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33 sats \ 6 replies \ @kepford 31 Dec 2024 \ on: The Energy Cost of Cryptocurrency bitcoin_Mining
There is zero issue with energy usage. It's about whether you believe bitcoin is a worth while project. Bitcoin is energy usage is dwarfed by things like refrigeration. Why aren't people up in arms about refrigeration? They see the value. I think Facebook and most of the gaming industry is a waste of energy but that's just an opinion. I have no right to decide how anyone besides myself uses energy. Those that want to tell others what usage of energy is acceptable are promoting the enslavement of humanty through totalitarianism.
That might sound radical but if you stop and think about it is completely logical and rational.
Yeah, this is FUD.
Ask them if they are concerned about AI energy usage.
Also, what energy scarcity? As demand grows supply grows. As more AI server farms are planned we will see more clean power generation. Same goes for bitcoin. We are never gonna run out of energy. It's a lie I have heard since the 80s. Peak oil is one version of this. It's a joke.
Good points
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Another consideration is that bitcoin mining ops economically are incentivized to seek power sources that are not being fully unitized. Cheap power that is often wasted. Few understand that a significant amount of electricity is lost in transmission and as a power consumer that can easily power up and down mining ops are great balancers for grid operations.
This is true is grids with solar and wind where production and consumption are often the inverse of each other. Power producers will often make agreements with mining operations that provide more stability in demand and therefore encourage expansion of power generation.
In the current climate people are fed a scarcity mindset around energy but enegy abundance is directly connected with human flourishing.
In Africa mining operators are helping expand power access to areas that are very dark. They have a chicken egg problem where people don't have enough devices to consume power (Refrigerators, lights, AC) and if they were to buy them power would not be available. Power producers lack the demand for power to justify expanding power generation. Mining ops can provide demand and the people then have infra for power they would not otherwise have.
Another example of mining finding standed or wasted energy are stranded natural gas wells. These wells have to be burned off and wasted to avoid poluting the air. Mining ops have colocated with these wells using this natgas to generators that power mining rigs.
I have yet to hear a fair argument against bitcoin related to energy. Those making arguements are either misinformed or just hate it.
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Very true
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How can we modernize or expand our energy infrastructure to minimize 'wasted' energy or utilize as much as possible 'surplus' energy from solar, wind and stranded natural gas wells?