Blockchain/Consensus
Blockchain/Consensus (consensus algorithm, voting) | |
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automated consent finding by voting |
As mentioned in blockchain the problem how to keep a reliable record of past events has been tackled a long time ago. For example, WS uses software that reliable keeps a record of past edits.
The tricky part is: what happens if Alice said on her copy of the blockchain her current balance is 2000 tokens and Bob disagrees and said on his current copy, Alice's balance is only 1000. The new invention is a automated process to mitigate (arbitrate) these conflicts without the need for a central authority, i.e. some sort of democratic voting, called consensus algorithm.
To begin with there are roughly two kind of blockchain users: those who have downloaded the whole <100GB file (who own it and therefore can verify it) and those who don't, who vicariously use others peoples blockchains. Those who do not own the blockchain have no say in the voting process.
Voting requires verification of all the checksums on the chain - and this work is rewarded; either by "finding" new tokens along the way (mining) or by fees - or any combination of these.
Consensus algorithms
There are two basic algorithms in use today (2022) and some new explored (see below):
- Those who do the work can vote (Proof of Work)
- The rich guys decide whats going on (Proof of Stake)
Unsurprisingly the commercially-controlled media and politicians (the SDS in short) favor Proof of Stake over Proof of Work. In fact Proof of Work is close to being legislated away (i.e European Parliament[citation needed], China, India) . This typically happens when governments try to impose their own version of a blockchain based money (CBDC).
An example
Page name | Description |
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Blockchain/Consensus | automated consent finding by voting |