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Isn't there some way to combine proof of work and actually useful work?
by michaelmrose 5y ago
Isn't there some way to combine proof of work and actually useful work?
- ctchocula 5y agoNo, there's not. It's a fundamental principle among PoS cryptocurrencies that the work needs to have no additional utility or else it will help the attacker "subsidize" 51% attacks against the cryptocurrency you've built, because now they can both launch 51% attacks which cost $X abut subsidize it by selling the useful compute for $Y they've gotten by launching the attack, which ends up costing $X - $Y. Compared with a PoS cryptocurrency yielding no useful compute as a side effect, it costs $Y cheaper for someone to 51% attack.
- michaelmrose 5y agoThe work doesn't have to be economically useful to the miner to be useful to society.