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      "body": "Congratulations @golfspencer72! You received a personal award!\n\n<table><tr><td>https://steemitimages.com/70x70/http://steemitboard.com/@golfspencer72/birthday3.png</td><td>Happy Birthday! - You are on the Steem blockchain for 3 years!</td></tr></table>\n\n<sub>_You can view [your badges on your Steem Board](https://steemitboard.com/@golfspencer72) and compare to others on the [Steem Ranking](https://steemitboard.com/ranking/index.php?name=golfspencer72)_</sub>\n\n\n###### [Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness](https://v2.steemconnect.com/sign/account-witness-vote?witness=steemitboard&approve=1) to get one more award and increased upvotes!",
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      "body": "Introducing: The Academy! Since we have an incredible amount to learn ourselves, we wanted a good way to share the best Blockchain related content we find with our community. Our goal is to collect here the best ideas, simplest explanations, and most inspirational stories that exist in the Blockchain World. \n\nWe’ll be adding a lot more to The Academy, but for starters, we’ve identified The Top 10 resources for jumping in and gaining a basic understanding. These are the main articles we studied when we first started learning about the Blockchain. So, without further ado, The Top 10 Resources for Getting Started with the Blockchain: \n\n# [**Why Bitcoin Matters**](http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/21/why-bitcoin-matters/) by Marc Andreesen\nWhat do personal computers, the internet, and Bitcoin all have in common? They were ridiculed, only adopted initially by hobbyists and tinkerers, and all have the potential to change the world. Gain a high level overview of Blockchain and Bitcoin from one of the greatest minds in technology, and learn why Marc Andreesen believes that blockchain is the key to helping the “unbanked”, sending money globally as fast and as cheap as sending an email, and providing a new way for artists to monetize their work. \n\n# [**Bitcoin White Paper**](https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf) by Satoshi Nakamoto\nThis is where it all began. This is the original white paper that the anonymous and controversial “Satoshi Nakamoto” published which in turn lead to the Bitcoin revolution.  This document outlines the vision of electronic cash that can be sent securely around the globe without the need for a trusted third party. It can get a bit technical, but this is a must read in understanding the broader Blockchain picture. \n\n# [**Explain Bitcoin Like I’m 5**](https://medium.com/@nik5ter/explain-bitcoin-like-im-five-73b4257ac833) by Nik Custodio\nHaving a hard time wrapping your head around bitcoins and hashing? Somehow apples and park benches make these concepts a lot easier to grasp. The key takeaway from this blogpost is that the blockchain allows for transfer of a digital asset (or some other value) in the same, secure way that we can transfer physical assets between two people. \n\n# [**What is Bitcoin?**](https://www.weusecoins.com/) By WeUseCoins\nA very simple, short yet thorough video describing the concept of blockchain, bitcoin, and the process of mining bitcoin.\n\n# [**How the Blockchain is Changing Money and Business**](https://www.ted.com/talks/don_tapscott_how_the_blockchain_is_changing_money_and_business?language=en) By Don Tapscott (TED Talk)\nWhat is the blockchain? If you don’t know, you should! Don provides a very easy to understand overview of the technology and more importantly why it matters to the world. He offers five ways which blockchain could improve the way we live and work, and how this could result in an improved economic situation for everyone. \n\n# [**A Look at Blockchain Tech: Infographic**](http://www.pwc.com/us/en/financial-services/fintech/bitcoin-blockchain-cryptocurrency.html) by PWC\nWith the help of a useful infographic, PWC outlines the basics of blockchain, cryptocurrencies, the future implications of this technology, and how business and industries could potentially change.\n\n# [**Ethereum is the Forefront of Digital Currency**](https://medium.com/the-coinbase-blog/ethereum-is-the-forefront-of-digital-currency-5300298f6c75) by Fred Ehrsam\nBitcoin has been the only successful cryptocurrency for almost 7 years now. Hundreds of other digital coins exist but none have really taken off, until Ethereum. In only nine months, Ethereum established a $1 billion dollar market cap. The main differentiator is that Ethereum is a platform that developers can use to build apps. While this concept kind of existed with Bitcoin, Ethereum makes this process much easier.  In this paper you’ll learn more about how this works through “smart contracts” and “distributed applications (dapps)”. Major banks and tech companies like Santander and Microsoft are already exploring use cases. \n\n\n# [**Banking on the Blockchain**](http://a16z.com/2016/05/09/business-blockchain/) by Adam Ludwin (a16z Podcast)\nAdam Ludwin, CEO and Founder of Chain, sits down with the team from Andreesen Horowitz to talk about his experiences on the frontlines of implementing blockchain technology with some of the largest enterprises out there. 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As apps succeed, speculation at the protocol layer increases and the protocol layer succeeds faster. \n\n# [**Bitcoin: Ringing the Bell for a New Asset Class**](http://research.ark-invest.com/bitcoin-asset-class) by Ark Invest + Coinbase\nShould you include Bitcoin within your investment portfolio? Yes! The authors of this white paper make the case that you should. They identify several factors of an asset class including: investability, risk, political & economic factors, and correlation to other asset classes. Learn how investing in Bitcoin can actually increase your potential return and decrease your overall risk.  \n\n\nLet us know what you think!\n\n- Matt & Spencer",
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      "body": "INTRODUCING TBE\n\nIt is September 2016 and as we begin we are not blockchain experts, we’re enthusiasts. We believe that in the near future, blockchain technologies will become commonplace. However, it is an entirely new world with new concepts, new industries, new vocabulary, and a high learning barrier. We hope to tear down the wall for everyone. We are embarking on a journey towards Blockchain Expertise and we invite you to join with us! To begin, it might be helpful to understand where we are coming from and how we ended up engaging in this project.\n\n# Passion One: Technology\nWe share two common passions, the first is technology. We both started our careers in the mobile technology space and ended up working together at Xamarin (recently acquired by Microsoft). Mobile has been arguably the fastest innovation in history. There are now more people on this planet who own a mobile phone than who own a [toothbrush](http://bit.ly/2bSvzuj). Mobile has changed the way we live our lives and conduct business, and the time that it took this change to occur has been remarkably fast. With supercomputers now in almost every pocket around the globe, innovation will continue to happen at an even faster rate. \n\n\n![Figure 1: Time to reach 50 million users](http://bit.ly/2czFnGG)\nFigure 1: Time to reach 50 million users\n\n# Passion Two: Investing\nThe second common passion is investing and economics. What started as swapping investment strategies and ideas on a business trip, evolved into collaborative analysis and research into the state of our current global economy and markets. We became discouraged at the prospect of obtaining meaningful returns in this world of [negative interest rates](http://www.wsj.com/articles/everything-you-need-to-know-about-negative-rates-1465906559), [overvalued assets](http://www.nasdaq.com/article/stock-market-significantly-overvalued-based-on-monthly-market-valuations-cm644172), [overwhelming debt burdens](http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikepatton/2014/09/18/the-u-s-debt-why-it-will-continue-to-rise/#1b6d16784ff1), and a [sluggish economy](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/07/29/gross-domestic-product-economic-growth-second-quarter-2016/). In a time of political and global uncertainty we ended up taking a very bullish stance on gold and spent a lot of time fleshing out that investment thesis. We liked gold for a number of reasons including:  a) gold over the long term is an excellent store of value and b) gold allows an escape from the current manipulated banking system which is laden with debt.\n\n\n# Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Blockchain\nWhen we discovered Ethereum and the Blockchain for the first time in a meaningful way, we realized that it was the intersection of these two passions. The blockchain technology is new and revolutionary, and we saw parallels between our investments in gold and crypto-currencies like Ethereum and Bitcoin. As we began to learn more, we realized that there is much more here than just a rogue, libertarian, digital currency. We saw the potential to disrupt current industries, create entirely new ones, and again change the way we work and live our lives. As [Marc Andreesen said](http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/21/why-bitcoin-matters/?_r=0): \n\n[This technology] offers a sweeping vista of opportunity to reimagine how the financial system can and should work in the Internet era, and a catalyst to reshape that system in ways that are more powerful for individuals and businesses alike.\n\n\n# Conclusion\nWe’re excited to commence our journey! We hope this site opens up a new world to you as we discover this new world for ourselves. If you share in either of these passions, or are just looking to learn more, we invite you to join our journey towards Blockchain expertise!\n\nYou can visit us on our site at [theblockchainexperts.com](theblockchainexperts).\n\n~ Matt & Spencer",
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      "body": "It looks like you do have a very good foothold in to this year. I like the book list and I am going to jot down some titles for next time I am in the library. \nI try to do as much as I can in the first 6 months of the year and then try to do even more during the last 6 months as more of a challenge. Keep it up and you got this!",
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      "body": "**My Path to Buying My First Bitcoin**\n\nWe are 8 months into the year and if nothing else happened this year, I would consider it one of the most interesting years of my life. It’s a bold claim, but here’s why:\n\nLike most people in January I set some New Year’s Resolutions, and like most people I found myself unsuccessful after just a couple of weeks. It was towards the end of January that I decided I wanted to make 2016 the year of learning.\n\nThe first thing I started to doing was meditating. I found a couple of very good talking tracks to guide me through meditating which I tried to do a couple times a week. The main guide I used was a mobile app called [CureStress](http://curestressapp.com/). My wife participated as well and is a big believer in its power to help you control your mind. I wish I was more disciplined, because the habit has fallen off recently, but I still highly recommend doing it.\n\nIn addition to meditating. I started reading. The hurdle for reading has always been the cost of books and finding time to sit down to read. Thankfully, I was introduced to OverDrive and Hoopla where I could use my San Francisco Library card to login and get access to a huge database of digital books and audiobooks. I started listening to books all the time including on my commute, during my work out, and especially while doing the dishes every night (we don’t own a dishwasher). I have included a list of every book I remember reading with a ranking from 1 to 5.\n\n**Book Title** | **Ranking**\n------------ | -------------\n[Inner Game of Tennis](https://www.amazon.com/Inner-Game-Tennis-Classic-Performance/dp/0679778314) | 5\n[The Creature from Jekyll Island](https://www.amazon.com/Creature-Jekyll-Island-Federal-Reserve/dp/091298645X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562174&sr=1-1&keywords=the+creature+from+jekyll+island) | 5\n[Secrets of the Millionaire Mind](https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Millionaire-Mind-Mastering-Wealth/dp/0060763280/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562225&sr=1-1&keywords=secrets+of+the+millionaire+mind) | 5\n[Man’s Search for Meaning](https://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/080701429X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562242&sr=1-1&keywords=man%27s+search+for+meaning) | 5\n[The Challenger Sale](https://www.amazon.com/Challenger-Sale-Control-Customer-Conversation/dp/1591844355/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562261&sr=1-1&keywords=the+challenger+sale) | 5\n[Man’s Search for Meaning](https://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/080701429X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562276&sr=1-1&keywords=man%27s+search+for+meaning) | 5\n[Unlimited Power](https://www.amazon.com/Unlimited-Power-Science-Personal-Achievement/dp/0684845776/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562304&sr=1-1&keywords=unlimited+power) | 5\n[Hatching Twitter](https://www.amazon.com/Hatching-Twitter-Story-Friendship-Betrayal/dp/1591847087/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562329&sr=1-1&keywords=hatching+twitter) | 4\n[The Facebook Effect](https://www.amazon.com/Facebook-Effect-Inside-Company-Connecting/dp/1439102120/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562344&sr=1-1&keywords=facebook+effect) | 4\n[Rock Beats Scissors](https://www.amazon.com/Rock-Breaks-Scissors-Outguessing-Outwitting/dp/0316228052/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562364&sr=1-1&keywords=rock+beats+scissors) | 4\n[Search Inside Yourself](https://www.amazon.com/Search-Inside-Yourself-Unexpected-Achieving/dp/0062116932/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562383&sr=1-1&keywords=search+inside+yourself) | 4\n[The Best Damn Sales Book Ever](https://www.amazon.com/Best-Damn-Sales-Book-Ever/dp/0471757284/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562406&sr=1-1&keywords=best+damn+sales) | 4\n[How To Ruin Your Life](https://www.amazon.com/How-Ruin-Your-Life-Stein/dp/1561709743/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562425&sr=1-1&keywords=how+to+ruin+your+life) | 3\n[Crashes, Booms, Panics, and Government Regulation](https://www.amazon.com/Crashes-Booms-Panics-Government-Regulations/dp/0786164891/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562442&sr=1-1&keywords=crashes+booms+panics) | 3\n[Road To Character](https://www.amazon.com/Road-Character-David-Brooks/dp/081299325X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562461&sr=1-1&keywords=the+road+to+character) | 3\n[Flash Boys](https://www.amazon.com/Flash-Boys-Wall-Street-Revolt/dp/0393351599/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562477&sr=1-1&keywords=flash+boys) | 3\n[What Successful People do Before Breakfast](https://www.amazon.com/What-Successful-People-Before-Breakfast/dp/1591846692/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562496&sr=1-1&keywords=what+successful+people+do+before+breakfast) | 3\n[The Virgin Way](https://www.amazon.com/Virgin-Way-Its-Worth-Doing/dp/1591847982/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562513&sr=1-1&keywords=the+virgin+way) | 3\n[Rework](https://www.amazon.com/Rework-Jason-Fried/dp/0307463745/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562527&sr=1-1&keywords=rework) | 3\n[Stress Test](https://www.amazon.com/Stress-Test-Reflections-Financial-Crises/dp/0804138613/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562544&sr=1-1&keywords=stress+test) | 3\n[Work Reimagined](https://www.amazon.com/Work-Reimagined-Uncover-Your-Calling/dp/1626565589/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471562559&sr=1-1&keywords=work+reimagined) | 2\n\n(Books rated 5 are must reads, 4 are really great books that I am glad I read, 3 are good books but not critical, and 2 are books I could have lived without reading)\n\nYou can probably tell from the list of books, that I am interested in books relating to business, self-help, and psychology. As I read, I became fixed on the concept of passive income. My first ideas were around starting a online marketing company, blogging, and building a website about how to land your dream job after college. Each idea lasted a couple weeks and I learned a lot from each endeavor.\n\nNext came my interest in the economy, which led to shorting in the stock market, and ultimately investing in gold via physical coins and mining stocks. My reading was now complemented with YouTube videos and podcasts and articles via SeekingAlpha. I am constantly consuming articles. My favorite medium for consuming content is through podcasts. I cannot emphasize strongly enough how powerful podcasts are. Podcasts are like 30 minute books about current events. They’re are a lot of great podcasts, here’s my recommendations (listed by personal rank):\n\n[a16z](http://a16z.com/podcasts/)\n\n[We Study Billionaires - The Investors Podcast](https://www.theinvestorspodcast.com/)\n\n[The Peter Schiff Show Podcast](http://www.schiffradio.com/the-peter-schiff-show-podcast/)\n\n[The Tony Robbins Podcast](https://www.tonyrobbins.com/podcast/)\n\n[The Smart Passive Income Podcast](http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/podcasts/)\n\n[Rich Dad Radio Show](http://www.richdad.com/radio)\n\n[IFTF Blockchain Futures Lab](https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/iftf-blockchain-futures-lab/id1084075132?mt=2)\n\nAll of my reading, listening, and research has landed me into my newest interest, blockchain. Which is how I found Steemit. I’m fascinated by Bitcoin, Ethereum, and all things blockchain.  Blockchain combines my interest of technology and finance beautifully. I can’t wait to see what the last 4 months of 2016 will bring in this year of learning.\n\nFollow me on twitter at @montspencer. With a business partner, I will be launching a website around blockchain in the next couple weeks. Stay tuned!",
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