Outstanding Information

Cryptocurrencies: Mineable vs Non-MineableIn terms of mineable crypto currencies (or cryptocurrency mining), this refers to the process whereby new cryptocurrency digital coins are created when a miner successfully verifies a cryptocurrency transaction and adds it to a public ledger within the cryptocurrency network.

Examples of top ten mineable cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin/Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Dash, Litecoin, Monero, Ethereum Classic, BitConnect, Zcash, and Steem according to coinmarketcap.com, while the top ten non-mineable cryptocurrencies include EOS, IOTA, Lisk, NEM, NEO, Omisego, Qtum, Ripple, Stratis and Waves.

Thought makes “data agile” and able to act on its own without any external help according to Professor Hacker. And, integrating blockchain technology with this concept creates an extra layer of security on the smallest level. Every piece of data is secured with cryptography, thereby allowing the owners of the data to dictate exactly who has access to it.

By way of example, take a hospital room where all of the equipment communicates with each other. So, the thermostat can communicate with the patient’s health record and his/her current health readings from the equipment and find the most optimal room temperature and humidity for this patient. But that is only the thermostat.

With Thought’s solution one does not require any third-party applications to make it happen; the information is able to communicate with other pieces of data to make this happen. There are also many other challenges facing the healthcare sector, with it being littered with tons and tons of ancient systems and applications, many of which do not talk to each other.

With Thought’s Smart Data concept all these disparate systems are enabled to talk to each other to be in a position to translate the data and read the systems. It’s also held up as being “infinitely cheaper and faster” according to Professor Hacker.


Monopolistic World Of AIIn addition, Thought is touted as being able to bring “equality and accessibility” to the highly monopolistic world of AI, where only large companies like Amazon, Facebook and Google have the capability to develop artificial intelligence. 

“Until this day, access to AI and Big Data has been limited to only a handful of organizations, but for seeing true innovation take place, AI and data have to become easily accessed and available to everyone who is looking to work with this emerging technology,” asserted Nathaniel DiMemmo, Thought’s Chief Operating Officer.Thought is building what is described as a “foundational, information transformation network” with data as the commodity.

Participants are able to exchange data and applications. Add to that the ecosystem is able to host “data-hungry applications” for researchers in fields like AI, healthcare, transportation and communications.

In fact the proposition is put forward as being applicable and deployable across various industries, so effectively industry agnostic. As such the open marketplace of information opens up “new possibilities for smaller organizations to utilize AI” according to Professor Hacker, who worked for the state of Pennsylvania in a senior cybersecurity role during a six-year tenure.

Blockchain’s Unparalleled SecurityIntegrating blockchain technology is said to introduce “unparalleled security” to the whole ecosystem of Thought. “Using blockchain technology allows us to protect every bit of information with multi-layered encryption, creating the highest level of security,” explained Samuel Jones, Chief Software Engineer for Thought.

Building something as complex as Thought requires - as one might expect - highly dedicated and technically savvy professionals as well as knowledgeable advisors.

To this end Thought’s development team comprises over fifteen members and a board of advisors ranging from PhDs to a retired Army Colonel.Gil O’Brien, CMO of Thought who is based in New York, commenting in relation to the team behind the project noted: “With dedicated and experienced professionals in their respective fields we have managed to solve all of the issues that have stood in our way and have powered towards the completion of our platform.

”Platform Overview

The Thought platform is touted as being able to be applied to any industry or data problem. It is based entirely around one of the smallest units in computing: the individual piece of data.

In the current paradigm, that piece of data is being routed through servers, stored in data centers, and compiled and sifted through big data analytics and AI algorithms.It brings what is described as a “new paradigm” in that it is a platform facilitating a holistic ecosystem of innovative developers and their applications relying on strong data governance to guarantee privacy, ownership and provenance.

Specifically, it consists of three layers, namely: (1) Information Layer - Nuances and concepts that control the compute layer through the Fabric; (2) Fabric Layer - Thought software abstraction; and (3) Compute Layer - All computer resources that are joined to the network.

For its part, Harrisburg University, a private non-profit university offering bachelor and graduate degree programs in science, technology and math fields, is committed to providing women with more opportunities in the STEM fields, to an educational group that is boosting STEM education in middle schools and high schools.

The university has founded and partnered with numerous innovative technology and education businesses over the years.According to Dr. Eric Darr, President, Harrisburg University of Science & Technology (since May 2013), and one of the advisors to Thought, said the upcoming release of the Thought Blockchain and its applications for businesses and consumers in AI and analytics “represent the bleeding-edge of innovation.

”The university is understood to have provided seed capital for Thought to progress the initiatives being pursued by Professor Hacker, a cybersecurity expert in Residence at Harrisburg University, to fully build out the venture's vision and platform. And, it is Hacker who conceived and developed the concept of hybrid and smart data over the past six years.

Dr Darr added: “We came to believe that Mr. Hacker’s technology had significant promise. Therefore, Harrisburg University has been pleased to financially support the involvement of many computer science students in the further development of the latest Thought technology.

”Industry ViewDr John Bates, CEO of Testplant, a firm majority owned by The Carlyle Groupthat offers a suite of digital automation intelligence tools, commenting from San Francisco in relation to Thought’s proposition, said: “I worked on intelligent mobile agent technology back in the 1990s during my time as a Cambridge academic. 

The concept was to be able to send both data and application intelligence - encapsulated as an “agent” that could be transmitted across networks to run anywhere.

”The Englishman who has a Cambridge PhD and is listed as one of the ‘Tech 50’ most influential technologists by Institutional Investor over five consecutive years (2011-2015), added: “If THOUGHT can achieve what they claim then they are able to transmit AI-enabled agents securely and transactionally across networks, using Blockchain - in guaranteed transactions - which can then run only for the right owner(s).

”Elaborating further Dr Bates, who holds a doctorate in computer science from Cambridge University in the U.K. and author of the book Thingalytics: Smart Big Data Analytics for the Internet of Things, posited: “Imagine not just sending currency securely (a la Blockchain), but being able to send intelligent data apps securely. In the Internet-of-Things (IoT) era, these might be transmitted between networked hardware, which could have good and bad implications.

"Furthermore, as Bates, who previously worked at Software AG, an enterprise software company with over 10,000 enterprise customers in more than seventy countries that is listed on Deutsche Boerse, and former CEO at Plat.One (acquired by SAP in 2016), more broadly stated: "Law enforcement agents in the field can share multi-dimensional information securely.

But - in the vein of the Salisbury attacks in the U.K. - could a rogue AI agent, disguised as a smart downloadable recipe, take over the kitchen so to speak, and identify me as the target and electrically shock me?” That certainly makes one think.That aside, Bates ventured: “I think bundling AI logic and data together with security and Blockchain sounds wonderful.

We just have to ensure we know what that AI can ultimately do, because if something can learn and evolve, then we don’t necessarily know the limits of what we are securely receiving.”Having completed its pre-Initial Coin Offering (ICO), Thought launched their main token sale in recent days this March.

For more information on the project and the concept can be accessed via their whitepaper.


Follow Roger, an ex-FT writer who has penned various investment stories, on Twitter @AitkenRL, LinkedIn, Forbes, Google+.

He won a State Street Institutional Press award in 2015.

Discover even more stories on Forbes here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/rogeraitken/2018/03/18/hacker-launches-public-mineable-blockchain-thoug...

Leigh Cuen   

Cryptocurrency mining is perfectly legal in Europe and only subject to standard electricity rules, according to an EU commissioner.In a statement released last week, Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, addressed concerns about the power-intensive nature of cryptocurrency mining, while clarifying the regulatory status of the industry.Gabriel said:

"If the energy consumed for this activity is produced according to law, there is no legal basis to forbid or even limit it. ... As mining of cryptocurrency is not an illegal activity, the Commission did not put in place any means to track it, so far." 

However, as an electricity-consuming economic activity, mining is subject to EU rules regarding "energy efficiency, the power sector and greenhouse gases emissions," she added.Gabriel went on to say the European Commission would continue to review the growing impact cryptocurrencies have on energy consumption and demand.As mentioned by the commissioner, it's not currently clear how much bitcoin mining is carried out within the EU.

Mining activity, she pointed out, is still currently concentrated in China, despite hints that regulators there may move to clamp down on the industry. "Nevertheless, it cannot be excluded that some part of the mining is done in the EU," Gabriel said.As reported by the Washington Post recently, Iceland, which generates most of its own electricity through hydroelectric power stations, now has more prospective cryptocurrency mining projects than the island's energy supply could support.

Iceland, however, is not a full EU member, but is part of the European Economic Area.Experts told the Post that bitcoin mining alone consumes roughly 0.14 percent of the world's generated electricity supply - a conundrum some in the blockchain industry believe creates a strong incentive for experiments with sustainable energy solutions.

Mariya Gabriel image via Shutterstock

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

Blockchain technologies have already irrevocably changed many industries, with the most obvious example being finance. Fortunes are both made and lost with cryptocurrencies, but the blockchain itself acts as a constant and new force in the finance sector.

However, the blockchain is about far more than money, and many governments and organizations have started looking at what else it can do. A new project in Finland utilizes the blockchain to help refugees adjust to their new lives.

BLOCKCHAIN FOR THE UNBANKED

Given the devastating conflicts arising in the Middle East and appalling economic conditions elsewhere in the world, many refugees have sought asylum and safety in European and Scandinavian nations.

Many of these people do not have much, and making sure that they have identifying documents is the last thing on anyone’s mind when seeking to escape death. This presents a huge problem in the traditional banking model we have set up today.

As many of us know, it can be incredibly frustrating to set up a bank account. Doing so requires countless documents and time even for settled members of society. 

Unbanked individuals have a much harder time getting settled anywhere, since employers require that one have a bank account into which to send wages, landlords far prefer bank transfers to cash, and there is a certain level of security a bank provides that hiding spaces in homes do not.

Finland has come up with a pretty interesting solution to combat these problems with the help of the blockchain. In a partnership with a company called MONI, the Finnish government has provided prepaid Mastercard debit cards to those refugees who do not have bank accounts.

This is a sharp break from the past, when cash was simply dispersed.Each card has a unique identifier that is stored on the blockchain. This immediately eliminates the need for a third party bank or other financial institution to require verifying identities.

The card and cardholder are given that identity, it is stored on an immutable blockchain, and the account’s private keys can only be associated with the cardholder.

Advantages for the cardholders are incredible. These individuals went from barely being able to live a safe life to not having to worry about whether they are employable given their unbanked status. This is because the card acts like a bank account and can receive direct deposits from users’ employers.

Since only cardholders would have access to the private keys associated with the card, positively identifying individuals is both easy and secure. In fact, it seems the identities of...continue reading: 
https://themerkle.com/finland-uses-the-blockchain-to-help-refugees/

Auto Req ID:28136BR

Job Title:Blockchain Engineer

Location:Dearborn

State:MI

Company:Ford Motor Company

Job Description
Ford Motor Company’s Mobility Research organization is looking for candidates to develop new, enabling mobility technologies to support the Ford Smart Mobility solutions.

We are looking for a strategic thinker and researcher to lead and pioneer work in the branch of Blockchain technology applied to mobility use cases that would help deliver superior user experiences for our customers in the further.

You will have the opportunity to work in a highly dynamic environment that embraces a start-up mindset mode and encourages transformational thinking.

Together our team works to understand our changing world, identify new opportunities and changing mobility preferences, and take actions to design and innovate for the future of mobility needs.



Position Responsibilities:

• Collaborate with internal organizations to execute development of Blockchain-powered applications by taking requirements and turning them into architected solutions. This includes selecting the right development platform and determining which functionality to include in various development sprints.
• Lead hypothesis development, planning and execution of pilot launch to mature promising concepts into prototypes
• For successful prototypes, develop MVP requirements with domain experts
• Tailor the agile development process to suit the Blockchain software product development
• Develop SME-level knowledge of emerging technologies, specifically Blockchain usage in the transportation space. Identify white space opportunities for new experiments
• Support research activities including benchmarking, customer research and interviews
• Author presentations to management of difference levels and present the technology to a diverse audiences

Required Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in CS, EE, IT or related technical fields
• 5+ years of combined work experience in Distributed computing, distribute ledger and Blockchain, and/or Hyperledger technology.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Ph.D. Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics preferred
• Experience with digital currencies like Bitcoin
• Experience with modern DevOps tools and workflows such as GitHub, Jira, etc.
• Experience with agile development (SCRUM, Kanban, etc.) and test automation (behavior, unit and integration testing with tools like cucumber, mocha, etc.)
• Team player with good collaborative decision making skills
• Well organized and ability to work with minimal supervision
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional teams in project development
• Experience working and presenting to large teams including Technical Leaders, Managers and Directors
• Proven and demonstrable experience in security and cryptography
• Proven and demonstrable experience in distributed computing, distribute ledger and Blockchain and/or Hyperledger technology
• Proven and demonstrable experience in infrastructure architecture design in the cloud such as AWS and/or Azure
• Significant experience in deploying highly scalable and highly robust software systems and solutions (SaaS, PaaS and IaaS) in the cloud
• Significant experience in multiple server and web technologies, services and APIs (e.g., RESTful and SOAP)
• Significant experience in Java and relational database and public key infrastructure (PKI)
• Ability to communicate technical matters clearly and effectively to both technical and non-technical team members
• Strong written, oral and interpersonal communication skills

The distance between imagination and … creation. It can be measured in years of innovation, or in moments of brilliance. When you join the Ford team discover all the benefits, rewards and development opportunities you’d expect from a diverse global leader. You’ll become part of a team that is already leading the way, with ingenious solutions and attainable products – and it is always ready to go further.

Visa sponsorship may be available for this position.

Ford Motor Company is an equal opportunity employer committed to a culturally diverse workforce. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status.

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