Introduction to Blockchain - III (Architecture)

mod01lec03

[@NaveenYoYoDude]

Well explained lecture! Thank you!

[@jded1346]

@19:20 onwards - 'If the Merkle root gets changed, the (block) hash value gets changed' How is the Merkle Root incorporated in the block hash computation? - Is it the 'T' in "Hk = Hash(Hk-1, || T || Nonce)"?

[@raghavendravernekar4103]

Are the number of transaction in each block fixed? Do miners know how many transactions to be included in the block?

[@alimobasshir504]

Best!!

[@utsavseth6573]

Thats how nptel lectures should be.

[@muralimvg]

Is kickstarter a single point of failure?

[@mbharatm]

yes, due to centralization.

[@vasudevanmk7110]

Some of things that I learnt in this video that disturbs me are 1) I need a computer or electronic device to do a financial transaction 2) someone who knows computing and has better computing resources will be the miner who determines the validity of transaction and also benefit financially 3) Someone or group that controls many nodes will control the financial markets 4) We will not know who has the financial resources and hence will not be able to monitor his activities (that will reveal his/her intention 5) If a crime is committed it will be almost impossible to identify the culprit 6) Why are discussing only bitcoins and not other use cases?

[@rishidutta2594]

its too early to conclude

[@buddhaconsciousness1576]

i agree to your points strongly. i am equally frightened of the future where these systems will take over the current ones. it deprives us of our rights to question and sue, and makes us terribly powerless. we could be exploited and enslaved helplessly in a large scale

[@mbharatm]

@Vasudevan M K - Good analysis. Here are my views on your point by point analysis. Hope this helps others clarify their views. 1) True... But a light client in a smartphone could only sync latest block and leave the heavy verification and chain sync to some other party (in Ethereum, you have Metamask and the server is Infura). You'd be able to transact with your phone, just as you can transact currently with your credit card in a POS system. 2) In a Proof-Of-Work consensus, yes, you are right that the mightier entity in terms of computing hogs and controls the currency. But this can be resolved to a large extent with a "Proof-Of-Stake" consensus approach. 3)Proof-Of-Stake solves this issue largely. 4) In fact, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are only pseudo-anonymous. It is possible to analyse transactions and addresses and come to know which individual was transacting etc. There are professional companies like Chainalysis which are tied up with FBI and other organizations and help track down tax evaders, criminals etc using crypto. In fact, it is the permanent, immutable blockchain that makes it possible to trace transactions at leisure and not worry about the trail disappearing. Cash on the other hand is extremely anonymous, and is very difficult to trace beyond a few change of hands. 5) Cash / Gold is even more difficult to trace. There is a research paper on how cash is the ultimate anonymous financial instrument. 6) Because Bitcoin is the simplest proven use-case. If you understand Bitcoin and how it works, then understanding later innovations becomes easier as they are more complex in their approach.

[@mbharatm]

@Buddha Consciousness Many of your fears are largely unfounded and more due to fear of unknown. While some of the fears are true currently to some extent (money lost is largely untraceable at least for the common man), there are many innovations being developed to make it easier to transact. Crypto takes out the middleman and reduces transaction costs throughout the financial stack. Imagine if bank fees were removed in each transaction from production to consumption of whatever product you buy! There are no bank transaction fees etc being added and it is possible to transact thousands, even millions of dollars for just a few cents worth of miner fees. Inflation caused due to rampant printing of paper money, Quantitative Easing etc don't occur. No centralized control on a currency means that no powerful person with a vested interest can control the economy. There is no possibility of counterfeiting since each token is mathematically validated and proven. Today many countries are reeling under the threat of counterfeit money printed by enemy states to bring down their economy. This is because printing a fake note takes just cents, and can produce hundreds of dollars of perceived value. The cost of fake money is very low. In cryptocurrencies, the cost of faking money is exactly the same as creating an authentic note. hence it is economically impossible to counterfeit currency. These are some amazing attributes of cryptocurrency that can revolutionize finance, state economy, and individual value.

[@buddhaconsciousness1576]

bharat dodging the control of the center is definitely the property, but someday govt will interfere and pass a law and there will a controlling body appeared for cryptos.. like sebi suddenly happened to share market. its good but there will be enormous taxes. i am just worried about the fact that there will be a time when we will be charged every time we open our fridge doors or flush our toilets. there will a crypto for that, and also thanks to iot. it sounds silly i know. but govt wants to tax as much as it can. my question is are we losing our freedom. today in india there are zillion transactions happening in cash every 60 seconds. we dont pay nothing as tax for any of them. but tomorrow there will be tax called mining fee. zillions of transactions we do to the chai wala, pan wala, rickshaw wala, sabzi wala, pheri wala, istri wala, nai, mochi, darji, even kaam wali bai will incur mining fee. that's so much being collected from the public every single minute which was earlier not. its a clever smarter system to collect even more taxes. so my sense of terming enslavement and exploitation was due to this reason. this robbery will then be technical and legal. now you cant raise voice against something legal. that's 'making us powerless by design'. but then i understand all your points. and respect your content. i know in clarity about Inflation, the rampant printing of paper money, quantitative easing, monopoly of the centralized control, counterfeiting. Yes cryptos are the answer. i agree to that without any doubt. And also understand they have amazing attributes which can revolutionize the future in radical scales. yes its the fear of unknown. i m still learning. thats why i dont miss sandip sir's lectures. haha. thank you so much for answering.

[@khushboosharma6619]

can i get the slides..

[@sujoy3kb]

You can get the slides in the course.

[@LearnWithAmarjeet]

@@sujoy3kb I am doing this course on KZbin, Then how can I get the slides. if You know any way How Can I get the slides then please tell me. without slides, I have to write all the points and it is very time-consuming. if You have slides then please share the slide with me Thank you in advance😊