François Chung, Ph.D.

Tag: consumption patterns

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency technologies

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency technologies

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Coursera training, MOOC (2019). Given online by Princeton University (US), this training explains how Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies work at a technical level, and provides the conceptual foundations to engineer secure software that interacts with the Bitcoin network. Other important topics covered are how secure Bitcoins are, how anonymous Bitcoin users are, what determines the price of Bitcoins and whether cryptocurrencies can be regulated.

Week 1: Introduction to crypto and cryptocurrencies

Main topics:

  • Cryptographic hash functions;
  • Hash pointers and data structures;
  • Digital signatures;
  • Public keys as identities.

Week 2: How Bitcoin achieves decentralization

Main topics:

  • Centralization vs. decentralization;
  • Distributed consensus;
  • Consensus without identity: the blockchain;
  • Incentives and proof of work.

Week 3: Mechanics of Bitcoin

Main topics:

  • Bitcoin transactions;
  • Bitcoin scripts;
  • Bitcoin blocks;
  • Bitcoin network.

Week 4: How to store and use Bitcoins

Main topics:

  • Online wallets and exchanges;
  • Payment services;
  • Transaction fees;
  • Currency exchange markets.

Week 5: Bitcoin mining

Main topics:

  • Mining hardware;
  • Energy consumption and ecology;
  • Mining pools;
  • Mining incentives and strategies.

Week 6: Bitcoin and anonymity

Main topics:

  • How to de-anonymize Bitcoin;
  • Decentralized mixing;
  • Zerocoin and Zerocash;
  • Tor and Silk Road.

Week 7: Community, politics and regulation

Main topics:

  • Consensus in Bitcoin;
  • Bitcoin core software;
  • Governments notice Bitcoin;
  • Anti money-laundering.

Week 8: Alternative mining puzzles

Main topics:

  • ASIC resistant puzzles;
  • Proof-of-useful-work;
  • Nonoutsourceable puzzles;
  • Virtual mining.

Week 9: Bitcoin as a platform

Main topics:

  • Bitcoin as an append-only log;
  • Bitcoin as smart property;
  • Multi-party lotteries in Bitcoin;
  • Bitcoin as randomness source.

Week 10: Altcoins and the cryptocurrency ecosystem

Main topics:

  • Short history of Altcoins;
  • Interaction between Bitcoin and Altcoins;
  • Lifecycle of an Altcoin;
  • Sidechains.

Week 11: The future of Bitcoin

Main topics:

  • The blockchain as a vehicle for decentralization;
  • Blockchain integration;
  • What can we decentralize?
  • When is decentralization a good idea?

References

Related articles

Cybersecurity specialization (Coursera training)
Blockchain essentials (Cognitive Class training)

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Coursera

Mines 2018 – Magazine article

Mines 2018 – Magazine article

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Publication

François Chung; Une politique énergétique belge à multi-niveaux; Mines Revue des Ingénieurs, 499, pp. 27-29, 2018.

Abstract

Au XIXe siècle, le développement économique de la Belgique fut propulsé par le secteur énergétique grâce aux charbonnages wallons. En effet, dans la 1ère moitié du XIXe siècle, la Belgique était un des seuls pays, avec l’Angleterre, où le charbonnage était à ce point développé. À un tel point que des mines de charbon belges furent les premières entreprises industrielles à entrer en bourse à Paris. Cette époque d’abondance énergétique contraste avec la situation telle que nous la connaissons aujourd’hui : la Belgique dépend désormais de l’étranger pour ses besoins énergétiques, que ce soit pour le pétrole, le gaz naturel ou le charbon lui-même, qui représentent tous trois un peu plus de 70% de sa consommation d’énergie primaire en 2014.

References

Publication

Published version (PDF)
Bibliographic reference (BibTeX)
Online version (Ingénieurs Belges)

Sustainable development: issues and paths

Sustainable development: issues and paths

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UL training, MOOC (2015). Given online by Université Laval (UL), this training provides the main keys to understand the concept of sustainable development in order to promote active participation in debates and actions for transition to its implementation. The training explains the basic concepts of environmental, social and economic issues related to the development, while taking into account the diversity of discourses and the complexity of issues.

Module 1: Greatness and misery of development in the 20th century

Main topics:

  • The industrious years;
  • Stockholm Conference;
  • Brundtland Report.

Module 2: Ethics, environment and development

Main topics:

  • Ethics of sustainable development;
  • Limits and precaution;
  • Ecocentric ethics.

Module 3: A garbage atmosphere

Main topics:

  • Low-altitude pollution;
  • Depletion of the ozonosphere;
  • Climatic changes.

Module 4: A twisted hydrosphere

Main topics:

  • Assimilative capacity;
  • Biogeochemical cycles;
  • Sampling volume.

Module 5: A humanized biosphere

Main topics:

  • Ocean acidification;
  • Expansion of agricultural land;
  • Biodiversity loss.

Module 6: Footprints and paths

Main topics:

  • Population;
  • Consumption;
  • Technology;
  • End of the linear economy.

Module 7: Complexity, vision and commitment

Main topics:

  • Complexity;
  • Pragmatism of targets;
  • Measures of happiness;
  • Collective actions.

Reference

Learn more

UL – Université Laval

Global sustainable energy

Global sustainable energy

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Coursera training, MOOC (2014). Given online by the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering of the University of Florida (US), this training covers concepts of work and energy and their relationship with our modern society. Each aspect of this relationship is analyzed, including consumptive patterns for the residential, commercial, industrial and transportation sectors. Sources for fossil fuels and the differences between reserves and production are also examined.

Module 1: History of energy

Main topics:

  • Energy sources;
  • Brush wind power machine;
  • Steam and diesel engines.

Module 2: History of mechanized agriculture

Main topics:

  • Crop yields;
  • Fertilizers and pesticides;
  • Fuel requirements.

Module 3: Transportation

Main topics:

  • Fuel types;
  • International consumption patterns;
  • Driving techniques.

Module 4: Residential energy consumption

Main topics:

  • Energy efficiency;
  • Energy footprint;
  • Energy savings.

Module 5: Commercial energy consumption

Main topics:

  • Heating;
  • Ventilating;
  • Air conditioning (AC);
  • Lighting;
  • Energy efficiency.

Module 6: Industrial energy and total energy requirements

Main topics:

  • Primary materials;
  • Fossil fuels;
  • Recycling.

Module 7: Energy availability

Main topics:

  • Fossil fuel availability;
  • Total energy requirements;
  • Export Land Model.

Module 8: Marketplace

Main topics:

  • Oil commodity market;
  • Commodity exchanges;
  • Speculation.

Module 9: Current warnings

Main topics:

  • Peak Oil;
  • Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC);
  • Fungible products.

Module 10: Transformations I – electricity

Main topics:

  • Energy efficiency;
  • Renewable energy sources;
  • Subsidies.

Module 11: Transformations II – oil

Main topics:

  • Transportation sector;
  • Energy efficiency;
  • Driving techniques.

Reference

Learn more

Coursera

UREBA Exceptionnel

UREBA Exceptionnel

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E²=MC project @Jambes, Belgium (2013). The UREBA Exceptionnel subsidies are subsidies granted by the Walloon Region (BE) for the execution of works, such as the purchase and installation of materials or equipment, aiming to improve the energy efficiency and the rational use of energy in buildings. These subsidies are intended for persons of public law and non-commercial organisations, such as municipalities, schools, hospitals, swimming pools and community services.

The main works taken into account by these subsidies include:

  • the thermal insulation of building walls;
  • the replacement or upgrading of the heating system;
  • the improvement of the lighting system;
  • the implementation of a district heating.

The analytical criteria used to assess both the relevance and effectiveness of the proposed works are:

  • technical characteristics;
  • working hypotheses;
  • sizing of the works;
  • energy saving;
  • reduction of polluting emissions (e.g. CO2 and SO2);
  • economic assessment (e.g. costs and return on investment);
  • relevance of chosen techniques;
  • standards and codes of good behaviour.

As a Consultant in Energy Efficiency, my work consists in analysing these technical, energetic and economic criteria so as to determine the eligibility of the proposed works according to their relevance, and then to rank them according to their energy efficiency.

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