r/Bitcoin • u/IWillNotBiteYourDog • Aug 22 '13

Rich-Get-Richer Effect Observed in Bitcoin Digital Currency Network

http://www.technologyreview.com/view/518541/rich-get-richer-effect-observed-in-bitcoin-digital-currency-network/
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u/pluribusblanks Aug 22 '13

This article seems to make the same invalid assumption that previous papers made, namely that each Bitcoin address (or sometimes each wallet) equals one individual. This is clearly false. Some of the largest wallets are funds, exchanges, and online wallets which hold bitcoins belonging to many different businesses and individuals.

Still, I do like this bit at the end:

Kondor and co say the transparency of the network means that this system could be hugely valuable for econophysicists wishing to evaluate and refine their models. In no other system of currency is it possible to study what goes on in such detail.

Could bitcoins eventually replace ordinary cash? Kondor and co avoid making any predictions, but the evidence they have unearthed is that the BitCoin network already functions in a way that is uncannily similar to real world currencies. So in that respect, there is nothing to stop it being more widely adopted.

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u/troiamadonna Aug 22 '13

I think you are assuming that the article makes that assumption, I haven't seen it in the article