The Bitcoin Library is a resource for learning about all aspects of Bitcoin related to the Bitcoin Classroom material provided on this site and teaching it in the classroom.
Bitcoin: General Info
What is Bitcoin? How does it work? Learn the Bitcoin Basics:
Nakamoto, Satoshi. “Bitcoin.”
https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf
This is the very first paper written about Bitcoin. It is the Bitcoin Whitepaper, written by an anonymous person or persons under the pseudonym “Satoshi Nakamoto”.
Acheson, Noelle. “Bitcoin Guides Archive.” CoinDesk, CoinDesk, 16 Apr. 2018, www.coindesk.com/information/.
Coindesk provides a solid resource of articles that explains Bitcoin bit by bit to new interested parties. They provide clear diagrams and explanations that are both beginner friendly and technically accurate.
Oleganza. “Bitcoin Is like…” Oleg Andreev, 8 May 2014, blog.oleganza.com/post/85111558553/bitcoin-is-like.
This is a short resource of analogies. It describes some things that Bitcoin can be related to. These might provide some good analogies for new students of Bitcoin and can be used as examples in a classroom setting to give the audience of educators some ideas.
“Bitcoin Resources.” The World Factbook – Central Intelligence Agency, lopp.net/bitcoin.html.
Jameson Lopp provides one of the best Bitcoin resource databases available. This website provides technical video links, podcast links, discussion links, technical resources, and much more. It’s a miniature library about Bitcoin and can be used in the presentation as a resource for educators.
Custodio, Nik. “Explain Bitcoin Like I’m Five – FreeCodeCamp.” FreeCodeCamp, FreeCodeCamp, 12 Dec. 2013, medium.freecodecamp.org/explain-bitcoin-like-im-five-73b4257ac833.
This is a resource that seeks to explain the concept of Bitcoin to a 5 year old. The goal is to keep it as simple yet accurate as possible, and it will help to add variety to the difficult concepts of Bitcoin. Educators can even use this concept in the classroom by explaining a technical aspect of Bitcoin in depth and then allowing students to create a project where they are asked to describe an aspect of Bitcoin to a 5 year old.
“Heading H1.” Bitcoin Explained – Illustrated Beginner’s Guide, www.upfolio.com/ultimate-bitcoin-guide.
Upfolio is an excellent illustrated, simple guide to Bitcoin for beginners. They use great visuals and brief explanations in short steps to explain difficult concepts. This website is a great model for the presentation and can also be used to give educators some content ideas.
Palasz, Christopher. “Unmasking The Bitcoin Frenzy.” Carbon Chris, www.carbonchris.com/blog/2017/11/25/unmasking-the-bitcoin-frenzy.
This resource is rich in images and explains the different aspects of Bitcoin and targets beginners. This blog post includes several great angles, analogies, images, and resources which might be beneficial to the final project presentation.
Song, Jimmy. “Why Bitcoin Is Different than Other Cryptocurrencies.” Medium, Augmenting Humanity, 15 May 2017, medium.com/@jimmysong/why-bitcoin-is-different-than-other-cryptocurrencies-e16b17d48b94.
Bitcoin Developer, writer, coder, and instructor Jimmy Song gives a general overview that covers several aspects of Bitcoin that will be discussed in the presentation. There are numerous ways that this resource can be used to add and strengthen it.
Song, Jimmy. “Why Bitcoin Is Different – Jimmy Song – Medium.” Medium, Augmenting Humanity, 2 Apr. 2018, medium.com/@jimmysong/why-bitcoin-is-different-e17b813fd947.
This resource of Jimmy Song’s can be used to explain certain features of Bitcoin such as decentralization and why they’re important. This concept is central to Bitcoin.
Bitcoin & Ethics
These articles will provide great resources that can be referenced when explaining how Bitcoin ties in with ethics and how Bitcoin can be used to teach about ethics.
Berger, Bennat. “The Ethics of Bitcoin: Is the Cryptocurrency Better for Banking?” Medium, Augmenting Humanity, 5 Apr. 2018, medium.com/@BennatBerger/the-ethics-of-bitcoin-is-the-cryptocurrency-better-for-banking-5379a780bcb5.
Berger makes a case for using Bitcoin as a global currency. He presents positives and challenges of that happening. This resource can help to show how using Bitcoin as a global currency can be a matter of ethics by allowing individuals who live in oppressive nation states to take control of their finances.
Booth, Philip. “The Economics, and Ethics, of Bitcoin.” The Transatlantic Blog, 15 Dec. 2017, acton.org/publications/transatlantic/2017/12/15/economics-and-ethics-bitcoin.
Booth discusses both the economics and ethics of Bitcoin. They are related because Bitcoin is a currency, and it is believed that Bitcoin can benefit impoverished nations by allowing anyone to transact, peer to peer, without government interference.
Coinbrief. “Bitcoin Journalists: The Ethics of Owning Bitcoin.” 99 Bitcoins, 99 Bitcoins, 99bitcoins.com/bitcoin-journalist-ethics/.
Coinbrief covers the ethics of owning Bitcoin. They cover topics that other articles don’t cover, and help to provide arguments that might be brought up by critics. For example, does owning Bitcoin create a conflict of interest?
Bitcoin, Game Theory, & Information Theory
These resources will provide quotes and information to explain what Game Theory and Information Theory are, why they’re important to Bitcoin, and how they can further benefit students who understand them.
Finestone, Matthew. “Game Theory and Blockchain – Matthew Finestone – Medium.” Medium, Augmenting Humanity, 5 Jan. 2018, medium.com/@matthewfinestone/game-theory-and-blockchain-db46e67933d7.
This article specifically covers how the game theory in Bitcoin works. This is one of the coolest concepts which is also tied to economics. It explains how Bitcoin uses incentives to prevent dishonest parties from destroying Bitcoin.
“Networks.” Remembering Gettysburg, blogs.cornell.edu/info2040/2017/10/20/game-theory-in-cryptocurrency/.
This is a very brief article which gets into some technical details about how someone might try to cheat Bitcoin and why the Game Theory and Information Theory would prevent them from succeeding.
Bitcoin and Elliptical Curve Mathematics
Here are some excellent explanations of how elliptical curve mathematics are used in Bitcoin with a wide range of reader friendliness.
Knutson, Hans. “What Is the Math behind Elliptic Curve Cryptography?” Hacker Noon, Hacker Noon, 7 Apr. 2018, hackernoon.com/what-is-the-math-behind-elliptic-curve-cryptography-f61b25253da3.
This article on Hacker Noon describes in detail how the math behind elliptical curves works in cryptography.
Level: Intermediate
“Elliptic Curve Cryptography: a Gentle Introduction.” Andrea Corbellini Atom, andrea.corbellini.name/2015/05/17/elliptic-curve-cryptography-a-gentle-introduction/.
Andrea describes this as “a gentle introduction” but I don’t think it is, which means that the concept explanations can get a lot deeper!
Level: Advanced
Elliptic Curve Point Addition (ℝ), cdn.rawgit.com/andreacorbellini/ecc/920b29a/interactive/reals-add.html.
This is an interactive elliptical curve addition tool.
Oleganza. “ELI5: How Digital Signatures Actually Work.” Oleg Andreev, 11 July 2017, blog.oleganza.com/post/162861219668/eli5-how-digital-signatures-actually-work.
This is simplest explanation of how digital signatures work on a technical level.
Level: Beginner
Bitcoin, Economics & Politics
These resources will provide valuable examples and insight into the economics and politics of a world with Bitcoin. It will be great to contrast Bitcoin economics because it would change the world drastically.
Frank, John. “Colorado Wants to Allow Political Donations in Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrency.” The Denver Post, The Denver Post, 21 May 2018, www.denverpost.com/2018/05/17/colorado-cryptocurrency-bitcoin-political-contributions/.
This article is real world application to explain how Bitcoin is being adopted today as a currency. States are beginning to allow people to pay taxes in Bitcoin, and political campaigns are starting to accept Bitcoin as a campaign contribution.
BTCTheory.com. “Bitcoin Theory.” Bitcoin Theory, btctheory.com/.
Bitcion Theory has great charts and explanations about Bitcoin and it’s growth and adoption. It goes into history and describes why Bitcoin is superior to fiat currencies that currently are in use, such as the US Dollar. It also talks about the nature of politics within the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Moshinsky, Ben. “Bitcoin Isn’t Money – It’s a ‘Censorship-Resistant Asset Class’.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 11 Oct. 2017, uk.businessinsider.com/is-bitcoin-money-censorship-2017-10.
This resource provides great images and real world examples to demonstrate Bitcoin in application. It focuses on the censorship resistant nature of Bitcoin, how that works, and why it’s so important.
Song, Jimmy. “Why Bitcoin Works – Jimmy Song – Medium.” Medium, Augmenting Humanity, 17 Apr. 2018, medium.com/@jimmysong/why-bitcoin-works-fe32879a73f5.
Song goes through a book on economics to explain why Bitcoin works. He discusses inflation and uses some pretty funny images that can be used in a presentation. He talks about money supply and fiat not being secure.
“Wisconsin Mulls Allowing Bitcoin Donations for Political Campaigns.” CCN, 25 Apr. 2018, www.ccn.com/wisconsin-mulls-allowing-bitcoin-donations-for-political-campaigns/.
This resource is similar to the article about Colorado, but is regarding the state of Wisconsin. It will be used in the same way as the other article but will provide another example and more details on that topic.
Wood, Aaron. “Bill To Allow To Pay Taxes In Bitcoin Passes Arizona House Committee.” Cointelegraph, Cointelegraph, 28 May 2018, cointelegraph.com/news/bill-to-allow-to-pay-taxes-in-bitcoin-passes-arizona-house-committee.
This article will be used along side the article about Colorado and Wisconsin, and it’s about NAU’s home state of Arizona! These articles will work together to show how Bitcoin is gaining lots of traction and legitimacy in the world of finance.
Bitcoin & Rhetoric
Handa, Carolyn Patricia. Visual Rhetoric in a Digital World: a Critical Sourcebook. Bedford / St. Martins, 2004.
In this textbook on Visual Rhetoric, Handa provides a wealth of articles that take a deep look at how visual rhetoric works in education and how it doesn’t work. There are several great resources that can be drawn from to describe how Bitcoin can demonstrate the kind of examples that are important to media literacy.
Koltay, Tibor. “The Media and the Literacies: Media Literacy, Information Literacy, Digital Literacy.” Media, Culture & Society, vol. 33, no. 2, 2011, pp. 211–221., doi:10.1177/0163443710393382.
In this resource, Koltay gets into the importance of digital media literacy. This is extremely important for connecting Bitcoin because it is a digital media technology, entirely. Koltay makes great arguments about the importance of having classroom material that is relevant to the students, and Bitcoin greatly satisfies that requirement.
Little, Deandra. “Teaching Visual Literacy across the Curriculum: Suggestions and Strategies.” New Directions for Teaching and Learning, vol. 2015, no. 141, 2015, pp. 87–90., doi:10.1002/tl.20125.
Deandra Little can be applied to several different types of classrooms, depending on where Bitcoin is used. In this case, I see the greatest application coming from an ethics or economics classroom. Because Bitcoin is a depreciating currency as opposed to today’s appreciating currencies, Bitcoin can provide very insightful images and critical thinking for student learners in such a setting.
Sturken, Marita, and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking: an Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press, 2009.
Sturken and Cartwright’s practice of looking will help to explain how Bitcoin can be used to successfully show students the visual aspects of different parts of the world. Bitcoin can be used globally, but it will be mean different things to different people around the world, depending on the culture and society. This is because Bitcoin is money, and money can mean completely different things depending on where a person is.
