Thanks for that link, very interesting. It led me to
this very thorough explanation of NFTs which it turns out I
didn't fully understand hadn't previously fully understood. I now realize NFTs are similar to virtual accessories people like myself may or may not have bought with real money in iPhone games or Second Life once upon a time, except more likely to be unique. At least that's what I think I learned from that article. Still off-putting, but not as completely absurd as I thought.
Still appalled by the ecological impact of the current blockchain technologies though.
Quote:
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The [proof of work] process is incredibly energy inefficient on purpose. The idea is that using up inordinate amounts of electricity — and probably paying a lot for it — makes it less profitable for someone to muck up the ledger. As a result, Ethereum uses about as much electricity as the entire country of Libya. -source
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Supposedly Ethereum is working on a more energy efficient algorithm but I got bored going down that rabbit hole.