Every $1 of BTC value responsible for $0.49 in health and climate damages in US

"Cryptocurrency mining uses significant amounts of energy as part of the proof-of-work time-stamping scheme to add new blocks to the chain. Expanding upon previously calculated energy use patterns for mining four prominent cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Monero), we estimate the per coin economic damages of air pollution emissions and associated human mortality and climate impacts of mining these cryptocurrencies in the US and China. Results indicate that in 2018, each $1 of Bitcoin value created was responsible for $0.49 in health and climate damages in the US and $0.37 in China. The similar value in China relative to the US occurs despite the extremely large disparity between the value of a statistical life estimate for the US relative to that of China. Further, with each cryptocurrency, the rising electricity requirements to produce a single coin can lead to an almost inevitable cliff of negative net social benefits, absent perpetual price increases. For example, in December 2018, our results illustrate a case (for Bitcoin) where the health and climate change 'cryptodamages' roughly match each $1 of coin value created. We close with discussion of policy implications."

BTC is a financial virus on the human race. It appeals to greed and forever wealthy, while destroying the environment and consuming electricity.

Government should have shut it down long ago.

This is about the furthest thing from “science”. Just sensationalist propaganda. It’s so far from being even remotely plausible. Maybe 1 BTC is responsible for $0.49 of “damage” if you could ever actually quantify it. Most of this electricity comes from the cheapest source of power, which is hydro.

We should, in fact, stop making the penny, and devise plans to retire the nickel as well.

Dimes and quarters are perfectly fine. The $1 coin gets a certain amount of press by people touting it as a potential replacement to the bill, but it turns out the US $1 bill is remarkably cost-effective by paper currency standards, and should probably remain paper for the time being.

As opposed to fiat, which funds war and enormous waste via unrestrained printing....