Why do Americans refer to their money as bucks? The European colonial settlers ran into problems whenever they attempted to trade with the Native Americans as the latter were unwilling to accept bank notes and coins. Tobacco or wampum was sometimes used as a medium of exchange, but gradually deerskins or buckskins became the common medium of exchange (or money). Hence, to this day, Americans refer to their money as ‘bucks’!
According to Robert Shiller , speaking at Davos, Bitcoin is a perfect example of a bubble - story here . Shiller sees Bitcoin as a backwards step in the evolution of money. George Selgin , a free banker, takes an opposing view - click here . Although he doesn't believe that Bitcoin is money, he sees its development as a fascinating turn in the evolution of money. In particular, he lauds the fact that Bitcoin production is constrained and cannot be infinite. There is a short video below where Bitcoin explain how it works.