If you are interested in cryptocurrencies then you have probably heard about Initial Coin Offerings (or ICOs). they’re kind of like Kickstarter, if Kickstarter was made for investors rather than consumers. ICOs have often been cited as a key reason behind the recent explosion in the value of certain Cryptocurrencies, as investors buy up Ethereum or Bitcoin in order to invest in the latest startup or enterprise. ICOs have become increasingly common and new projects are cropping up every day. As such, we need to ask ourselves the question; Are Initial Coin Offerings going to burst the Cryptocurrency bubble?
An innovative way to invest
Initial Coin Offerings have become a wildly popular way to raise funds for small to medium business. At its core, an Initial Coin Offering is a crowd investment tool that allows blockchain or cryptocurrency based projects to gather large funds in a short period of time. It does this by selling off a portion of its cryptocurrency tokens in advance to investors and backers.
The startup can then use this injection of funds to get their project off the ground and in theory early adopters will be able to sell their tokens for a profit down the line.
If this sounds familiar it’s because, at least superficially, Initial Coin Offerings have some things in common with Initial Public Offerings (IPO). When a startup engages in an IPO it sells a stake of the company to early investors in order to raise funds. An Initial Coin Offering works on the same principle, except the startup is selling some of its Tokens or coins in lieu of equity.
Many have argued that Initial Coin Offerings will democratize the investment market and allow more people to invest in more projects. Taking power away from the establishment and allowing more people to invest in more diverse ideas.
On the other hand there is the argument that Initial Coin Offerings are poorly understood. Particularly by novice investors. There is also the fear that the lack of regulation surrounding the practice has allowed for some pretty poorly thought out ideas, or outright scams, to get funded.
Initial Coin Offerings Could have the same pitfalls as crowdfunding
They key way that an Initial Coin Offering differs from an Initial Public Offering is essentially in the barrier to entry. An IPO generally requires three things: A product, whitepaper and proven market traction. IPOs also tend to involve a fair amount of research and due diligence on the part of the investor.
ICOs on the other hand have a much lower barrier of entry for both potential investors and startups. While this has helped to fund some promising projects, it has also allowed dubious startups to get funding that they probably shouldn’t have received.
There are fears that Initial Coin Offerings could lead to the same failed projects as Crowdfunding has on sites like KickStarter – Credit Amazonaws
The success of Bitcoin and the numerous Altcoins have encouraged inexperienced investors to view ICOs as a sure thing. These novices have used ICOs to invest in startups with little to no plan for how to actually bring their product to market.
The effect of this is two-fold. As investors pour money into ICOs using Bitcoin or Ethereum the value of those currencies grows, increasing its market value and making ICOs and cryptocurrencies in general more attractive.
This is great until a significant number of these ICOs fail to make good on their promised returns. If this happens then confidence will be hurt and there is a risk that large numbers of people will look to get rid of their coins before the market turns bad, resulting in a collapse of the value of the currencies they’re based on.
In other words, the bubble will burst.
Unforeseen regulation could damage your investment
There is also the risk that Governments will attempt to bring in legislation targeting Initial Coin Offerings and Cryptocurrencies in general. While many governments are beginning to warm up to Cryptocurrency the same cannot necessarily be said for Initial Coin Offerings.
If a number of projects failed to deliver there will be significant pressure on governments to regulate the practice in order to protect consumers. Nobody knows what form this regulation might take, it could even result in certain governments banning the practice outright, making it illegal for you to hold your tokens.
If this happens then it won’t matter how successful the project you backed becomes.
This doesn’t necessarily mean you shouldn’t invest in Initial Coin Offerings
Investment is an inherently risky prospect, no matter what you’re investing in. Even perfectly planned enterprises with an excellent product can still fail because of factors outside of their control.
The truth of the matter is that Initial Coin Offerings will always carry a higher risk than many forms of traditional investment. If you do still want to invest there are still some basic guidelines you can follow that should help you avoid investing in something completely doomed to fail.
- Always read the whitepaper. A good whitepaper will generally be quite academic in tone. They will explain how the product works, demonstrate good market research and generally include realistic profit forecasts. Avoid anything that sounds like a sales pitch or that is fuzzy on the details.
- Look at the team. If the team contains experienced individuals with a track record of launching successful products then you will likely be in safe hands. Ideally you want a team that consists of marketing, finance and development specialists. A well constructed experienced team is always a positive sign.
- Follow the golden rule. Never invest more than you are willing to lose. It doesn’t matter how great or promising a project sounds, over investing in a single idea opens you up to a huge amount of risk in the case of failure, protect yourself and spread out any investments across multiple projects in order to minimize losses.
Initial Coin Offerings do have the potential to be a positive force, opening up investment for more people than ever before and allowing smaller innovative companies to secure funding. The problem is that until there is an agreed upon code of conduct there is always the risk that overconfidence will bring the idea crashing down.
Until that happens, the best way to avoid a bubble is to think before we invest, follow common sense rules, do your research and at the very least, you won’t get burned.
Redwire Space has “bioprinted” a human knee meniscus on the International Space Station, which could treat Earthlings with meniscus issues.
The meniscus cartilage was manufactured on Redwire’s ISS BioFabrication Facility (BFF). The BFF printed the meniscus using living human cells and transmitted it to Redwire’s Advanced Space Experiment Processor for a 14-day enculturation process for BFF-Meniscus-2.
SpaceX’s Crew-6 mission returned the tissue to Earth after culturing. UAE astronaut Sultan Al-Neyadi and NASA astronauts Frank Rubio, Warren Hoburg, and Stephen Bowen investigated.
Redwire collaborated with the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences Center for Biotechnology, which studies warfighter remedies, for the trial. Meniscus injuries are the most prevalent orthopedic injuries in U.S. service members.
In recent months, Redwire Space has advanced biotechnology. The subsidiary of Redwire Corporation launched a 30,000-square-foot biotech and microgravity research park in Indiana this summer.
Redwire EVP John Vellinger called the printing “groundbreaking milestone.”
He stated, “Demonstrating the ability to print complex tissue such as this meniscus is a major leap forward toward the development of a repeatable microgravity manufacturing process for reliable bioprinting at scale.”
The company has long-term bioprinting and space microgravity research goals. Redwire will fly microgravity pharmaceutical drug development and cardiac tissue bioprinting payloads on a November SpaceX Commercial Resupply trip to the ISS.
Sierra Space agreed to integrate Redwire’s biotech and in-space manufacturing technology into its Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) space station module. Orbital Reef, a private space station designed by Blue Origin, Boeing, and others, will include LIFE.
According to the International Organization for Standardization (IOS), totes are classified into two categories. Let us take a closer look:
First, there are intermediate bulk container (IBC) totes that are described as rigid. These are often made from metal, wood, or fiberboard. They are designed as a single unit and do not call for additional support when they are filled up.
Then there is the composite kind. These are made up of a cage that supports and protects the inner lining when weight is added. As a result, the lining and the cage work in tandem as one unit.
In this read, we are going to dive into the gist of things and explore practices that you should implement when it comes to using your 330 reconditioned IBC totes. Keep in mind that these are general requirements and you should seek specific advice from your supplier as your needs may be different.
-If you intend to store products meant for human use, ensure the totes are food grade. This helps ascertain harmful interactions or reactions do not happen during transportation or storage.
-When handling items with extremely low flashpoints, store them in totes that are explosion-proof. Some materials, however, will need permeation barriers to prevent them from diffusing through the lining.
-In regards to hazmat transit, the container’s material as well as filling material compatibility should undergo thorough testing. These tests, however, can differ between European and American regions. They are put into place to determine the best material to use for your situation and so, is imperative to allocate enough time for comprehensive testing.
The Best Practices for Filling & Handling/Shipping IBC Totes
- Filling
In order to fill a tote, the following three things should be done:
-Close the outlet valve
-During filling, the process should be performed at atmospheric pressure, and shouldn’t go beyond 70ºC/158ºF. Therefore, the tote should not be pressurized.
-During the cooling stage, the receptacle should be vented. This is to prevent vacuum deformation from occurring. Once this is done, ensure the cap is screwed in tightly.
- Handling or Shipping
-The totes should be well-secured to make sure no damage occurs during transit
-Never use tie ropes on the totes with the intention of moving them this way.
-If you are using a pallet jack or a forklift to handle the IBC totes, the forks should reach the pallets’ entire length.
- Storage or Stacking
-Prior to stacking, it is imperative to identify the plate for stack testing. This helps determine whether the IBC totes are stackable.
-Always put nesting into consideration. It means arranging the totes in a way that they fit closely together. An effective way to do this is by using a two on two configuration.
-During transportation, the stack should not go beyond two layers
- Emptying
-When emptying a tote, only do it through the lower outlet valve.
-Open the top before emptying to avoid a vacuum collapse
-If you are emptying through a pipe or a pump, make sure that it is supported and does not rely on the cage. If you use the cage to support the pump or pipe, the vibrations are likely to cause damage to the cage.
The Takeaway
These are some of the general practices when handling composite IBC totes. It is also important to note that these practices are just the tip of the iceberg. As such, we recommend forming a relationship with a supplier that has been in the field for years to ensure that you always make informed decisions.
Only if goods truly support it can the Matter standard facilitate the use of smart home appliances from different brands. You don’t even need to download or install any updates because Google has just announced that it has enabled Matter compatibility for its Nest and Android devices. This means that Matter can now be controlled by the Google Home speaker, Google Home Mini, Nest Mini, Nest Audio, Nest Hub (1st and 2nd gen), Nest Hub Max, and the new Nest WiFi Pro.
Additionally, Google has made Matter compatibility available for Fast Pair on Android, which will let you to connect Matter-enabled devices to your home network “as rapidly as you can pair a set of headphones.” This functionality will make it simple to integrate your devices with apps and smart home ecosystems once they are linked. The tech behemoth has also upgraded the Nest Wi Pro, Nest Hub Max, and Nest Hub (2nd gen) to include Thread border router functionality. In this manner, you can utilize them to link items that support Thread, the networking standard for low-power gadgets like smart locks.
Since 2019, the Connectivity Standards Alliance, of which Google is a member, has been working on the Matter standard to address the fragmentation issue in the smart home market and make it simpler to use products from various manufacturers. It had to postpone Matter’s release a few times before it was eventually able to roll out the standard’s version 1.0 definition and product certification program this October. It had originally planned to introduce the standard in 2021. Soon after Matter was released, Samsung said that it is collaborating with Google to make it simple to add devices that are already configured with SmartThings to Google Home and vice versa. One of the other founders of the Alliance, Amazon, also provided a list of the 17 Echo devices that will support the standard as of this month.
The number of products that are Matter-enabled is now somewhat small, but according to Google, this holiday season and early 2023 will witness an increase. With the exception of the aforementioned Google items, all devices that implement the standard will be identified by the Matter badge and will function with all other Matter devices right out of the box.
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