Blockchain Myths & FAQ
From IIW
Blockchain Myths & FAQ
Day/Session:Thursday 3C
Convener:Greg Slepak
Notes-taker(s): Greg Slepak
Discussion notes, key understandings, outstanding questions, observations, and, if appropriate to this discussion: action items, next steps:
Summary Notes from Session:
Background of presenter
- Greg Slepak
- Researcher, entrepreneur
- Read Satoshi's paper a year after it was published, became fascinated by blockchains
- Read Aaron Swartz's "Squaring Zooko's Triangle", became fascinated by Namecoin and decentralized, human-readable namespaces
- Worked on DNSChain, a DNS server that can do blockchain lookups for blockchain TLDs (top-level domains like .com, .org, .net)
Legitimate use-cases for blockchains
- Quick overview of how blockchains can greatly improve the security of the Internet
- Blockchains can change Internet's trust-model from "weakest link" trust model (X.509) to consensus-based trust through strong decentralized consensus algorithms like Proof-of-Work
Blockchain Myths
- "Bitcoin wastes energy"
- No, it doesn't, it uses that energy to secure its blockchain
- It does things that no other system can do, including PoS (proof-of-stake) systems
- PoW can distribute coins without having to receive them from somewhere else
- It can measure time in a trustless way and provide strong guarantees like "proof-of-publication"
- Its security is cumulative
- It cannot be "captured" in the same way that PoS consensus can be captured permanently by a cartel with enough stake
- "Bitcoin's energy use is bad for the environment"
- Don't blame Bitcoin for humanity's choices when it comes to where it sources its energy from, this is not Bitcoin's fault
- A few hundred square miles in the Sahara have enough solar energy to power the entire world
- "Blockchains can't scale"
- Description of the problem and introduction to DCS Triangle and DCS Theorem
- Scaling solutions that work around DCS Triangle like Lightning Network by combing a DC system with a DS system
FAQ
- Answered audience questions
