Bitcoin came into this world in 2009 as a currency that exists only on the internet. As its recognition spread, its value has increased, getting many people engaged in Bitcoin mining to gain profits. However, Bitcoin mining requires massive computation to prevent data tampering, which raises concerns regarding energy consumption and environmental pollution.
“Watt is Money?” visualizes Bitcoin’s energy consumption by utilizing data taken from the “Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index(CBECI)”, which is made publicly available by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance at the University of Cambridge to explain the energy consumption of Bitcoin’s mining. We hope to provide an understanding of the current situation around Bitcoin and chances to think about the future of crypto-currency.
This project has also had early access to new data from the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, which presents estimates of the greenhouse gas emissions related to Bitcoin.
