The Institute for Leadership and Sustainability (IFLAS) at the University of Cumbria discusses bitcoin from the point of view of history of money and the currencies» potential for societal innovation during its MOOC Money and Society. (coinfox.info)
Wikipedia's History of money suggests that in the good old days, you could park some gold with a goldsmith, and receive a receipt or «I Owe You» (IOU) note from them. (bitsonblocks.net)
Two of the most important developments in the history of money have recently emerged over the last few years — the Blockchain, and Peer - to - Peer (P2P) platforms. (sovereignman.com)