The fact that this class has only taught me the surface level of economics, blows my mind. I began this class with the expectation that it would be a breeze, with my dad having majored in economics and now being an accountant. I believed I knew a decent amount to get me by, and I was very wrong. I was incredibly surprised by how many different aspects of life economics falls under and many of my presuppositions were completely off. I have enjoyed being challenged by the material and learning new ways to incorporate each part of life together.

Invented in 2008, cryptocurrency or, better known as bitcoins, has become popular as the main currency for the dark web. Originally being worth less than 10 cents per coin, they primarily were used solely for trading purposes. However, since then, a variety of alternative currencies have been created. Because of the rapid influx in worth, these coins are now priced at roughly $50,000. With the emergence of a recent cryptocurrency exchange market, people are now able to purchase and sell cryptocurrency for other stocks or cash that normally wouldn't be able to, thus making it more appealing to those outside of the dark web. For example, on June 9, 2020, the cryptocurrency’s volatility rose 117.04% in 30-days. This has become so wildly accepted that the company Square even accepts trading of Bitcoin in all 50 states. Do you think this is going to expand the criminal activity that originally was used for cryptocurrency on the black web, such as hackers using it for ransomware, or human trafficking? Or will it become tradeable in larger economic spaces such as the New York Stock Exchange as a common tradable currency? https://www.investopedia.com/articles/forex/121815/bitcoins-price-history.asp https://www.forbes.com/sites/cbovaird/2021/07/01/bitcoin-price-volatility-reached-a-14-month-high-in-june/?sh=3192a8fd3023 https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/the-history-of-bitcoin