Bitcoin and the Blockchain

let's get you caught up

Bitcoin and the Blockchain

BTC Club - Undergrad Course 6 - Ethereum Application Developer

by Nchinda

2

@Firescar96

Outline

  • Why you should care, today
  • Bitcoin Origins and History
  • What is mining?
  • What is the blockchain?
  • Consensus
  • Pseudonymity
  • Bitcoin and the Blockchain

Bitcoin vs bitcoin

Why you should care, today.

Rai Stones Gold Dollar Bitcoin
fungibility
transport
anonymity
acceptance
stability ($)

1BvBMSEYstWetqTFn5Au4m4GFg7xJaNVN2

Strengths

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

Weaknesses

  • ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

A cypherpunk is an activist who uses software, protocol, and most importantly cryptography to invoke social and political change. 

Bitcoin Origins

https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf

10000 BTC = 2 pizzas

Then 2013 Happened

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

What's the Blockchain

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

What is mining?

It's like Sudoku

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

But...what is the blockchain?

header

Alice -> Bob

1 BTC

.0001 fee

Reward: 25BTC

header

Alice -> Charlie

5 BTC

.00005 fee

Reward: 25BTC

header

Bob -> Alice

1 BTC

.000678 fee

Reward: 25BTC

  • previous block hash

time

Miner Process

  • no double spends
  • sources
  • destinations
  • values
  • miner fees
  • miner rewards

header

Alice -> Bob

1 BTC

.0001 fee

Reward: 25BTC

header

Alice -> Charlie

5 BTC

.00005 fee

Reward: 25BTC

header

Bob -> Alice

1 BTC

.000678 fee

Reward: 25BTC

time

Wallets do not hold your bitcoin

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

Consensus

The Nash Equilibrium

Stag Rabbit
Stag A:4 B:4 A:1 B:3
Rabbit A:3 B:1 A:2 B:2

Alice

Bob

A Hunting Game

Defend Attack
Defend A:12 B:12 C:∅ A:∅ B:25 C:∅
Attack A:25 B:∅ C:∅ A:∅ B:∅ C:∅

Alice

Bob

Defend Attack
Defend A:8 B:8 C:8 A:∅ B:12 C:12
Attack A:12 B:∅ C:12 A:∅ B:∅ C:25

Alice

Bob

Charlie

Defend

Attack

numbers: order, stable system

∅: chaos, separate networks

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

Pseudonymity

Almost anonymous

not like http://zerocash-project.org

  • it works. today. right now.
  • global reach
  • objective inference
  • inexpensive and swift
  • irreversible transactions
  • consensus and security
  • psuedonymous

But Bitcoin is just a distraction from the blockchain...

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

Tokens - kotoken

Marketplaces - firecracker

Tokens - hotelblockchain

Identity - YubiID

Applications

^this is a very very small set^

Prediction Markets - Augur, GroupGnosis

Gambling - SatoshiDice

Identity - Airbitz Edge Security

MicroTransactions - ChangeTip

Gift Cards - Gyft

Amazon - Purse.io

Marketplaces - OpenBazaar

Media - Ujo Music

Marketplaces - Safemarket

My projects

In development

In use today

Bitcoin and the Blockchain 101

By Nchinda Nchinda

Bitcoin and the Blockchain 101

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