China is evolving at the speed of "Lambo" when it comes to digital currencies, blockchain and Bitcoin .
The Far Eastern superpower is secretly injecting millions of yuan into the development of blockchain parks, education, a distributed framework and its next digital yuan.
But these advances require a skilled workforce, and China never fails to deliver. A local report released earlier this week said that exam candidates in China must now ask questions about Bitcoin mining , weeks after the publication of a parliamentary book on the subject.
Learn more about Bitcoin
Local publication 8BTC noted earlier this week that students preparing for the “Gaokao” exam - taken by about 10 million students each year - are currently analyzing the local Bitcoin mining industry , in particular its geographic implications and economic.
Questions on the subject arise in the practice books, the latter generally presenting a program which is sure to appear in the "Gaokao". Reports say exam is grueling and highly competitive, with top workbooks at prestigious universities in China, the United States and even the United Kingdom
Disclosed photos show students are asked to analyze why Bitcoin mining is centered in Sichuan.
Sichuan's naturally cool climate, inexpensive hydro-based energy and skilled labor make the region ripe for setting up a Bitcoin mining business . The data indicates that more than 9% of the global Bitcoin hash rate is generated from the region.
But there are also critics. Students would be asked why an asymmetry - in terms of oversized infrastructure for a small population - exists and how hydroelectricity could be used for other resources.
The Chinese publication Weixin reported similar questions that emerged during a geography exam in 2019, as shown in the screenshot below.
Here's why it's great
Students sharing photos questions about Bitcoin have noted that most of the subjects dealt with the expansion of Bitcoin as an industry and consumption of mass energy, which, according to some, is enough to power all from Switzerland.
A question asks students why the further growth of Bitcoin mining in China should be suppressed, with a fix indicating:
“ Bitcoin presents a high risk and unstable income; Bitcoin computing consumes a lot of energy, which will result in insufficient power supply in the real economy; excessive emissions of waste heat can cause fires and potential safety hazards. "
In many ways, the questions are important and point to China's grand plans around cryptocurrencies.
Educators expect Chinese citizens to learn, know and analyze Bitcoin and related mining activities. Blockchain, as a broader extension, is strongly described in the Chinese five-year plan, with the development of a blockchain island currently underway in Hainan.
Countries like South Korea are said to be “concerned” about China's role in the blockchain industry.
Meanwhile, China is making sure its Digital Yuan project is ready before the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, which could potentially introduce digital currency to millions of participants around the world.
