It’s been a brutal 12 months for crypto, with prices plummeting, companies collapsing, and one-time industry leaders heading to prison. But amid the negative noise, blockchain firm Polygon has quietly thrived and persuaded some of the biggest names in business to take up its technology.

Blockchain.com, the early Bitcoin wallet provider and exchange that boasted a $14 billion valuation as recently as last March, has been attempting to sell off assets in a scramble for capital.

Ethereum’s biggest-ever upgrade — the move to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism — is right around the corner. But while the Merge should add security and sustainability, it doesn’t include sharding, the long-anticipated method of scaling the network.

On September 28, Andre Cronje, the influential and unpredictable developer behind Yearn.Finance, which turns users’ cryptocurrency investments into (often) large financial returns, retweeted an image. It was from a recently created account called Eminence.Finance, and it read, simply, “Spartans.” There was only one problem: Eminence didn’t exist.

Cory Doctorow is one of the world’s most prolific tech and science fiction writers. In between releasing his second graphic novel, “Poesy the Monster Slayer,” in July and a sequel to “Little Brother” (due out in October), Doctorow managed to fit in a 27,000-word treatise on breaking up tech monopolies.

Sen. Ron Wyden moved from the U.S. House of Representatives to the Senate in 1996 on the most analog of agendas: He was a big proponent of wood products, an industry that forested Oregon dominated. Yet his move coincided with the advent of the digital age.

Once a lumber source for the nearby mines, North Lake Tahoe evolved into a ski destination and Rat Pack playground. Today, the area lures visitors with crisp air, clear water, and big views.

Stretching south from the excellent Nevada Museum of Art, the once sketchy district is now the heart of Reno’s revival, a creative corridor of shops, eateries, and colorful murals.