Blockchain can be used to safely and securely record, track and trade all sorts of transactions with regards to any asset, with its most notable use being as a safe, secure ledger for bitcoin transactions.
Ralph Merkle, a computer scientist at Stanford University, proposed “tree authentication” as a solution to public key distribution and digital signatures in his Ph.D. thesis in 1979. David Chaum developed a vault system for constructing, maintaining, and trusting computer systems by mutually suspicious organisations in his Ph.D. dissertation for the University of California, Berkeley in 1982. And in 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto proposed the idea of blockchain and bitcoin to the world. Individually, these names might not make much sense to you, but together, these men are some of the earliest pioneers of a revolutionary technology that is pretty much like Don, jise pakadna aur trace karna mushkil hi nahi … namumkin hai!”
Imagine a time, somewhere in the not-so-distant future, where a solid technological framework, free from politics and human error will come to be an intrinsic part of almost every aspect of our life, be it making daily transactions, recording information, or much more. Blockchain has already arrived in our lives in a big way, but its applications and understanding of it are simply the tips of the iceberg!
What is blockchain?
Simply put, blockchain is a type of database, where any information, once entered is irreversible and traceable. How it fundamentally differs from the conventional databases is in its approach to stores information, which it accumulates in blocks chains together.
Any new information that is received is entered in a fresh block, with all these blocks chained together in a timely order. Since this database is not centralized, there is no single individual who retains ownership, rather, every user on the blockchain network collectively exerts equal power and control, making it all the more potent.
Blockchain can be used to safely and securely record, track and trade all sorts of transactions with regards to any asset, with its most notable use being as a safe, secure ledger for bitcoin transactions. This directly implies reduced risk and costs, immediate and transparent end-to-end details of a transaction, and numerous opportunities and new horizons where blockchain can be positively transformative.
In essence, blockchain makes redundant the role of any centralized intermediary or middleman in the real world. This particular superpower of blockchain is what makes it so appealing and innovative. Let’s take a deep dive into the countless possibilities that the blockchain network offers, particularly in the banking and financial space.
Blockchain and cryptocurrency
Say hello to eliminating untrusted parties, middlemen, and consequently, higher costs in transactions! And since blockchain is basically a ledger that nobody and really, everybody administers, information around digital money transactions associated with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum are absolutely safe!
Why? Imagine a record-keeping book that is real time, public and digital. All new data pertaining to cryptocurrencies is consequently saved in new blocks, chained to each other via time stamps. In addition to being decentralised, an additional layer of security is provided by cryptography, which means that each block has a distinct, private key corroborating and verifiable with a public key.
Each of these blocks has a unique identification or hash number that connects it to the subsequent blocks. A single change in any of these blocks would fundamentally alter the validity and structure of the block, since the hash sum would change, thereby tampering with the entire network.
Blockchains also allow for something known as “smart contracts”, which are automated, self-executing contracts that are triggered and fulfilled once a pre-determined set of conditions are met. Real-time transactions cannot get more real-time than this!
This imminent automation of countless manual processes that usually haunt the record-keeping domain is perhaps, the most prominent in the transfer and clarifying legal ownership of titles regarding land, automobiles, and more. In fact, this potential of blockchain is already being harnessed by governments in India abroad.
The real-timeliness of blockchain will also mean that your favorite artists and musicians get a fair share of their royalty and legitimate share every time you consume their creations!
The applications of blockchain are endless and impending. So, jump on the blockchain bandwagon and ride towards a safer, more decentralized future!
Source: Business World
