The University of Wyoming is set to launch an institute dedicated to research and producing high-quality peer-reviewed studies on Bitcoin.
Associate Professor Bradley Rettler, who will serve as the institute’s director, announced the initiative on July 28 via social media platform X.
Rettler criticized the current state of Bitcoin research as lacking in quality and emphasized the need for more rigorous, peer-reviewed publications to better inform the public about Bitcoin and its workings.
“Journalists can’t be experts, so they rely on academics. Too many of those academics have let them down,”
Rettler stated in his post.
He pointed to a 2018 study led by University of Hawaii Professor Camilo Mora as an example of the problematic research currently influencing public perception and policy. The study claimed that Bitcoin emissions could significantly contribute to global warming by 2048. However, Rettler noted that it failed to account for crucial factors such as the difficulty adjustment and block size cap, leading to inaccuracies that have since been widely cited in journalism and policy discussions.
The UW Bitcoin Research Institute will officially open in the Fall 2024 semester. Its ambitious plans include hosting annual summer workshops, offering academic prizes, and conducting weekly seminars.
As a nonprofit organization, it will accept Bitcoin donations to support its research efforts. Interestingly, the institute has committed to retaining donated Bitcoin as part of its investment strategy, with Rettler explaining,
“We allocate 4% of our investments to Bitcoin, so if you donate Bitcoin, we will not sell it.”
The institute’s faculty includes notable figures in the Bitcoin academic community, such as Andrew M. Bailey, lead author of “Resistance Money: A Philosophical Case for Bitcoin,” a book to which Rettler also contributed.
This initiative by the University of Wyoming is part of a growing trend of academic institutions exploring Bitcoin and its implications. In a similar development, Unchained Capital Inc. and the University of Austin, Texas (UATX) announced a partnership on May 31 to create the first endowment fund entirely in Bitcoin at a higher education institution. Both parties aim to raise $5 million for the fund, which will be invested in Bitcoin for at least five years. This project seeks to integrate Bitcoin into higher education, explore innovative financial strategies, and promote principles of sound money and censorship resistance.
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