Blockchain is a digital ledger in which transactions made in bitcoin or another cryptocurrency are recorded chronologically and publicly.
It originally block chain – is a distributed database that is used to maintain a continuously growing list of records, called blocks. Each block contains a timestamp and a link to a previous block.
It is typically managed by a peer-to-peer network collectively adhering to a protocol for validating new blocks. By design, blockchains are inherently resistant to modification of the data. Once recorded, the data in any given block cannot be altered retroactively without the alteration of all subsequent blocks and a collusion of the network majority. Functionally, it can serve as “an open, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way. The ledger itself can also be programmed to trigger transactions automatically.
Blockchain technology
The Bitcoin Network is the first successful implementation of blockchain technology.
The term “blockchain technology” typically refers to the transparent, trust less, publicly accessible ledger that allows us to securely transfer the ownership of units of value using public key encryption and proof of work methods.
The technology uses decentralized consensus to maintain the network, which means it is not centrally controlled by a bank, corporation, or government. In fact, the larger the network grows and becomes increasingly decentralized, the more secure it becomes.
The potential for blockchain technology is not limited to bitcoin. As such, it has gained a lot of attention in a variety of industries including: financial services, charities and nonprofits, the arts, and e-commerce.
The first distributed blockchain was then conceptualized by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008 and implemented the following year as a core component of the digital currency bitcoin, where it serves as the public ledger for all transactions Through the use of a peer-to-peer network and a distributed time stamping server, a blockchain database is managed autonomously. The use of the blockchain for bitcoin made it the first digital currency to solve the double spending problem without requiring a trusted administrator. The bitcoin design has been the inspiration for other applications.
