Blockchain and cryptocurrencies have been with us for more than a decade. However, in recent years these concepts have spread to different areas, and it has become commonplace to hear about them. However, we still have a lot to learn.

As it has advanced, the crypto world has resulted in a tremendously polarized discourse: its staunch supporters believe it is saving the world; its critics are convinced that it is all a scam that will blow up the economy. Kevin Roose, tech journalist for The New York Times insists, with nearly a decade of writing about cryptocurrencies to his credit, that he agrees, with both sides to some extent. He backs the skeptics in the argument that most of the cryptocurrency market consists of overvalued and possibly fraudulent assets.

Cryptocurrencies, as Roose claims, are very poorly explained. According to the specialist, understanding crypto as soon as possible is important because it is going to be a profoundly transformative force in the coming years. For this reason, Kevin Roose has endeavored to put together a question-and-answer guide in NYT that clears up many of these doubts. On News-365 you can read an insightful summary of the study, I’ll leave the link here. At AIR Institute and the BISITE Research Group we are aware of how important Blockchain technology is and what it means for the global cryptocurrency drive. In this regard, we are researching and developing different projects and offer training in the area with the Master in Blockchain and Smart Contracts at the University of Salamanca.

Posted by Juan M. Corchado

Juan Manuel Corchado (15 May 1971, Salamanca, Spain) is Professor at the University of Salamanca. He has been Vice-Rector for Research from 2013 to 2017 and Director of the Science Park of the University of Salamanca. Elected as Dean of the Faculty of Science twice, he holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Salamanca and a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from the University of the West of Scotland. He leads the renowned BISITE (Bioinformatics, Intelligent Systems and Educational Technology) Research Group, created in 2000. Director of the IoT Digital Innovation Hub and President of the AIR Institute, J. M. Corchado is also Visiting Professor at the Osaka Institute of Technology since January 2015, Visiting Professor at the Universiti Malaysia Kelantan and Member of the Advisory Group on Online Terrorist Propaganda of the European Counter Terrorism Centre (EUROPOL). J. M. Corchado has been president of the IEEE Systems, Man and Cybernetics Society, and academic coordinator of the University Institute for Research in Art and Animation Technology at the University of Salamanca, as well as researcher at the Universities of Paisley (UK), Vigo (Spain) and the Plymouth Marine Laboratory (UK). He currently combines all his activity with the direction of Master programmes in Security, Digital Animation, Mobile Telephony, Information Systems Management, Internet of Things, Social Media, 3D Design and Printing, Blockchain, Z System, Industry 4.0, Agile Project Management, and Smart Cities & Intelligent Buildings, at the University of Salamanca and his work as editor-in-chief of the journals ADCAIJ (Advances in Distributed Computing and Artificial Intelligence Journal), OJCST (Oriental Journal of Computer Science and Technology) or Electronics MDPI (Computer Science & Engineering section). J. M. Corchado mainly works on projects related to Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, IoT, Fog Computing, Edge Computing, Smart Cities, Smart Grids and Sentiment Analysis. He has recently been included in the board of trustees of the AstraZeneca Foundation, along with other health professionals and researchers recognised for bringing scientific knowledge closer to society.