Some personal observations on the blockchain phenomenon:

I have no doubt whatsoever that blockchain technology is, one way or another, going to touch all our lives and prove utterly transformative.

The blockchain hype surrounding this 'revolution' is certainly seductive. But like all silver bullets, blockchain will need to be deployed with care and forethought for the following reasons:

1. BC is not a universal panacea

Blockchain promises big security improvements for transactional and record-keeping applications. But it won't polish your shoes or clean your car. And the principles of GIGO apply here as elsewhere.

2. BC has a huge capacity for misuse

Blockchain is a potentially revolutionary tool, but as with all 'revolutionary' technologies, blockchain is not immune to being abused. (Google 'bit coin', 'online drugs' and 'dark web' for further information)

3. BC is not free

A lot of big players are lining up to sell you this latest 'flying car' whether you need it or not. It may indeed make your transactions safer but at what cost?

4. BC is not completely impregnable

How do I know this? I know it because no technology is impregnable. If it can be created if can be violated. Look around you.

5. BC requires immense resources

Because of the way it works Blockchain apparently needs a lot of processing power, digital storage space and basic raw energy. For example, according to reports, the intensity of computing required has lead to some unscrupulous bitcoin mining operations surreptitiously hi-jacking web-connected devices in order to harness the necessary resource.

6. BC eliminates the middleman

It gives me a warm glow to think that blockchain might replace greedy intermediates such as banks and lawyers. But with exactly what? Erm... with another intermediary; one that is implacably electronic, completely faceless and ultimately controlled by an invisible techno-elite.

7. BC creates trust

Really? Correctly executed blockchain may create confidence, even certainty. But whatever it delivers is INSTEAD of trust. Hardly an inspiring thought as mankind shrinks inexorably into its 'safe' digital cocoons.

8. BC might not even be blockchain

From a marketing man's perspective the word 'blockchain' is just another 'gravy term' to whisper seductively in the ears of credulous consumers (marketeers are not exactly exercising restraint in attaching the blockchain brand to anything that moves). The snazzy blockchain videos explaining the concept are great but just remember they are produced by people who have something to sell you.

9. Where is it?

There is a huge amount of capital and vested interest tied up in the centralised status-quo and legacy systems. Apart from cryptocurrencies and proprietary blockchain solutions that will be offered by the usual suspects, i.e. the mega-banks and other financial 'middle-men', it might be some time before truly decentralised applications make a decisive appearance.

10. Conclusion

Just throwing a technological solution at a problem is never going to bring optimal results. Technology has to be understood, it has to be accepted and it has to be embraced. These are qualitative, behavioural activities. Having our lives devolved to mathematical algorithms and 'AI-interpreted' big data may well be our sorry fate. But let's not forget that, at the end of the day, most of us are soft, emotional, analogue organisms (aka 'humans') that have progressively developed the ability to laugh, cry, cough and shit (though rarely simultaneously). VIVE L'EVOLUTION BIOLOGIQUE!