Ever hear your grandmother talk about how everything was cheaper when she was younger? That’s because of inflation. It’s caused by irregularities in supply and demand for products and services, leading to an increase in prices.

All economies experience some level of inflation, which occurs when the average price of goods increases, as the purchasing power of that currency decreases. Usually, governments and financial institutions work together to ensure inflation occurs at a smooth and gradual rate. However, there have been many instances in history where inflation rates have accelerated at such an unprecedented degree that it caused the real value of that country's currency to be diminished in alarming proportions. This accelerated rate of inflation is what we call hyperinflation.

Hashing refers to the process of generating a fixed-size output from an input of variable size. This is done through the use of mathematical formulas known as hash functions (implemented as hashing algorithms).

When it comes to trading – whether you’re dealing with century-old stocks or nascent cryptocurrencies – there’s no exact science involved. Or, if there is, Wall Street’s top players ensure that the formula remains a well-kept secret.

Cryptocurrency mining refers to the process of verifying and validating blockchain transactions. It’s also the process that creates new units of cryptocurrencies. The work done by miners requires intensive computational resources, but it’s what keeps a blockchain network secure. Honest and successful miners are rewarded for their work with newly created cryptocurrencies plus transaction fees.

Fractional reserve is a banking system that allows commercial banks to profit by loaning part of their customers’ deposits, while just a small fraction of these deposits are stored as real cash and available for withdrawal. Practically speaking, this banking system creates money out of nothing using a percentage of their customers’ bank deposits.

Simply put, fiat currency is legal tender that derives its value from its issuing government rather than a physical good or commodity. The strength of the government that establishes the value of fiat currency is key in this type of money. Most countries around the world use the fiat currency system to purchase goods and services, invest, and save. Fiat currency replaced the gold standard and other commodity-based systems in establishing the value of legal tender.