CRYPTO ACADEMY CONTEST | S1W3 | REVIEWING BLOCKCHAIN THROUGH CONCEPTS | @feyol55

Hello my amiable readers, good day to you all and every steemians out there. You're welcome to the week 3 of the steemit engagement challenge and special thanks to our admin for bringing up this wonderful topic of discussion again this week which is 'Reviewing Blockchain through concepts' and in this post, I will be discussing my favorite concept.

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INTRODUCTION

WHAT IS BLOCKCHAIN ?

Before I discuss about my favorite term related to the blockchain, I will love to briefly explain what the blockchain technology is. The blockchain is a digital ledger that contains or keep the transaction records of cryptocurrencies that takes place within a network. The blockchain act as a database for storing information about the cryptocurrency and this information is usually stored electronically in a digital form.

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Blockchain is a popular name in the crypto ecosystem because it is an innovation that guarantees the safety and security of users data and it eleminates the involvement of the middleman because it is operated in a decentralized way. This gives the users more trust in the system. As the name implies, datas on the network are usually collected by the blockchain and it is placed together in sets or groups known as 'BLOCKS'. The unique attributes of the blockchain are : decentralization, security and scalability.

MY FAVORITE TERM RELATED TO THE BLOCKCHAIN

My favorite concept/term related to the blockchain which I will be discussing on is MINING. Mining is an essential and popular concept of the blockchain that cannot be overlooked. Mining is the process through which cryptocurrencies are able to verify and also secure their respective blockchain. This act usually requires a lot of computational power and electricity to solve mathematical and cryptographic puzzles. However, computers that are used for this mining on the network are usually rewarded with new coins as a compensation for the processing power that was used.

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There are majorly three ways one can get bitcoin or any other cryptocurrencies and 'mining' is one of them. If you don't want to buy your desired coin through an exchange or receive the coin as payment for goods and services, then you have the option of mining. Many are done by big companies who come and pull resources together to procure a specialized and sophisticated machines and computer that can do the mining job effectively. Interestingly, there is a circle known as the virtuous circle where miners help to secure and maintain the blockchain, the blockchain will then give out the coin again, this coin then provide and act as an incentive for the miners to keep maintaining and securing the blockchain network.

WHY DO YOU THINK IT IS IMPORTANT ON THE BLOCKCHAIN

Mining is important to the blockchain in many ways and I will be highlighting some below.

1. The act of mining helps to check 'DOUBLE SPENDING' on the blockchain. Bitcoin for example which is a cryptocurrency relies on miners to record and validate transactions on the blockchain because of double spending problem that is being faced by the digital currency. Double spending happens when a cryptocurrency is being re-produced in an illegal way I.e the blockchain is being attached to produce a counterfeit coin.

2. Mining also helps to produce new coins and release them into circulation

3. Most importantly, mining ensures that the blockchain is always verified and secured

4. Mining also makes cryptocurrency network to function as a p2p (peer to peer) decentralized network. This eliminates any involvement or third-party.

5. Miners also get incentives through mining and the incentives allows them to contribute their computing power to the blockchain network.

DO YOU THINK THAT THE EXISTENCE OF THE BLOCKCHAIN COULD BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE CONCEPT ? IS THERE ANY ALTERNATIVE OR SIMILAR TERM

I don't think the existence of the blockchain network will be possible without the involvement of 'mining' because mining has a lot of benefit which I have explained in the last section, mining helps the blockchain to solve complex computational math problem. And also transactions on the blockchain are verified and blocks are completed and added to the blockchain through mining. Also, through the act of verifying these transactions, the double-spending problem will be properly checkmate. I don't see the blockchain surviving without mining besides how will new coins come into circulation if mining is not done. As far as I know, I don't think there can be any alternative to the mining because mining has a unique role in the running of the blockchain.

Although we have cloud mining which is a similar concept to mining, the cloud mining involves purchasing of mining equipment from another third party cloud provider in other to produce blockchain digital coins. I think it is an improved form of mining because cloud mining does not involve the use of sophisticated computers or solving complex mathematical puzzles and the users can have direct control over their coin.

DO YOU THINK IT IS POSSIBLE TO IMPROVE THIS TERM IN SOME WAY ? EXPLAIN TO US HOW

The activity of mining can be improved by making sure there is improvements in the efficiency and in the usage of electricity by the mining computers and this will also in turn help lower the impacts it has on the environment. Another way this can be improved is by changing the mining procedure of cryptocurrencies for example Bitcoin to a less computing power system like the proof-of-stake.

CONCLUSION

The importance of mining as far as the blockchain is concerned cannot be overemphasized. In this post, have been able to discuss extensively the important roles that mining has to play in the blockchain and crypto ecosystem at large. I strongly believe that the concept of mining can not be eliminated from the blockchain but it can be worked on for better efficiency and productivity.