Introduction

Bitcoin, the world’s most common and well-known cryptocurrency, has been increasing in

popularity. It has the same basic structure as it did when created in 2008, but repeat instances of the world

market changing have created a new demand for cryptocurrencies much greater than its initial showing.

By using a cryptocurrency, users are able to exchange value digitally without third party oversight.

Cryptocurrency works on the theory of solving encryption algorithms to create unique hashes that are

finite in number. Combined with a network of computers verifying transactions, users are able to

exchange hashes as if exchanging physical currency (Kelly, 2014).

If cryptocurrencies became the global norm for transactions, long standing systems for trade

would need to be completely reformed to deal with this type of competition. For this reason,

cryptocurrencies could possibly be the single most disruptive technology to global, financial and

economic systems (Ketchell, 2019).

Evolution of Bitcoin Cryptocurrency

The global financial system is under an increasing amount of pressure to get with the times and

evolve to the needs of its customers. Bitcoin was not the first attempt at a digital currency, but it has been

the most successful and it is now being accepted by a number of major retailers. Bitcoin is a

cryptocurrency and operates as a peer-to-peer network. Its security is guaranteed by cryptographic

algorithms instead of governments and has the potential to become a major means of payment for e-

commerce and may even materialize as a viable challenge to traditional money-transfer providers. Instead

of serving one country or some countries, Bitcoin serves the entire world (Gilpin, 2014).

According to Jackson (2019), although Bitcoin has gained momentum primarily in the last three

years, due to mass media and public attention, it's been around for over a decade.

Back in 2010 - 2014 cryptocurrencies were not well known and their primary reported use was as

a tool for buying guns and drugs on the dark web.

 Soon, innovators and techies saw the potential in cryptocurrency not just as a tool for the tax

evader and shady buyer, but also as one which could benefit users with fast, stable transference of value.

The general public realized there was nothing to fear from Bitcoin, and people from all walks of

life, fed up with the system, as well as with banks and high fees, started doing their own research. Once

individuals started taking an interest, cryptocurrencies were on the rise.

It was the massive spike in interest and public awareness that forced banks, governments, and

companies on the scale of IBM, Microsoft and Amazon to look into digital currencies and their

underlying technology. These last three years have laid a fascinating foundation for what could be the

future of money (Jackson, 2019).

In relation to this, Virtual currencies exhibit network externalities, the more people use them, the

more valuable they are. Because Bitcoin was the first digital currency to market gives it a tremendous

advantage. Bitcoin gets the most publicity and has more people and merchants supporting it, and also has

the most users invested in it. As long as Bitcoin continues serving the needs of users, it has the potential

of remaining the most important digital currency indefinitely. And although there are many proposed

improvements to Bitcoin that are theoretically interesting, none appear to be able to induce users to switch

in large numbers (Lee, 2013). As argued by Popper (2013), Bitcoin could become a major means of

payment for e-commerce and may emerge as a serious competitor to traditional money-transfer providers.

As a medium of exchange, Bitcoin has clear potential for growth, in our view.

Impacts of Bitcoin Cryptocurrency to Society

Along with its benefits, Bitcoin brings a fair amount of political upheaval. As stated before, it is

not controlled by any single government or bank. Because it’s a highly individualized type of wealth, and

because of the cryptography involved, no state can take away that individuality. As people begin to

understand that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are advantageous because they’re governed by code rather

than by human bias, the political controversy is likely to continue.

Cryptocurrencies’ effects on society haven’t yet been fully realized, nor will they be felt immediately.

Despite the rise of digital currency, it is just now becoming mainstream, and many people are still unsure

how Bitcoin works. An increasing number of sellers are accepting cryptocurrency payments, and it’s a

matter of time until more follow suit.

Having said this, as revealed by Wenke (2018), during the last few years, bitcoin has rapidly risen

to global prominence. In becoming the world’s leading cryptocurrency and a top performer among

currencies overall, it has gained an astounding 35% over the past year. However, attaining this level of

recognition hasn’t been easy. Bitcoin’s association with crimes such as the narcotics sales and money

laundering that commonly occurred on dark-web sites like Alphabay and Silk Road, as well as its high

level of volatility, left conventional financial market participants very wary of its risks.

Furthermore, along with its benefits, Bitcoin brings a fair amount of political upheaval. As stated

before, it is not controlled by any single government or bank. Because it’s a highly individualized type of

wealth, and because of the cryptography involved, no state can take away that individuality. As people

begin to understand that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are advantageous because they’re governed by code

rather than by human bias, the political controversy is likely to continue (Wenke, 2018).
REFERENCES

Gilpin, L. (2014) 10 Things You Should Know About Bitcoin and Digital Currencies. TechRepublic.

Retrieved from: http://www.techrepublic.com/article/10-things-you-should-know-about-bitcoin-

and-digitalcurrencies/. Date retrieved: September 9, 2019.

Jackson, R. (2019). Understanding the Last Three-Year Cryptocurrency Rollercoaster. Retrieved from:

https://bigthink.com/technology-innovation/review-of-cryptocurrencyhistory?rebelltitem= history

?history?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1. Date retrieved: September 9, 2019.

Kelly, B. (2014). The Bitcoin Big Bang: How Alternative Currencies Are About to Change the World.

Retrieved from: https://www.wiley.com/enus/The+Bitcoin+Big+Bang%3A+How+Alternative+

Currencies+Are+About+to+Change+the+World-p-9781118963661. Date retrieved: September 9,

2019.

Ketchell, M. (2019). Cryptocurrencies Are Finally Going Mainstream – The Battle Is on To Bring Them

Under Global Control. Retrieved from: http://theconversation.com/cryptocurrencies-are-finally-

going-mainstream-the-battle-is-on-to-bring-them-under-global-control-117112. Date retrieved:

September 9, 2019.

Lee, T. (2013). The Washington Post. Dogecoins And Litecoin And Peercoin Oh My: What You Need To

Know Bitcoin Alternatives. Retrieved from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/theswitch/wp

/2013/12/26/dogecoins-and-litecoins-and-peercoins-oh-my-what-you-need-to-know-aboutbitcoin-

alternatives. Date retrieved: September 9, 2019.

Popper, B. (2013). The Verge. Bitcoin is too cheap for its own good. Retrieved from: http://www.theverg

e.com/2013/12/9/5192054/bitcoin-boom-bust-bubble-currency-technology. Date retrieved:

 September 9, 2019.

Wenke, M. (2018). How Bitcoin May Affect the Worlds Future. Retrieved from:

https://www.docurex.com/en/how-bitcoin-may-affect-the-worlds-future/. Date retrieved:

September 9, 2019.
Chapter II

Technology and the Good Life Perspective

Make a brief description of what is tackled in chapter 2.

A. The Good Life

Discuss the good life according to Aristotle and other philosophers.

Present your own opinion about the good life.

B. The Technology and the Good Life

Discuss why the technology has a big potential of making people forget about the good life. Cite

Heidegger's views on technology.

Make an association/connection between the negative effects of the technology and the failure to

live a good life.

Cite at least 3 sources for the entire chapter 2.

2-3 pages excluding title page and references. short bond paper. times new roman size 11, double

space.
 Chapter II

This chapter discusses the technology and the good life perspective in accordance to Aristotle and

other philosophers’ philosophical perspective. Moreover, the correlation between technology and the

good life was also presented, along with the author’s perspective.

A. The Good Life

Good life is a moral concept. Hence, it is not possible to describe it without the analysis of

Ethical theory and one basic way we use the word “good” is to express moral approval (Westacott, 2019).

Aristotle’s good life involves a comprehensive treatment of the question “how should we live?”

The good life for him, is the life of excellence. For Aristotle, the attainment of good life is the main

purpose of human existence (Brainly, n. d.). Furthermore, according to Aristotle, happiness and having a

good life is about virtue. He considers the end of humans to be the good life. According to him, having a

good life is having happiness or prosperity which can be accomplished by living a life according to virtue

which is achieved by continually living in a virtuous manner or living with high moral standards.

On the other hand, as stated by Zand (2019), to Plato, a good life or a life well lived was achieved

by the pursuit of higher knowledge and man’s social obligation to the common good. Thus, individuals

who simply aspire for great wealth, fame, and power for its own sake were misguided. In addition, as

argued by Plato, individuals can possess the virtue of wisdom by pursuing a life of learning fueled by

curiosity. Being a lifelong learner allows you to possess new skills and develop more in-depth

knowledge. In turn, this allows the higher potential for efficacy and self-mastery leading to a more

fulfilling life (Westacott, 2019).

Elseways, as mentioned by Prezi (2019), Socrates' definition of the good life means that there is

more to life than just living your life day to day in the same pattern. Socrates believes that in order to
truly live a good life, you need to think about your existence and ask questions about the things around

you. He then thus came up with a saying, “the unexamined life is not worth living”.

Meanwhile, the Greek philosophers called a good life eudaemonia– a branch of ethics in

philosophy that deals with well-being as the ultimate good for people which sometimes mistakenly

referred to as the study of happiness (Zand, n. d.). In essence, by possessing and acting out on our

intellectual virtues and moral virtues, a person would achieve eudaimonia or happiness which they

thought what equates to good life.

The way I see it, today, happiness is portrayed as a state of mind at any given moment, more or

less a subjective mindset. We largely have a utilitarian view of happiness–maximizing pleasures while

minimizing pain. However, in my humble opinion, good life just like what all these philosophers believed

in as combined, it all boils down to “happiness” which includes living with moral standard, self-

development and discovery as well as being a lifelong learner. Even so, in my own conceit, there’s

potentially a huge difference between living the good life and living a good life. Not every person that is

living a satisfied life is living a good life.

Evidently, in our society of today, every single way of becoming successful not minding the

means can be blatantly seen. One example are the corrupt politicians. Not to generalize, but in this

country, naturally, politicians are known to be wealthy. They may have even experienced the things not a

normal citizen would have tried. However, despite living a good life—wealthy and luxurious, that doesn’t

necessarily mean that they live “the good life”—living with morals and dignity.

Having said that, on my superficial standpoint, considering my experiences as a young adult in

this modern world, for now, the good life, and one without going to excess, is one where there's enough

money to be able to have and do the things which you get most pleasure and enjoyment out of, and which

will enable you and your family to live in comfort and security, and never need worry about where the

basics of life will come from. 

B. The Technology and the Good Life

 According to Heidegger, there is something wrong with the modern, technological culture we live

in today. The problem for Heidegger is not so much the existence of technology or the forms it takes, but

rather our orientation to technology.

In "The Question Concerning Technology," he asks, "how do we generally think about

technology?" He comes up with two answers: technology is a means to an end and technology is a human

activity. Heidegger deems both responses as correct, but not true. They have the potential to lead us to the

essence of technology, but are not the essence of technology. The first response implies an instrumental

understanding of technology as being functional or useful in attaining a goal. As soon as a particular

object breaks down or is unable to perform its function, it reveals itself as useless to him. In other words

the instrumental value of modern technology is temporary; whether it has an intrinsic value is debatable.

Using object, Heidegger begins by observing that the “essence” of technology is itself nothing

technological, just as a tree is not the same as the essence of being a tree (which all trees share). He then

points to the “correct” notion of technology, that it is considered something belonging to human activity,

as well as being something instrumental (Seubold, n. d.).

Having said these, it can be perceived that technology has a huge potential on making people

forget about the good life. The forester, for example, is at the mercy of the paper industry, which in turn

is at the leniency of the print industry, which in turn transforms the reading public into a source of its own

profits. It can be seen that the forester, because of technology is pushed to do something that could

actually benefit him but is not considered living the good life—exploitation of nature. He also notes that

our use of the expression "human resources" aligns human beings with raw materials such as coal or

petroleum.

In addition to that, since for Heidegger, technology is a human activity, it is perceived that very

soon, machines will be able to do the things of human workers—blue or white collar job, By then, we will

no doubt be utterly dependent on machines in every aspect of our lives. Plus, for the foreseeable future,

machine intelligence will not include emotional intelligence or ethical concerns. If so, what would happen

to our norms, social contracts, values and morals when machines run everything for us? In conclusion,
there’s a possibility of humans being enslaved by technology.
 ADAMSON UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE
900 San Marcelino Street, Ermita Manila

CHAPTER II:
TECHNOLOGY AND THE GOOD LIFE PERSPECTIVE

DEL ROSARIO, SHAENA B.

201810020

OCTOBER 2019
 References

Brainly. (n. d.). What Does Aristotle Say About the Good Life? Does It Still Stand In The Contemporary

World?. Retrieved from: https://brainly.ph/question/1933622. Date Retrieved: October 24,

2019.

Prezi. (2019). Socrates's Conception of the Good Life. Retrieved from:

https://prezi.com/qhr3utyuv_wz/socratess-conception-of-the-goodlife/#targetText=Socrates'%20d

efinition%20of%20the%20good,about%20the%20things%20around%20you. Date Retrieved:

October 24, 2019.

Seubold, G. (n. d.). The technological view of the world of Martin Heidegger Retrived from:

https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/philosophy-of-technology/0/steps/26314. Date Retrieved:

October 24, 2019.

Westacott, E. (2019). What Does It Mean To Live The Good Life?. Retrieved from

https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-the-good-life-4038226. Date Retrieved: October 24, 2019.

Zand, B. (n. d.). How To Live A Flourishing Life According To Plato And Aristotle. Retrieved from:

https://bzandmd.blog/2018/01/28/how-to-live-a-flourishing-life-according-to-plato-and-aristotle/.

Date Retrieved: October 24, 2019.