I've been working on a research paper for my math class on the Bitcoin, which is a completely virtual form of currency, and thought this might be a good topic of discussion. What do you guys think of it? What kind of questions do you have? Feel free to discuss!

What I've read about the Bitcoin makes it seem so fascinating. Too bad that it's gained a bad reputation for illegal sales. I'm sure if it was more monitored, governments would be less wary about it. Since that's not going to happen, I think Bitcoin will stay popular but not reach it's true potential. What do you think?

It is definitely unfortunate that the main reason people know about it is due to illegal use. In its defense, though, people use the dollar for illegal stuff too. Due to its nature, it could actually very easily be monitored. Every transaction is made public at https://blockchain.info, so the government could potentially train and assign an individual or group to monitor the currency if it chooses. I'm all for healthy boundaries, but I agree with you in that I think the more restricted it becomes, the less likely it will reach its full potential. When China started banning virtual currencies, the value of the bitcoin dropped in value about $800 to $421, according to http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25428866. But due to its popularity, it currently fluctuates between $800 and $900-ish depending on when you check. All this to say, once it settles down a bit, I'm sure it will start to take off more.