Blockchain is a hot topic at the moment, and it is also a professional course I am taking. I will briefly write a column as a note, so that I can take a look at it later and do a brief science popularization.
1. What is a blockchain?
The concept of blockchain: Blockchain is a new application mode of computer technologies such as distributed data storage, point-to-point transmission, consensus mechanism, and encryption algorithm.
In a narrow sense: blockchain is a chained data structure that combines data blocks in a sequential manner in chronological order, and is cryptographically guaranteed to be tamper-proof and unforgeable distributed ledgers. (copied from the Internet)
In human terms, it means: there is a chain, there are many blocks on the chain, and some data information is stored in each block, and the information in the block cannot be modified .
A picture is like this:
Block+chain storage structure
2. The role of blockchain
After all, what can the blockchain do?
-Blockchain provides an open and traceable basic ledger that can record various transaction behaviors.
-The blockchain is an infrastructure, just like the mobile network, we use the mobile network to send and receive data, and we use the blockchain network to keep accounts.
- Blockchain is a distributed accounting technology. As a basic service, there are many application scenarios, and it needs to be combined with others to bring the value directly perceived by users.
-Blockchain can make bookkeeping more credible, automated, and auditable.
To put it bluntly, he is an online bookkeeper...
3. Classification of blockchain
So far, the blockchain is divided into three categories. The first is the public chain, which refers to a completely decentralized blockchain like the Bitcoin blockchain that is not controlled by any institution. Any individual or group can send a transaction, and the transaction can be effectively confirmed by the blockchain, and anyone can participate in its consensus process.
The second is the alliance chain. The so-called alliance chain refers to the designation of multiple pre-selected nodes within a certain group as bookkeepers. The generation of each block is jointly determined by all pre-selected nodes, and other access nodes can participate in transactions. , but does not ask about the bookkeeping process, anyone else can make limited queries through the open API of the blockchain.
The third is the private chain, which refers to the use of distributed accounting within a company and unit. We see that these three classifications are actually classified according to the form of the management center.
The bottleneck of the blockchain, when we talk about the blockchain, we will find that the concept of the blockchain is very hot, and the investment is very hot, but its application is very small. For example, we rarely see a decent blockchain in real life. Application, why is this? Mainly because there are bottlenecks in the blockchain itself, what are the bottlenecks in the blockchain itself?
There are three aspects in total, the first is scalability, which includes two aspects, one is that the block is too small to support a large number of groups, and the second is the slow transaction speed. The blockchain is used for bookkeeping, so since you use it for bookkeeping, your bookkeeping must be large enough, and your bookkeeping speed must be fast enough, but under the conditions of the current blockchain technology, this bookkeeping is neither very Big, and it's not very fast either. For example, it takes more than ten minutes or even dozens of minutes for a Bitcoin transaction, but Tmall has astronomical applications every second. Obviously, blockchain technology is not yet up to the standard of commercial applications.
The second is privacy. We know that the blockchain has the functions of broadcasting and bookkeeping for the whole network. Since it is broadcasting and bookkeeping for the whole people, how should privacy be protected?
Third, from the perspective of Bitcoin, password loss and hacker attacks may lead to insecurity. Therefore, all these technical bottlenecks limit the wide application of blockchain.
Then I think the learning of blockchain in this column is mainly divided into two parts:
The first part is Bitcoin, and the second part is Ethereum, and I will take careful notes later.
Finally, I recommend a popular science video that I like: the story of Pineapple Village and our village chief q(≧▽≦q), click the link below to jump