Earlier today, we shared news reports about a man named Satoshi Nakamoto. That's reportedly the name of the legendary inventor of the bitcoin protocol, a name that has been known since the protocol first emerged. But, as the entry for his name in Wikipedia indicates, most bitcoin-watchers had previously assumed Nakamoto was just a pseudonym.
In this week's cover story, Newsweek magazine says its two-month investigation led to the real Satoshi Nakamoto, living in a single-family home in the San Bernardino foothills of Los Angeles.
As of Thursday night though, questions still remain whether this man is or is not the inventor of Bitcoin.
According to the article, when reporter Leah McGrath Goodman knocked on his door, the 64-year-old, Japan-born Nakamoto called the police. Although he appeared to admit his role, Nakamoto also refused to answer questions.
"I am no longer involved in that and I cannot discuss it," he reportedly told Newsweek, adding that bitcoins have "been turned over to other people" and he currently has no connection.
A search of a database by Newsweek containing the registration cards of naturalized U.S. citizens resulted in a profile that seemed to match the few other details known about the bitcoin inventor. The one physical meeting was proceeded by an e-mail correspondence about his hobby of modifying model steam trains with computerized designs, through an e-mail address obtained by Newsweek from the company where Nakamoto buys his model trains.
Newsweek said he graduated with a degree in physics from California State Polytechnic University in...