Bitcoin price soars above $9 for the first time in almost a year

Study highlights vast churn in computer hardware that the cryptocurrency incentivises Alex Hern UK technology editor @alexhern Fri 17 Sep 2021 02.00 EDT Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare via Email A single bitcoin transaction generates the same amount of electronic waste as throwing two iPhones in the bin, according to a new analysis by economists from the Dutch central bank and MIT. While the carbon footprint of bitcoin is well studied, less attention has been paid to the vast churn in computer hardware that the cryptocurrency incentivises. Specialised computer chips called ASICs are sold with no other purpose than to run the algorithms that secure the bitcoin network, a process called mining that rewards those who partake with bitcoin payouts. But because only the newest chips are power-efficient enough to mine profitably, effective miners need to constantly replace their ASICs with newer, more powerful ones.