What is blockchain and how is it different from bitcoin?
For most, the term ‘blockchain’ conjures up associations involving cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin, Ethereum and Mining. While Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are arguably the cause that turned the spotlight on blockchain technology, its potential applications are still largely unknown to us, having only just begun to be explored.
What is blockchain
First of all what needs to be understood is that cryptocurrencies use the blockchain to “exist”.
In fact, it is a revolutionary technology that allows information to be stored in such a way that none of the trading parties can dispute, modify or delete information recorded on the “chain”.
On the other hand, bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency or peer-to-peer electronic payment system where users can transfer bitcoins anonymously without the intervention of a third party (such as banks or governments).
Each block (or transaction) implicitly inherits information about all previous blocks in the chain. If someone tries to change the data in a previous block, all subsequent ones will be recalculated.
In other words, a possible “hacking” ceases to be such after it becomes visible to all traders.
A good way to visualize this process is to think about… ourselves. Each person carries the genetic traces of their entire family tree. In order for us to exist, our parents existed and their parents existed, and so on, until the chain reached one of the infamous “seven daughters of Eve.”
If someone changes the data in a genetic block, the entire chain must be rebuilt from that point on. Thus, the new version of our “self” would look nothing like the one we are used to seeing in the mirror.
And then bitcoin, what?
The truth is that we still do not fully understand the scope and depth of the changes that blockchain brings. But what most analysts expect is that in addition to cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin, the technology in question will find application in areas such as the financial system, energy management, health services and supply chain.
It is no coincidence that in 2021 businesses are expected to spend around $6.6 billion on blockchain solutions, an amount that represents an increase of more than 50% compared to 2020.
And let’s not miss the following. With the Internet of Things (IoT) increasingly invading everyday life, it becomes extremely important to have “tamper-proof” communication logs in order to prevent attacks on the network (e.g. through spoofing the identity of an object or group of devices). .
A registry based on blockchain technology could possibly be the answer to this problem, which will become even more pressing in the coming years.
