Welcome to the final episode of this week’s Cryptohunt Jam Ethereum Merge special where we spend a bit more than a minute each day this week to explain crypto - in plain english! And now that the Merge has succeeded, let’s take a look at Ethereum’s future together!

With the Merge, Ethereum’s energy just dropped by a crazy 99.95%. To us, who firmly believe that protecting our planet should be the first priority, that reduction itself is amazing progress.

But Ethereum has two other big, intertwined problems, which have yet to be addressed. It is still slow, and transactions are expensive. So let’s find how and what Ethereum is doing to fix those.

Remember that blockchains like Ethereum process transactions in blocks - hence the name. Blocks are just several transactions bundled together so a computer can process them more efficiently. Before the Merge, Ethereum processed a block every 13 seconds. After the Merge, it’s every 12. You can easily see: That’s not exactly a game changer.

That still means that Ethereum only supports an average of around 30 transactions per second. Imagine that - more are happening every second in a single shopping mall. Visa alone processes almost 2000 per second and can likely process many more if they happened. If Ethereum wants to become universal money, it will need to catch up big time.

The second problem? Costs per transaction. Ethereum allows people to jump ahead in line if they pay more in transaction fees than others. And since those 30 transactions per second isn’t a lot, people bid like crazy: Currently, fees per transaction are sitting around $1, but during times of high demand they have been over $50. Either one is not feasible for everyday purchases.

And that’s why Ethereum is addressing the amount of transactions it can comfortably handle: An upcoming update will bring a strangely named feature called “sharding” sometime next year. This will vastly increase Ethereums throughput. And that, in turn, will reduce transaction fees dramatically as well.

We hope you enjoyed our week on Ethereum’s Merge… Drop us an email at [email protected] to let us know - we love feedback!

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

Are YOU a crypto normie? If so, welcome! CLICK HERE to start (or continue) learning about everything crypto!

Welcome to another Cryptohunt Jam Ethereum Merge special, where we spend one minute a day, every day of this week, to explain what the Merge is. In plain English.

Woohoo! Big news! The Ethereum Merge just happened: And if computers and graphics cards could talk, you'd hear a big, worldwide, collective sigh of relief: "Aaaaaaaahhhh".

Before the Merge, those computers had to crank to the limit to process transactions. Now, they just do it like it's nothing and things have become a breeze.

But why is that? Let's take a trip back in history.

When Bitcoin, the first successful blockchain, was invented, the world was a different place: Nobody really thought that crypto would become this big. And nobody envisioned that we'd be using it – not only to move money around – but also to build a new financial system from the ground up.

And so, a method to validate transactions was born that sounded smart at the time: "Proof of Work". It forces computers to solve complex math puzzles - this means operating a Bitcoin computer costs a lot in energy bills, which prevents even the richest of people from operating a majority of them and taking over Bitcoin.

Ethereum also used this method. But over the years, we all realized: This sounds clever, but is actually a pretty bad idea. It doesn't scale up to the millions of transactions humans do every second, and is really, really bad for the environment.

So people said: Processing transactions is a low effort, but the puzzles themselves are the problem. Can we get rid of the puzzles and still keep someone evil from taking over?

And one of those solutions is the method that Ethereum just switched to. It's called "Proof of Stake". Validators, as they are called, have to put up their own money to validate. That also makes it very expensive for someone to take over, with none of the useless puzzles.

And it's good news all around: Energy consumption on Ethereum just dropped by 99.95%. And what about those computers and graphics cards that all just said "aaaaaahhhhhhh"? Well, they just got a lot cheaper, because nobody needs them for Ethereum anymore. And most importantly: A step forward for the planet. We hope for many more of those.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

By the time you listen to this, the Merge is less than a day away. And you might suddenly start to freak out: What if things go wrong - will my Ethereum be gone?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. And today, in part three of our week-long Ethereum Merge special, we’ll help you put your mind at ease: Your money is very likely to be safe - even if the worst case happens.

As we explained yesterday, the Merge is designed to be seamless. Most likely, you won’t even notice that it happened. That’s thanks to the secret double life that Ethereum has been living: Your money existed on the “new” Ethereum all along, and with the Merge, things will just be official.

If you hold your money in an exchange account like Robinhood or Coinbase, don’t panic if you can’t withdraw or trade for a short period: Out of caution, they will pause Ethereum activities on their accounts. It’s all to make sure things are fine before going back to business as usual.

But what if things go horribly wrong: Some glitch in the Matrix, a wrinkle in the Ethereum code? Well, even then you should be ok. It helps to remember the fundamentals: Blockchains are nothing but glorified history books that record every transaction that ever happened on them. And millions of computers hold a copy of Ethereum’s history, right up to the time of the Merge. If stuff goes wrong, that history can be rolled back to what it was before the error and we can all move on.

So – sit back and enjoy this historical moment. If you want to follow it live, just type into Google “Ethereum Merge” and it’ll show you a cool countdown. And most likely, you guessed it, you’ll just sit there and won’t even notice anything happening. And that’s a good thing.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. 

Welcome to day 2 of our Ethereum Merge week special! Today: What exactly are we merging here anyway?

Generally speaking, merging is the process of combining several things into one. But what does that mean in the context of Ethereum?

Well, what if we told you that Ethereum has been living a secret double life? There hasn’t been just the “official” Ethereum, but a secret sibling has been working alongside the older brother.

This sibling is called the “Beacon Chain”. It’s essentially a copy of Ethereum, but one that uses a different method to validate transactions. And it does so completely in parallel. Both always end up having the same transaction record at the same time.

This is a genius trick the Ethereum developers pulled off, because at the time of the Merge, things can simply switch over to the Beacon chain and the older brother ceases to exist. Because they ran in parallel this entire recent time, they could make sure that things work and that switching over is seamless.

And that’s why it’s called the Merge: Two separate ways to validate Ethereum come together to replace the older one.

But how risk free is that actually and is your money safe? Stay tuned for tomorrow’s special on that.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

The Ethereum Merge is coming: Why it's such a big deal 

The so-called Ethereum Merge is coming this week! And because that's a huge deal, we'll cover the topic this entire week. We promise: You'll learn a lot!

To kick things off with today's episode, let's recap what the Merge actually is. The Merge is the name of a major update to Ethereum, one that will make Ethereum vastly more efficient.

This is all necessary because Ethereum is really struggling as it is: It might be the largest blockchain by transaction volume thanks to it being like programmable money, but it is also very slow, and really bad for the planet.

What is to blame? A method of validating transactions called Proof of Work. This method has major downsides, most importantly that computers have to waste a lot of energy to operate it. And that's not only bad for the planet but slows Ethereum down so much that it won't be usable at scale.

Things have to change, and that change is the Merge! In a nutshell, Ethereum will switch to a new method called Proof of Stake. That’s it - but this one change will reduce its energy consumption by over 99.95 percent. And as a nice side effect, things are also going to get much faster.

This Merge is happening any day now. By the time you year this, it's probably just a day or two away. So, next episode, let's explain what exactly is getting “merged” and how that all works.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

Are YOU a crypto normie? If so, welcome! CLICK HERE to start (or continue) learning about everything crypto!

What is a Crypto Normie?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. My name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt.it and I am your host of this daily show.

"Normies" are what crypto insiders call those people who haven't had exposure to crypto yet.

Often, the term is with a slightly negative connotation: They are the enlightened ones, while we just haven't figured it out yet.

You might be surprised, but here at Cryptohunt, we are a team of proud Normies. Terms like this one are exactly why we got into the crypto space: To get past insider talk and cryptic language and learn things together. With an open, but critical mind.

Whether you consider yourself a normie or not: Let's celebrate the term instead. You'll have to start somewhere, and blindly following a tribe of enthusiasts is certainly not the best way. We believe in learning one step at a time, to build your crypto knowledge easily.

Because in the end, not everything that shines is gold. You have to learn to look past the noise and make your own decisions. For that, check out our learning courses and coin descriptions on cryptohunt.it - they are made by proud normies, for proud normies! We hope you enjoy them!

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

What is a Crypto Szn?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. My name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt.it and I am your host of this daily show.

Crypto "Szn", spelled S-Z-N, refers to a "season" that crypto goes through. The idea is that crypto value goes through cycles.

Right now we are in what people call "crypto winter", meaning that prices are down and it's chilly. "crypto spring" is when things start to pick up and they peak in "crypto summer".

The fundamental believe behind the term "szn" is that things come in cycles. This has largely been true for stock markets - you may be familiar with bull and bear markets.

But does it actually apply to crypto?

In short: We can't say. We've been through two major bull runs so far, and who knows if what goes down will come up again. So be careful. Another important thing to consider is that the past is not an accurate predictor of the future - just because it happened once or twice before, doesn't mean crypto will ever come back.

But let's be honest: Many of these crypto terms out there were invented to manipulate public perception for someone else's gain. So: Just be careful and don't buy into the narrative blindly. Do your own thinking. Things may very well explode again, but you need to understand the risks.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

What is "Crypto IRL" and Bright Moments?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. My name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt.it and I am your host of this daily show.

If you've spent any time thinking about crypto, you'll realize that almost everything happens online. Crypto art is digital, blockchains run on computers, people communicate via social media, and identities are hidden behind synonyms and strange profile pictures.

Think that feels empty and something is missing? You are not alone.

There is another side of the crypto world, and it is called "IRL" - short for "In Real Life". It is when crypto enthusiasts come together in person and engage with the technology in the real world.

One such example is Bright Moments, an NFT art show that moves from city to city. They display the digital art pieces in the physical world - printed on canvas or displayed through animated art displays in an actual gallery. And they have events where they create NFTs - also called minting - in real life, in front of an audience.

Projects like Bright Moments are great, because they connect our real world with the culture of crypto in a way that it includes everyone. It may be hard to understand what on earth those crypto people are talking about on Twitter, but it's easy to walk into a gallery and experience it yourself.

We love projects like this, because we are all about educating everyone about crypto. Bright Moments are going to be in Mexico City next, check it out "IRL" if you happen to be close.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

What is "Crypto Twitter"?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. My name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt.it and I am your host of this daily show.

If you've spend any time on Twitter, you'll notice that it's full of crypto conversations. In fact, this is where most people discuss, debate, fight, and promote things.

"Crypto Twitter" just refers to that subsection of Twitter that encompasses all the crypto people, talking about crypto things.

If you haven't dug in yet, we highly recommend it. Not because you will get good information - most of the time people have an agenda, so be careful. But because it's a fascinating world, that gives you a deep look into a fascinating subculture.

And if you think that all sounds pretty lame - well, hang in there for the next episode where we'll talk about crypto in real life. And do not forget to follow us on Twitter - you find us as cryptohunt_it.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

What do "GM" and "GN" mean?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain English. My name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt.it and I am your host of this daily show.

One of the most interesting aspects about crypto is the subculture it created. Weather it's on Twitter, Discord forums, or even Linkedin - you'll find anything there from camaraderie to peer pressure.

"GM", which stands for "good morning", and "GN", which stands for "good night" is one of the nicer examples of that subculture.

When people wake up, they'll tweet a simple "GM" to their followers, and the followers respond back. Likewise for "GN" when everyone goes to bed.

Kind of nice if you ask us. Among all the noise, crazy insider talk, and negativity amongst crypto people, those two really stand out. More of that, we say!

And one more thing as always on Mondays: If you want to listen to all podcast episodes of this coming week already - check out our parteon account to get early aceess under patreon.com/cryptoinplainenglish. Thanks so much already if you end up supporting us that way!

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.