Chapter I

Philosophy

The mouse looked ather rather inquisitively, and seemed to her to wink with one of its littleeyes, but it said nothing.

Looking at Bitcoin superficially, one might conclude that it isslow, wasteful, unnecessarily redundant, and overly paranoid. Looking atBitcoin inquisitively, one might find out that things are not as they seemat first glance.

Bitcoin has a way of taking your assumptions and turning them ontheir heads. After a while, just when you were about to get comfortableagain, Bitcoin will smash through the wall like a bull in a china shop andshatter your assumptions once more.

Bitcoin is a child of many disciplines. Like blind monks examiningan elephant, everyone who approaches this novel technology does so from adifferent angle. And everyone will come to different conclusions about thenature of the beast.

The following lessons are about some of my assumptions whichBitcoin shattered, and the conclusions I arrived at. Philosophical questionsof immutability, scarcity, locality, and identity are explored in the firstfour lessons.

Lesson 1:Immutability and change

Lesson 2: Thescarcity of scarcity

Lesson 3:Replication and locality

Lesson 4: Theproblem of identity

Lesson 5: Animmaculate conception

Lesson 6: Thepower of free speech

Lesson 7: Thelimits of knowledge

Lesson 5 explores how Bitcoin’s origin story is not onlyfascinating but absolutely essential for a leaderless system. The last twolessons of this chapter explore the power of free speech and the limits ofour individual knowledge, reflected by the surprising depth of the Bitcoinrabbit hole.

I hope that you will find the world of Bitcoin as educational,fascinating and entertaining as I did and still do. I invite you to followthe white rabbit and explore the depths of this rabbit hole. Now hold on toyour pocket watch, pop down, and enjoy the fall.