Impacts of the blockchain technologies on the economy and business

1. Don Tapscott, Executive Chairman of the Blockchain research Institute, is talking about impacts the blockchain technologies are going to have on the economy and business. Listen to the first part of his speech (from the beginning to 05:22.) and answer the questions. https://www.ted.com/talks/don_tapscott_how_the_blockchain_is_changing_money_and_business  How the blockchain is changing money and business (18:41)

1. What technology/technologies are going to have a great impact on our future according to Don Tapscott?

2. What does he say about sending information, money etc. via the internet?

3. What is the main problem in business today?

4. What are intermediaries?

5. What do they do?

6. What happened in 2008?

2. Listen to the second part of Don Tapscott’s speech (min 05:22 – 08:10) and fill in the blanks. You can write down from 1 to 3 words.

1. Assets – _______ assets like money to music and everything in between -- are not stored in a central place, but they're distributed across a ________  _________, using the highest level of __________. 

2. And when a transaction is __________, it's posted globally, across millions and millions of computers.

3.  And out there, around the world, is a group of people called "__________.

4. They have massive computing power at their __________ -- 10 to 100 times bigger than all of Google worldwide.

5. And they compete: the first miner to find out the truth and to __________ the block, is rewarded in digital currency, in the case of the Bitcoin blockchain, with Bitcoin. 

6. So if I wanted to go and __________  _________  __________ and, say, pay you and you with the same money…. 

7. He's 22 years old, and this blockchain has some __________ capabilities. 

8. One of them is that you can build __________  ___________.

9. It's a contract that self-executes, and the contract __________ the enforcement, the management, performance and payment ... 

10. And today, on the Ethereum blockchain, there are projects underway to do everything from create a new replacement for the __________  ___________to create a new model of democracy, where politicians are accountable to citizens.

This is democratized information. But when it comes to assets – things like money, financial assets like stocks and bonds, loyalty points, intellectual property, music, art, a vote, carbon credit and other assets – sending you a copy is a really bad idea. If I send you 100 dollars, it's really important that I don't still have the money.  

3. Now listen to the third part of the video (min 09:46 – 14:09). Don Tapscott is talking about the problem of inequality and the 5 ways to solve it. You are going to listen to three of them. What are these three ways? After listening work in pairs or in a group and discuss the problem. Do you agree with Don Tapscott? What else could be done to solve the problem?

7. Speaking 2

7.1. Blockhain has proven itself to be an effective business and economical tool, but can it help to solve some of the social issues? Read one example of it how blockchain can help to solve social problems.

The social implications of blockchain technology are colossal. Bitcoin has recently provided financial services to a high number of people without access to banking via digital wallets, debit cards & ATMs. It has additionally allowed micropayments & microloans to people in disadvantaged socio-economic circumstances, unraveling a complete new form of advantage for the world economy.

(by Darin Cag “Why Blockchain?” https://richtopia.com/tech/blockchain  )

What are the other ways to solve social issues with the help of blockchain?

Work in a group and make a presentation or an oral speech.

Think of some other social issues to be solved.

How can they be solved with the help of blockchain?

What steps should you undertake to solve these problems with the help of blockchain?

What are the advantages and risks of your plan?

What outcome can we get in the end?

Last modified: Wednesday, 20 October 2021, 11:10 AM