g. Hal Finney, who…
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2015?” ↗…person. And given the concerns raised for PoW for small coins, I can only say this - "Those Who Do Not Learn History Are Doomed To Repeat It." Here's one of my favorite stories from Nathaniel Popper's Digital Gold about a coin which was very small back in the day called - Bitcoin: Laszlo’s CPU had been winning, at most, one block of 50 Bitcoins each day, of the approximately 140 blocks that were released daily.…
on “Show HN: Cost of a 51% Attack on Popular Cryptocurrencies” ↗Digital Gold by Nathaniel Popper is incredible context.
on “Ask HN: Bitcoin Christmas reading” ↗I'm currently reading Digital Gold by Nathaniel. As I progress, its clearer that bitcoin might or might not be a great economic tool but its an awesome case study in game theory. I think the real innovation of Satoshi (whether he intended…
on “A beginner’s guide to getting started in the cryptocurrency world” ↗> Where there was a feeling of revolution and new beginnings, now there are people in suits talking corporate. I read both "Digital Gold" by Nathaniel Popper about the early days of Bitcoin and "The Infinite Machine" by Camila Russo about the inception of Ethereum and the difference between the early sentiment in those two projects is…
on “Ethereum Isn't Fun Anymore” ↗More on how closed this community is in Nathanial Popper's Digital Gold. IIRC, Charlie Shrem's parents would not pay his substantial bail unless he broke up with his GF who was not an SY Jew. https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Gold-Bitcoin-Millionaires-Rei...
on “Crazy Eddie Fraud” ↗…didn't believe me, so I'm going to keep repeating it until people believe me :) Probably because: 1. you're making a historically false claim. Pushing "blockchain" to business is quite well documented (Digital Gold, contemporary press) as being something that was pushed by the Bitcoin fans at the time - late 2014, when the bitcoin price was cratering - as a way to keep interest up. 2. the claims for "Blockchain"…
on “Blockchain-Enabled Electric Car Charging Comes to California” ↗> I'm currently reading Digital Gold by Nathaniel. As I progress, its clearer that bitcoin might or might not be a great economic tool but its an awesome case study in game theory. Yes, and you can abstract that observation from blockchains…
on “A beginner’s guide to getting started in the cryptocurrency world” ↗…Shoshana Zuboff Mastering Ethereum by Andreas M. Antonopoulos The Creature from Jekyll Island by G. Edward Griffin Mastering Bitcoin by Andreas M. Antonopoulos The Bitcoin Standard by Saifedean Ammous Digital Gold by Nathaniel Popper The Internet of Money by Andreas M. Antonopoulos Creating the Twentieth Century by Vaclav Smil Mastering Bitcoin by Andreas M. Antonopoulos Applied Cryptography by Bruce Schneier…
on “Top 57 Cryptocurrency Books” ↗…Shoshana Zuboff Mastering Ethereum by Andreas M. Antonopoulos The Creature from Jekyll Island by G. Edward Griffin Mastering Bitcoin by Andreas M. Antonopoulos The Bitcoin Standard by Saifedean Ammous Digital Gold by Nathaniel Popper The Internet of Money by Andreas M. Antonopoulos Creating the Twentieth Century by Vaclav Smil Applied Cryptography by Bruce Schneier Blockchain Bubble or Revolution by Neel Mehta…
on “Show HN: I've compiled a list of books on cryptocurrencies” ↗…associated with the first days of bitcoin—notably, the late programmer Hal Finney—some big clues point to Szabo as the paper’s author. These include anecdotes, set out by New York Times reporter and Digital Gold author Nathaniel Popper, that put Szabo at the center of early development of bitcoin. Additionally, linguists have compared the white paper and Satoshi’s emails with writing samples from Szabo, Finney,…
on “Another court case fails to unlock the mystery of Bitcoin’s Satoshi Nakamoto” ↗> Was this predicted at the inception of Bitcoin? At inception? No. But Satoshi was made aware of this problem. Here's a long passage from Nathaniel Popper's Digital Gold: Laszlo’s CPU had been winning, at most, one block of 50 Bitcoins each day, of the approximately 140 blocks that were released daily. Once Laszlo got his GPU card hooked in he began winning one or two…
on “Bitcoin mining and energy consumption” ↗