What is quantum computing? In this explainer, we look at quantum machines and their promise to outstrip even the most capable of today's—and tomorrow's—supercomputers. Learn how it works, why it's so powerful, and where it's likely to be most useful first. Read more.
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1. A spokesperson for the Fortis Escorts Hospital in Jaipur, India, confirmed the death of QuadrigaCX CEO Gerald Cotton to a local newspaper. Cotton's death has been shrouded in mystery as his widow claims the exchange's founder was the only person with the keys to $137 million in cryptocurrency. News that Cotton signed a will 12 days before his death, and that he died in a part of India known for its "fake death mafia" led to conspiracies online. The hospital said that Cotton was brought to the facility on December 8 at 9:45 p.m. where he was diagnosed with septic shock and intestinal obstruction. He suffered two cardiac arrests over the next day. He was declared dead at 7:26 p.m. on December 9. –NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
2. Controversial cryptocurrency entrepreneur and investor Brock Pierce said he wants to solve the legal and technical barriers facing the Mt. Gox brand and restart it to compete with Coinbase and Binance, in an interview with TechCrunch.Pierce — the founder of Blockchain Capital and the former director of the Bitcoin Foundation — claims there are 150,000 bitcoin in the Mt. Gox bankruptcy trust, which he wants to return to the more than 24,000 victims hurt in the Mt. Gox collapse. He'll need the victims to do that with his new plan calling for at least half of those affected to join a creditors committee to direct Mt. Gox trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi how to distribute the assets. –TECH CRUNCH
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3. Participants in the ongoing Lighting Torch relay want Elon Musk to take part in an upcoming leg.The torch, a payment sent between users to show the power of the lightning network, has now been passed between more than 150 users around the world. Even Twitter CEO and Square founder Jack Dorsey recently took a turn. "I propose that every torch bearer from now makes a tweet to (Musk) to get him to pick it up! It seems (kind of) obvious that he should at some point," hodlonaut, the project's creator, wrote on Twitter. Now, any time a user takes the torch they will offer Musk an opportunity to take part. –BITCOINIST
4. Robert J. Jackson, Jr., one of five commissioners for the US Securities and Exchange Commission, said a bitcoin-related ETF is inevitable in a soon-to-be-published interview in Congressional Quarterly (exceprts here). Jackson said someone will eventually satisfy the standards the commission has laid out for approval. "Getting the stamp of approval from the deepest and most liquid capital markets in the world is hard, and it should be," he said. "Once we make it available to everyday mom and pop investors, we are taking risks that Americans can get hurt." A bitcoin ETF could still be a way away, though, after VanEck pulled its latest application, citing complications with the prolonged government shutdown. –CRYPTOVEST
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Throwback Thursday
Today we flashback to 1992. Yes, that is long before cryptocurrency became a thing, but was the year when the world became introduced to Brock Pierce, who we write about above. Pierce was a child actor for a time, getting his first major role in "The Mighty Ducks," where he played the 10-year-old version of Gordon Bombay (Emilio Estevez), the Ducks' coach and the central character of the movie. Pierce would also appear in the movie's sequel, along with a handful of other films before retiring from acting at age 17.
Throwback Thursday is our weekly look back at an interesting crypto moment from the past. If you have an idea for a future email please hit reply and let us know.
5. Wired writer Bruce Schneir argues that blockchain does not offer the level of trust that its believers say. –WIRED
6. Travelers in Argentina can now pay for public transportation with bitcoin in 37 cities across the country. –BITCOINIST
7. This gets a little high on the crazy, but we'll share for the sake of discussion: CCN writer Wes Messamore gives four reasons why the "deep state" or the NSA created bitcoin. –CCN
8. The SIX Swiss Exchange, Switzerland's principal stock exchange, plans to test blockchain integration with two goals in mind: time efficiency and improved security. –COIN TELEGRAPH
9. The folks at Zycrpto argue that litecoin is incredibly undervalued in relation to other digital assets thanks to its integration of both the lightning network and segregated witness. –ZYCRYPTO
10. Coindesk makes an effort to explain a technology called Verifiable Delay Functions (VDFs) that the Ethereum Foundation is currently exploring. –COINDESK
Written and curated by David Stegon. He has been a reporter for 15 years, the past 10 focused on technology. Follow him @davidstegon.
