_ THANK YOU FOR READING!

My goal with this research is to eventually write a book on this subject by converting this thesis into something much shorter, less technical, better edited, and easier to read. To that end, | greatly appreciate any feedback from readers about the concepts presented in this thesis. If you find something interesting during your reading, or if you want me to cut/expand any particular concept, please tag me on LinkedIn or Twitter (@JasonPLowery) and let me know. | will be checking social media for tags/reviews so any and all feedback will be read.

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HOW BITCOIN COULD CREATE BANHU elsixerap)anuiseua:y Wel) \01s Me F-¥al lem AN UNPRECEDENTED FORM OF WAR

JASON P LOWERY

The following is a high-definition & copy-edited version of my thesis submitted to DoD & MIT in February 2023 as the final deliverable of my US national defense fellowship. Each year, the Department of the Air Force selects two officers to serve as US National Defense Fellows. This fellowship is a DoD-sponsored program where mid-career officers attend a graduate-level systems engineering program at MIT to research strategic military applications of emerging technologies. As the US Space Force’s first and only US National Defense Fellow, | devoted my fellowship towards researching the national strategic implications of Bitcoin. By the end of this research effort, | concluded that Bitcoin could be one of the most significant military-grade security technologies to emerge in the 21° century. This document represents my final deliverable to the DoD and contains the information I’ve shared with the Office of the President of the United States (OPOTUS), Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSECDEF), and Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (OJCS). Please bear in mind that this document was written in 6 months while completing a full courseload of graduate engineering classes at MIT. It’s just a clunky first draft of a new theory that | intend to shorten and refine over time with the help of your continual feedback and support.

It should be emphasized that even though | am an active-duty military officer sponsored by the DoD to research Bitcoin at MIT, the theories presented in this thesis are strictly my own personal views based on what | have learned from my own academic research. This thesis does not reflect any official position or endorsement of the US Department of Defense, Department of the Air Force, or MIT.