Computing and the Environment
Understand the significance of being a responsible professional in terms of the environment.
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Given the scenario below, select the approach that you would choose from the options provided.
Scenario
You’re a software engineer participating in a hackathon focused on blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. The hackathon’s challenge is to create an innovative and engaging puzzle game that integrates with
You and your team brainstorm ideas and develop a unique concept: a puzzle-solving game where players need to solve cryptographic puzzles to earn Bitcoin rewards. Players would use their problem-solving skills to decode encrypted messages or solve mathematical challenges, and each successfully solved puzzle would result in a small amount of Bitcoin being transferred to the player’s wallet. This approach aims to attract a wide range of players to the game while also catering to those interested in cryptocurrencies.
However, since the puzzles that you aim to create would revolve around hash codes, data, and random numbers, mirroring the complexities of
Bitcoin mining involves solving complex problems that require a significant amount of computational power and energy. Miners compete to find a solution, and the first one to do so gets to add a new block of transactions to the blockchain and is rewarded with newly created bitcoins. The energy-intensive nature of Bitcoin mining contributes to increased carbon emissions, contributing to climate change.
So, in your game, players would engage in activities that simulate this process, often to earn rewards or progress through the game’s objectives. However, this is going to lead to a lot of energy consumption, with millions of simultaneous attempts to solve the puzzle, leading to significant wastage.
Considering the low probability of success, immense energy consumption, and the element of chance, you ask yourself a question: is this a path worth pursuing? Cryptocurrency-based puzzle games might incentivize players to spend excessive amounts of time trying to solve puzzles, leading to increased carbon emissions.
Your choice will impact not only the success of the project but also the environment and the well-being of the players. What do you do?