Bitcoin Global News (BGN)
December 14, 2018 -- ADVFN Crypto NewsWire -- A Proof of Work based
network is not really decentralized. Miners can theoretically
control most of its’ hash power. In most cases, because of this
fact, critics suggest using Proof of Stake consensus algorithms as
a viable alternative. What many of them refuse to admit or even
fail to realize is that PoS does not lead to true decentralization
either.
Therefore without specialized
technical knowledge related to cryptography, it is hard to think of
what sort of algorithm might serve this purpose. Through a quick
analysis of one blockchain network’s technical foundations however,
an alternative comes to light that is easy to
understand.
If you have been in the blockchain
industry for any length of time longer than a few days, then you
have likely heard something about the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology’s importance to the space. In an overarching sense, they
represent the top candidate for a trustworthy university at which
to learn the ins and outs of the industry. This is by no means by
accident, but due to the wealth of MIT research that has added to
the blockchain space’s growth over the last few years.
Dr. Silvio Micali’s project called
Algorand, which plans to launch in 2019, might be the one to lead
MIT into true blockchain stardom due to its’ usage of a novel
consensus algorithm. In understand this algorithm’s key
differentiator, it is easier to believe in this
possibility.
According to a Medium post by
Algorand’s Head of Cryptography, Sergey Gorbunov, this comes down
to using a PoS algorithm that may be considered "pure," which in
turn refers to the level of decentralization it is able to
uphold.
Gorbunov claims that Algorand can
bring about full decentralization of a blockchain network through a
specific feature called player replaceability, which means that the
block producers are secretly selected on a round by round basis.
Understanding zero-knowledge proofs as well as
Delegated-Proof-of-Stake can help in this case for two simple
reasons.
First, Algorand splits all the work
that is done to add blocks to its’ main chain into rounds. Then the
block producers for that round are randomly chosen by the network’s
principal consensus algorithm. In Algorand’s case, this also
involves notifying each of these users with a special certificate.
Because of this, only each individual who is chosen knows that he
or she will have this responsibility. Therefore, their identities
are never released to any other member of the community.
As this process repeats in
perpetuity, Gorbunov and the Algorand team seem to claim that it
secures the network against any sort of hack that it is possible to
execute. In other words, anyone who wants to take control of the
Algorand chain will have no way of knowing who its’ most important
nodes are because they change consistently, while retaining
anonymity.
Finally, even if Algorand’s chain
never scales to widespread institutional adoption as it aims to, it
just may act as the catalyst that ends our dependence on
traditional PoW and PoS.
By: BGN Editorial Staff