  Bitcoin mining presents a significant economic incentive for efficient
hashing and broadcast of data, both parameters stemming from the Proofs of Work
used to advance the network. This incentive has led to the development of
Bitcoin specific application specific integrated circuits and centralized
mining pools, undermining the decentralized motivations behind Bitcoin's
design. In addition, the imminent block reward halving threatens the
profitability of mining at any scale. Some work has been done in formal models
for miner profitability, but existing models do not account for conditions such
as the pricing of off-peak power and diverse investment strategies regarding
sunken costs. There is also a lack of formal study of how the profit model
changes as mining scales from the individual to the industrial level. Given the
lack of analysis of these conditions, there are alternative models for
profitable or net zero mining that operate at smaller, and therefore more
desirable, scale.
