The Blockchain Is Starting to Live Up to Its Potential: from Bloomberg. “A blockchain is a digital database, or ledger, used to record information and transactions in a collaborative manner. While it’s more complex and expensive to run than a traditional database created and maintained by a central party, it has important advantages in security and public trust. Blockchains are more secure, because no individual or entity can change or view any data except with the appropriate cryptographic private key. No company or IT worker or hacker or court order or disgruntled ex-spouse or drug company has access to your data without your permission. Almost all successful cryptocurrencies are based on blockchains, but blockchains need not have any ties to crypto to function…[It] has moved beyond cryptocurrencies and is being used in everything from health care to elections.”
José Ortega y Gasset: “Liberalism – it is well to recall today – is the supreme form of generosity; it is the right which the majority concedes to minorities and hence is the noblest cry that has ever resounded on this planet. It announces the determination to share existence with the enemy; more than that, with an enemy which is weak. It was incredible that the human species should have arrived at so noble an attitude, so paradoxical, so refined, so anti-natural. Hence it is not to be wondered that this same humanity should soon appear anxious to get rid of it. It is a discipline too difficult and complex to take firm root on earth.” [via CafeHayek]
David Perell: “In this essay, I’ll outline a plan for saving the Liberal Arts. I’ll start with their history by going back to the origins of Western thinking. I’ll argue that we can only think about education clearly once we split it into two halves: civilized and professional. To explain why, I’ll outline the evolution of the Liberal Arts, from the ancients to where we are today. I’ll show why we’ve devalued their study by serving our wallets instead of our souls. Finally, I’ll propose a plan to create a modern Liberal Arts school with lower costs, expanded access, and students who graduate with a holistic view of the world and an appreciation for civilization’s greatest works.”
