Course Syllabus ECO21: The Bitcoin Standard Dr. Saifedean Ammous Summer 2019 This course will be based on The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking. A 1-hour lecture will be delivered online once a week, or 1! weeks, at the times listed below. #ectures are delivered live, but can be accessed online at an$ time until the course ends. Students can ask %uestions and vote on which questions the$ would like to see addressed at the end o the lecture. Wee" 1: Money The Bitcoin Standard, prologue and chapter 1 Menger, Carl. ()n the )rigins o 'one$.* The +conomic ,ournal -, no. /101-2: -314-55. Salerno, ,oseph. ('one$: Sound and Unsound.* #udwig von Mises Institute, -!1!. /Chapter 12 Wee" 2: Primitive Money The Bitcoin Standard, chapter - Szabo, 8ick. -!!-. (Shelling )ut: The )rigins o Mone$.* Available on 8aka"oto7nstitute.org 9ekete, Antal. (Whither ;old?* /111=2. Winner o the 111. 7nternational Currenc$ >rize, sponsored by Bank #ips. BD ?atings. Tales o So t 'one$: The Trail o Beads. You "a$ also be interested in watching the "ovie His 'ajesty )CDee e, with Burt #ancaster. )r $ou "a$ read the book on which it is based, written by #aurence Dlingman and ;erald ;reen. Wee" 3: Monetary Metals ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter 3 #ips, 9erdinand. ( ;old :ars: The Battle Against Sound Mone$ as Seen rom a Swiss >erspective*. 8ew York: 9oundation or the Advance"ent o Monetary +ducation, -!!1. />art 7E pp. 1--=2 Mises, #udwig von. (Auman Action. The Scholar’s +dition.* Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises Institute, 1110. /pp. F=1-F=0 G pp. =.=-=.12 Schuettinger, ?obert #., and +a"onn 9. Butler. (9orty Centuries o Wage and >rice Controls: How 8ot to 9ight InHation.* #udwig von Mises 7nstitute, 11=1. /Chapters 1-3E pp. 1-3.2 Christopher, Ben. Aow the Aunt Brothers cornered the silver market and lost it all. >riceonomics blog, August -!1.. ?eco""ended reading: ;lubb, ,ohn. (The 9ate o +mpires and Search or Survival.* Blackwood, 11=0. Iweig, Ste an. (The World o Yesterda$: Me"oirs o a +uropean.* >ushkin >ress, -!!1. Wee" 4: Go%ernment Money ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter F #ips, 9erdinand. ( ;old :ars: The Battle Against Sound Mone$ as Seen rom a Swiss >erspective*. 8ew York: 9oundation or the Advance"ent o Monetary +ducation, -!!1. />art II-J7E pp. -=-1=.2 Mises, #udwig von. (The Theory o Mone$ and Credit*, -nd ed. Irvington-on-Audson, 8ew York: 9oundation or +conomic +ducation, 11=1. />art 9our: Chapters 1 G -E pp.F13-F3F2 Ha$ek, 9riedrich. ('onetary 8ationalism and International Stability.* 9airfield, 8,: Augustus Delle$, 1101 /113=2. ?othbard, 'urra$. (AmericaCs ;reat Depression,* 5th ed. Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises Institute, -!!!. /Chapter F2 Hanke, Steve H. and Charles Bushnell. (Jenezuela +nters the ?ecord Book: The 5=th +ntry in the Aanke-Drus :orld A$perinHation Table.* The ,ohns Aopkins 7nstitute or Applied +conomics, ;lobal Health, and the Study o Business +nterprise, Studies in Applied +conomics, no. .1 /December -!1.2. ?eco""ended reading: Haslam, >hilip and ?ussell #amberti. ( When Mone$ Destro$s 8ations .* >enguin 6D, -!1F. Hazlitt, Henry. ( The 9ailure o the 8ew +conomics .* D. Jan 8osrat Compan$, 7nc, 8ew ,erse$ 1151. Steil, Benn. (The Battle o Bretton Woods: ,ohn Ma$nard De$nes, Aarry DeLter White and the Making o a 8ew :orld )rder.* >rinceton University >ress, -!13. Wee" 5: Money and Time Preference ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter 5 Ho&&e, Aans-Aermann. (De"ocrac$: The ;od That 9ailed.* 8ew Brunswick: Transaction >ublishers, -!!1. /Chapter 12 Mises, #udwig von. (Auman Action. The Scholar’s +dition.* Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises Institute, 1110. /Chapters 10 G 112 ?othbard, 'urra$. ('an, +cono"$, and State*. #udwig von Mises Institute, -!!1. /Chapter .2 ?eco""ended reading: Huebner, ,onathan. (A >ossible Declining Trend or Worldwide Innovation.* Technological 9orecasting and Social Change =-, no. 0 /-!!52: 10!410.. Mischel, Walter, +bbe B. +bbesen, and Antonette ?askoM Ieiss. NCognitive and Attentional Mechanisms in Dela$ o ;ratiKcation.N ,ournal o >ersonality and Social >s$cholog$ -1, no. - /11=-2: -!F4-10. Saunders, 9rances Stonor. -!!!. (The Cultural Cold War: The CIA and the :orld o Arts and #etters.* The 8ew >ress, -!!!. ISB8 1-5.50F-51.-X. Wee" 6: Ca+italism,s Information System ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter . Ha$ek, 9riedrich. (The Use o Dnowledge in Society.* American +conomic ?eview 35, no. F /11F52: 511453!. ?othbard, 'urra$. NThe +nd o Socialis" and the Calculation Debate ?evisited.N The ?eview o Austrian +conomics 5, no. - /11112: 514=.. Ho&&e, Aans-Aermann. (Aow Is 9iat 'one$ >ossible< )r, The Devolution o 'one$ and Credit.* The ?eview o Austrian +conomics =, no. - /111F2. Mises, #udwig von. (Auman Action. The Scholar’s +dition.* Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises Institute, 1110. /Chapter OO2 ?othbard, 'urra$. (+conomic Depressions: Their Cause and Cure.* Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises 7nstitute, -!!1. 9urther reading: Bernanke, Ben S. (DeHation: 'aking Sure PIt’ DoesnQt Aappen Aere.* In ?emarks by ;overnor Ben S. Bernanke Be ore the 8ational +conomists Club, :ashington, D.C., 8ovember -1, -!!-. De Soto, ,esRs Auerta. (Mone$, Bank Credit, and +conomic C$cles.* Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises 7nstitute, -!!1. Ha$ek, 9riedrich. (A Tiger by the Tail.* Jol. F. #aissez-9aire Books, 1103. Ha$ek, 9riedrich. ('onetary Theory and the Trade C$cle.* ,onathan Cape, #ondon /11332. ,astram, ?o$ W. The ;olden Constant: The +nglish and American +Lperience 15.!4-!!=. +dmund +lgar, -!!1. Mises, #udwig von. (Socialism: An +conomic and Sociological Anal$sis.* #udwig von Mises Institute, Auburn, A#. -!!0 /11--2. Courtois, Ste&hane, 8icolas :erth, Darel Bartosek, Andrzej >aczkowski, ,ean-#ouis >annS, and ,ean-#ouis 'argolin. ( The Black Book o Co""unism: Crimes, Terror, ?epression .* Aarvard University >ress, 111=. ?othbard, 'urra$. (AmericaCs ;reat Depression*, 5th ed. Auburn, A#: #udwig von Mises Institute, -!!!. /Chapters 1-F2 Wee" 7: Sound money and indi%idual freedom ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter = ?othbard, 'urra$. NThe Austrian Theory o Mone$.N The 9oundations o Modern Austrian +conomics /11=.2: 1.!–10F. Higgs, ?obert. (World :ar II and the Triu"&h o De$nesianis".* Independent 7nstitute /-!!12. ?othbard, 'urra$. (The +thics o #iberty.* 8ew York, 8Y. 8ew @ork University >ress, 1110. /Chapters 1 G -2 9riedman, Milton, and Anna Schwartz, (A Monetary History o the United States, 10.=-11.!*. >rinceton 6niversity >ress, -!!0. /Chapter 02 9urther reading: De$nes, ,.M. The end o #aissez-9aire (+ssa$s in >ersuasion.* W. W. 8orton, 11.3. >p.-=5--15 >hilippon, Thomas, and Ariell ?eshe . (An 7nternational #ook at the ;rowth o 'odern 9inance.* ,ournal o +conomic >erspectives -=, no. - /-!132: =341.. Skousen, 'ark. NThe >erseverance o >aul SamuelsonQs +conomics.N ,ournal o +conomic >erspectives 11, no. - /111=2: 13=–15-. Halev$, +lie, and Ma$ Wallas. (The Age o T$rannies.* +conomica 0, 8ew Series, no. -1 /11F12: ==413. Wee" 8: Digital Money ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter 0 8aka"oto, Satoshi. (Bitcoin: A >eer-to->eer +lectronic Cash S$ste"* /n.p., -!!02. >ritzker, @an. (Inventing Bitcoin.* Antono&oulos, Andreas. ('astering Bitcoin: 6nlocking Digital Cryptocurrencies.* )Q?eill$ Media, Inc., -!1F. /Chapter -2 9urther reading: ;ra , Donrad. ()n the )rigins o Bitcoin: Stages o 'onetary +volution* /-!132. www.konradsgra .co". ;reenberg, Andy. This Machine Dills Secrets: ,ulian Assange, the C$pherpunks, and Their 9ight to +mpower :histleblowers. >enguin, -!13. Merkle, ?alph. (DA)s, Democrac$ and ;overnance.* Cryonics 3=, no. F /,ul$/August -!1.2: -0-F!E Alcor, www.alcor.org. 8ara$anan, Arvind et al. ( Bitcoin and Cryptocurrenc$ Technologies: A Comprehensive Introduction.* >rinceton 6niversity >ress, -!1..>aar, Christo , Bart >reneel and ,an >elzl. (6nderstanding Cryptograph$: A TeLtbook or Students and >ractitioners.* Springer, -!!1. >opper, 8athaniel. (Digital ;old.* Harper, -!15. Szabo, 8ick. -!!1. (Trusted Third >arties Are Security Aoles.* Available on 8aka"oto7nstitute.org >lanB. Modeling BitcoinCs value with scarcity. Wee" 9: What is bitcoin good for1 ?equired reading: The Bitcoin Standard, chapter 1 ?othbard, 'urra$. (The +thics o #iberty.* 8ew York, 8Y. 8ew @ork University >ress, 1110. /Chapters 1-1 G Chapter --2 Ma$, Ti"oth$. (Crypto Anarch$ and Jirtual Co""unities.* 111F. Available on naka"otoinstitute.org Davidson, ,ames, and William ?ees-'ogg. The Sovereign Individual: The Coming +conomic ?evolution. McMillan, 111=. /Chapters F G 52 Simon, ,ulian. The Ulti"ate ?esource -. >rinceton University >ress, 1101. 9urther reading: 9erguson, Adam. (An +ssa$ on the History o Civil Society.* #ondon: T. Cadell, 1=0-. Dre"er, Michael. (>o&ulation ;rowth and Technological Change: )ne Million B.C. to 111!.* Uuarterl$ o ,ournal o +conomics 1!0, no. 3 /11132: .014=1.. Smith, Jernon. ?ationality in +conomics. 8ew @ork: Cambridge 6niversity >ress. -!!0. Wee" 10: Bitcoin Questions. Conclusion The Bitcoin Standard, chapter 1! This week draws on all the combined readings o the previous weeks. (eneral Bitcoin Resources: Bitcoin.org: The original do"ain used by 8akamoto to announce Bitcoin, share the white &aper, and distribute the code. It continues to be run by several contributors and serves as a good resource or in ormation. 8aka"oto7nstitute.org: The Satoshi 8aka"oto 7nstitute curates pri"ary source literature on cryptograph$ and society, with a ocus on the history and economics o Bitcoin. It also "aintains an archive o all SatoshiCs known writings: the Bitcoin white pa&er, the e"ails he sent, and the orum posts he "ade. http://lopp.net/bitcoin.html: An eLcellent, comprehensive, and regularl$ updated page listing Bitcoin resources "aintained by ,ameson #opp..