Making “green” with Bitcoin apparently not so green
Cryptocurrencies: a reminder to the data center industry to remain vigilant on efficiency Cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, have been in the news a lot recently due to their extreme volatility and their ability to make overnight millionaires. While some people are touting these digital currencies with no government or financial institution backing as the way of the future, others warn this is all just empty speculation… a giant soap bubble ready to pop. As most of us watch and wait, there have also been stories saying Bitcoin transactions are terribly unsustainable from an energy use standpoint. How could that be so? Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies rely on decentralization and distributed IT resources to maintain the integrity of the block chain. In one study, Digiconomist , created a Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index to highlight the energy being used in these block chain transactions. They’re claiming a SINGLE transaction consumes 306 kWh ...