Robert Ross (FoldingCoin): Edinburgh Bitcoin Meetup #24
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One of the incredible things about Bitcoin is the variety of different ways in which blockchain technology is currently being used to address a wide range of problems across a variety of fields. Arguably one of the most intriguing of these use cases involves harnessing the immense power within the network to push ahead medical research.
For this month's Edinburgh meetup, I'm delighted to announce that we'll have Robert Ross of FoldingCoin calling in to the meetup. Put simply, FoldingCoin is a token that you earn by helping scientists cure diseases!
Background
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sJx9z1uB9k
Folding@home is a long running project that began in Oct of 2000 from the folks Stanford University that lets your spare CPU or GPU simulate complex protein folding. The results of all this distributed computation is tabulated and analyzed to help new find new medicines and cures to be derived to some of the worst diseases faced by man.
The problem with the existing system however is that there's no reward for sharing your computer cycles in this way. You can join a team and you can earn points, but there is no profit motive to help with research.
Distributed on a schedule, FoldingCoin was developed and distributed is given to those that donate cycles to Folding@home based on their individual contributions. This new currency can be transferred from person to person using the Bitcoin blockchain and the Counterparty protocol.
Join Us
The night's free and open to anyone who's intrigued by Bitcoin and blockchain technology, whether you're hugely experienced or a total beginner who just wants to learn more about what's going on in Scotland and beyond. We tend to have a mix of folk from all backgrounds at the event and inevitably we'll end up continuing the discussion in the pub for those who are able to stick around.
Any questions, as ever please get in touch (@BitcoinScot or @dugcampbell). Look forward to seeing you there - it's going to be a good one!
Cheers
Dug
Venue Information
Please try to arrive fairly sharp in time for the start of the talk if at all possible. If you have any issues getting in for whatever reason, text the mobile number that should be displayed on the door and someone will pop down to get you.
PS. First heads up: there will be a Bitcoin event as part of this year's Turing Festival in Edinburgh (http://www.turingfestival.com/). More details to follow!
PPS. There are all sorts of discussions taking place currently on the Bitcoin Scotland Slack channel about building local Bitcoin businesses. If you'd like an invite, just let me know.
Biography - Robert Ross, Founder & Director
Indianapolis, Indiana USA
Robert Ross has spent 8 years as a structured cabling specialist also specializing in building out data centers for multi million dollar pharmaceutical companies and office buildings. During his 8 years at the same company, Robert gained experience in dealing with employee scheduling, field management, project management, and IT administration. Ross also spent 1 year as an IT administrator for a Red Cross chapter in Michigan during[masked] and has experience in non profit activities.
Since discovering Bitcoin in March of 2013, Ross became heavily involved in the mining community all of 2013 but started getting more involved with all things crypto beginning in 2014. Looking to find a way to utilize all the legacy mining equipment many original BTC miners have, Ross started FoldingCoin that does something more productive with all the energy that GPUs and CPUs put off. Robert also has his own personal website and blog.
