Today, the Aurora project (@auroraisnear) launched on #NEAR, combining EVM compatibility with bridge functionality to make NEAR the first L1 which can operate as a turbocharged L2 for #Ethereum.
near.org/blog/aurora-la…
Here’s what that means and why it’s win/win/win 👇 For starters, #NEAR is a smart contract platform on the NEAR Protocol blockchain, which uses a novel consensus to keep block times at about 1 second and sharding to ensure it scales.
Normally, contracts are async and written in #rust or #assemblyscript.

1/ The Rainbow Bridge officially launched today between @nearprotocol and #ethereum, becoming the first trustless bridge to do so. While the post (near.org/blog/the-rainb…) explained well, I want to be clear about why this is a Really Big Deal 👇 2/ End users don't really care about blockchains, they just want to use apps and keep assets. In a world of isolated blockchains, though, they're forced into one walled garden or another, resulting in cases of "wait, why doesn't my X thing work with my Y app?"

1/ Recently, @thisissethsblog posted about #NFTs, saying they are a "Dangerous Trap"

https://twitter.com/ThisIsSethsBlog/status/1368138244991356930?s=20

. His 4 arguments are reasonable-sounding surface concerns but they're all off the mark.

A point-by-point look at why we have to think more carefully about NFTs 👇 2/ Argument #1: *Art is silly too but that's ok for Real Art because we've done it that way for a long time*.

This just doesn't make sense and seems backwardly purist.

1/ It's pretty clear that NFTs have broken into the mainstream and, predictably, are causing all sorts of consternation because they're still in the "we're trying shit" phase. But, whether an artist, developer, or other creator, don't write them off too quickly. Here's why. 👇 2/ First of all, the initial phase of any market is a combination of "toys that look like crap" ( h/t @cdixon) and "attempting to copy mental models from the old world into this one... very awkwardly." (remember early mobile apps?) Welcome to NFTs 2021.