Bitcoin Magazine Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Bitcoin Happy Hour #11: Bitcoin Aesthetics and Conference Design Jan 11, 2020

Show notes

Today, Colin sits down with Tommy Marchesci and Pat Riley, two of BTC Inc.'s designers, to talk about their methodology, philosophy and vision for the art behind the Bitcoin 2020 conference and Bitcoin Magazine.

Check out the episode on Bitcoin Magazine's YouTube Channel and don't forget to get your tickets to Bitcoin2020!

Weekly Bits #10: Bitcoin's Potential 2020 Protocol Upgrades With Aaron van Wirdum Jan 09, 2020

Show notes

Bitcoin's underlying consensus layer has gone two years without a hard or soft fork change — its longest such streak in history. On this episode of Weekly Bits, Peter Chawaga is joined by Bitcoin Magazine Technical Editor Aaron van Wirdum to discuss his latest cover story on protocol changes that have the potential to end that streak in 2020.

Resources

2020 and Beyond: Bitcoin's Potential Protocol Upgrades

Twitter

Bitcoin Magazine

Peter Chawaga

Aaron van Wirdum

Kiara Bickers on Clarifying Bitcoin Jan 08, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, Dave Hollerith talks with Kiara Bickers, author of Bitcoin Clarity: A Guide To Understanding Bitcoin. Bitcoin Clarity is different from other Bitcoin guides because it takes uses "systems thinking" by explaining how and why each part of Bitcoin's system evolved into what it is today.

Topics included in the discussion:

Independent publishing
Approximating decentralization
Bitcoin as a trustless time chain
The value and limits of information
Why Bitcoin Clarity does not dig into privacy
How science and art should not be separated

Links:

Bitcoin Clarity
Kiara Bickers on Twitter
Dave Hollerith on Twitter
Bitcoin Magazine on Twitter

Sponsors:

Etoro

DISCLAIMER: The following content is for informational purposes only. You should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice. Nothing contained in this presentation constitutes a solicitation, recommendation, endorsement, or offer by BTC Media, The Let’s Talk Bitcoin Network, or any third party service provider to buy or sell any securities or other financial instruments.

Trace Mayer on Monetary Sovereignty and Proof of Keys Dec 25, 2019

Show notes

For almost a decade, Bitcoiners from all across the world have celebrated January 3 as Bitcoin’s bonafide birthday. It was on that date in 2009 that Satoshi Nakamoto mined Bitcoin’s genesis block and it was this first successful hash computation that defined the political purpose of Bitcoin with the embedded message: “The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on Brink of Second Bailout for Banks.”

Simply put, Bitcoin is an instrument that is specifically designed to resist the inflationary urges of monetary politics, and its qualities empower individuals to become sovereign. However, the business sector that developed and blossomed around Bitcoin has not always remained true to the cypherpunk origins that created it; Often times, exchanges and lending services impose withdrawal limits, freeze accounts and find other ways to arbitrarily restrict users’ access to their funds.

In this episode, Bitcoin Magazine's Vlad Costea interviews long-time Bitcoiner Trace Mayer. They discuss how some cryptocurrency businesses tend to restrict the concept of sovereignty that the technology was meant to protect, and Mayer's response to the phenomenon, the Proof of Keys event, held every year on January 3.

Proof of Keys [Jan/3➞₿]

Twitter:

Trace Mayer (@TraceMayer)
Vlad Costea (@TheVladCostea)
Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine)

Sponsors:

Celsius Network - Enter "BITCOINMAG" to get $10 off any deposit over $200
Etoro

Bitcoin Happy Hour #10: River Financial Dec 21, 2019

Show notes

Colin and Christian are joined by Andrew Yang (no, not that one) of River Financial to discuss how the newly launched bitcoin exchange plans offer a clean, buttoned-up onramp for newcomers and old-coiners alike--and why they're opting to focus solely on bitcoin.

Twitter

Colin Harper - @AsILayHodling

Christian Keroles - @ck_SNARKs

Andrew Yang - @ecurrencyhodler

Weekly Bits #9: The Open-Source Mission of BTCPay Server Dec 18, 2019

Show notes

The best of Bitcoin tends to come from projects that leave wealth accumulation and personal agendas aside to focus on building on behalf of the community. For an example, look no further than open-source payment portal BTCPay Server. In this episode of the Weekly Bits podcast, Colin Harper joins Peter Chawaga to discuss his latest cover story on the project, the developers behind it and its status as Bitcoin's open-source unicorn.

Resources

BTCPay Server Is Bitcoin’s Open-Source Unicorn

Twitter

Bitcoin Magazine

Peter Chawaga

Colin Harper

Guy Swann on Curating The Best Bitcoin Writing Dec 17, 2019

Show notes

"In Bitcoin, some of the best ideas occur when somebody has just taken the time to sit down and just really break down each concept in writing, and articulated it in a 15 to 20-minute article."

-Guy Swann

In this episode, Dave Hollerith talks with Guy Swann, host of the Cryptoconomy podcast. Guy's show has become a staple in the Bitcoin community for curating and recording some of the best long-form articles about Bitcoin.

Dave and Guy discuss Guy's curation process, what makes a compelling Bitcoin read, Bitcoin maximalism as a reaction to the 2017 ICO boom, some of the historical metaphors used to explain Bitcoin and how technology like Bitcoin and the internet are changing sovereignty.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

A Most Peaceful Revolution
Bitcoin Reformation
Cryptoconomy website
Bitcoin Time Traveller (Updated 2019)
Bitcoin Is Worse Is Better (CryptoQuikRead)
The Sovereign Individual

Twitter:

Guy Swann (@TheCryptoconomy)
Dave Hollerith (@DsHollers)
Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine)

Sponsors:

Celsius Network - Enter "BITCOINMAG" to get $10 off any deposit over $200
Etoro

Bitcoin Happy Hour #9: Mining, (Mis)use and Media Dec 13, 2019

Show notes

In this week’s episode, Colin, Christian, Brandon and Michael discuss the current state of mining as we approach the new year, a provocative op-ed on the crypto’s utility and the role of journalism in the space.

Philip Gradwell on the Economic Data Behind Blockchain Analysis Dec 11, 2019

Show notes

The work of blockchain analysis companies such as Chainalysis isn’t always welcomed by privacy advocates. However, if you're a Bitcoiner who cares about the future of the industry, this work is always worth watching.

And there tend to be two great narratives that we hear about how these companies affect Bitcoin.

One is that they bring more transparency and in turn increase Bitcoin’s adoption and legitimacy. The other is that they are leveraging data from the Bitcoin blockchain to provide better surveillance for corporate entities and nation-states at the expense of financial privacy.

Coming to the end of what appears to be a successful year of growth, Chainalysis cut 20 percent of its workforce back in November.

Today I’ve got an interview with Philip Gradwell, he’s the Chief Economist at Chainalysis. We talk about what exactly is gleaned from blockchain analysis products, why they are seeing so much growth in Asia Pacific, why they cut 39 employees and whether they are putting resources into tracking off-chain transactions (final question).

Resources:

Twitter:

Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine)
Dave Hollerith (@DsHollers)
Philip Gradwell (@philip_gradwell)

Sponsors:

Celsius Network - Enter "BITCOINMAG" to get $10 off any deposit over $200
Etoro

Weekly Bits #8: The Decentralization of Bitcoin Mining Dec 11, 2019

Show notes

The bitcoin mining industry has always been dominated by China, but a growing trend of operations opening up in North America raises interesting questions about the decentralization of the practice. Listen to this week's episode as Cassie Clifton, host of the What's Halvening? Podcast and all-around mining expert, talks to Peter about the future of Bitcoin's most critical sector.

Resources

Bitcoin Mining in North America: A New Gold Rush in the New World

Twitter