How I Became (Semi) Literate About Distributed Ledger and Blockchain Technology

I knew it would be impossible. There was no way to relay my excitement about the potential of blockchain technology in a concise way to lawyers and law students last Friday at the Connecting the Threads symposium at the University of Tennessee School of Law. I didn't discuss cryptocurrency or Bitcoin other than to say that I wasn't planning to discuss it. Still, there wasn't nearly enough time for me to discuss all of the potential use cases. I did try to make it clear that it's not a fad if IBM has 1500 people working on it, BITA has hundreds of logistics and freight companies signed up to explore possibilities, and the World Bank, OECD, and United Nations have studies and pilot programs devoted to it. As a former supply chain person, compliance officer, and chief privacy officer, I'm giddy with excitement about everything related to distributed ledger technology other than cryptocurrency. You can see why when you read my law review article in a few months in Transactions.

I've watched over 100 YouTube videos (many of them crappy) and read dozens of articles. I go to Meetups and actually understand what the coders and developers are saying (most of the time). A few students and practitioners asked me how I learned about DLT/blockchain. First, see here, here, here, and here for my prior posts listing resources and making the case for learning the basics of the technology. What I list below adds to what I've posted in the past.

Here are some of the podcasts I listen to (there are others, of course):

1) The Decrypting Crypto Podcast 

2) Block that Chain

3) Block and Roll

4) Blockchain Innovation

Here are some of the videos that I watched (that I haven't already linked to in past posts):

1) Using Blockchains for Supply Chains

2) IBM and Maersk demo: Cross-border supply chain solution on blockchain

3) How to Activate a Blockchain with IBM (Demo)

4) Examples of Blockchain Changing Every Day Life

5) 19 Industries The Blockchain Will Disrupt

6) Vitalek Buterin Explains Ethereum

7) In Conversation with Vitalik Buterin, Justin Drake and Karl Floersch (Ethereum Foundation)

8) Fireside Chat With Vitalek Buterin

9) Blockchain and Food Safety With IBM and Walmart

10) Applying Blockchain Technology to Customs Declarations

11) Your 31st Human Right Guaranteed by Blockchain

12) How Blockchain Can Transform India

13) Blockchain, A Tool for Social Good

14) Blockchain for Social Impact

15) Bitcoin, Blockchain, and the Law

16) Blockchain and the Law: What Lawyers (And their Clients) Need to Know

17) Blockchain and the Law: The Rule of Code

18) The Blockchain: A Revolution You Need to Understand

19) Vitalik Buterin on Ethereum, Bitcoin, and Scaling

20) Exploring Blockchain Use Cases: Microsoft Azure

21) How the Blockchain is Changing Money and Business

22) Blockchain and Corporate Law

23) Blockchain Innovation in Law and Corporate Governance

24) Changing the Legal Game With Blockchain

25) Blockchain and Smart Contracts

26) Code is Not the Law: Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence

27) Linklaters Blockchain Legal & Regulation Panel

28) How Do You Square Blockchain with Privacy Laws

29) Jeff Jonas on GDPR and Integrating IBM Blockchain with Senzing at IBM Think 2018

30) CPDP 2018: BLOCKCHAIN AND DATA PROTECTION: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

31) John McAfee: about blockchain, bitcoins and cyber security

There are dozens more, but this should be enough to get you started. Remember, none of these videos or podcasts will get you rich from cryptocurrency. But they will help you become competent to know whether you can advise clients on these issues.