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Blockchain
Are you new to blockchain? I’ve wasted many hours over many months reading lots of crap. If it’s helpful in saving you some time, here are my top recommendations:
General Blockchain and Web3
- By far, my number one recommendation for those who are new to the concepts: MIT Opencourseware Blockchain and Money course, taught by Gary Gensler. Gary’s not only super influential in the space (a la being U.S. SEC Chair), but he’s also a very good teacher and really dove deep to lead a great class.
- Don’t forget to read the Bitcoin and Ethereum white papers!
- Most blockchain projects today are just defi projects in disguise, so it’s good to get a basic understanding of defi as well: DeFi Beyond the Hype
My attempts to define key terms in a way my grandmothers would understand
- Blockchain/web3: private property on the internet
- Metaverse: 3d internet
- DAO: A Facebook group with it’s own money and people can vote to change the rules
Going deeper
- Moxie’s clear-eyed exploration into web3
- a16z’s crypto & web3 blog category
- Web3/Crypto: Why Bother
- Economics Design
Good news sources
- The Defiant: Quality daily newsletter that gets to the point.
- The Block: Also a good daily market summary newsletter.
- The Information’s Crypto newsletter
- Glassnode: They’re a data provider, but they send out thoughtful weekly analysis of the crypto environment.
- Bankless: Interesting podcast, but extremely biased towards their crypto-utopian vision of the world. The ads are interesting.
- The Tim Ferriss podcast features some great episodes with people who I think are well-versed on the broader potential social and economic implications of blockchain applications, namely those episodes with Naval Ravikant, Tim Dixon, and former Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan.
Data sources
- DappRadar (good idea, but sketchy data)
- The Block Dashboard
- Glassnode Studio
- Dune analytics
Good, non-scammy web3 building resources
Other communities. Still vetting if they’re any good…
- Braintrust
- Buildspace
- Walzay
- Gitcoin
Blockchain Gaming & Metaverse
[[[[Section Under Construction]]]]
Quality News/Info Sources
- Game Thinking TV by Amy Jo Kim
- Naavik Metacast
- Deconstructor of Fun Podcast (especially the Tokenomics episodes)
- Into the Metaverse Podcast
Thoughtful Games
- Million on Mars (designer Mitch Zamara)
- If you know of others, please let me know…
Best Resources for Introduction to the Space
Keep in mind: None of the “models” for blockchain games are proven or sustainable yet. These are all experiments.
- Forte & The Block blockchain gaming primer
- Economics Design, The Economics of Play-to-Earn
- DoF breakdown of Thetan Area
DAOs
- How to DAO Course Notes
- DAO Cannon by a16z
- The Ownership Economy (podcast)
Regulation
- Regulating the Metaverse by Bradley Tusk