4 ms·

I'd summarize blockchain like this: computation that is outside any individual's control. It's surprising that it's even possible! It makes the virtual world a

I'd summarize blockchain like this: computation that is outside any individual's control. It's surprising that it's even possible! It makes the virtual world actually a lot more like the physical world: no one person can alter the laws of physics, just as no one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin (or similar). This property makes me think that describing blockchain as a metaverse is actually pretty accurate. It's intriguing to think that with fully homomorphic encryption, we can have distributed computation that's not only outside anyone's control, but outside anyone's understanding! You can literally imagine an A.I. agent that no one controls - and no one understands.

taywrobel 5y ago
In April a power outage in China caused Bitcoin hash rate to drop by 45% - https://news.bitcoin.com/bitcoin-hashrate-drops-xinjiang-blackouts-blamed-btc-price-slides/ https://news.bitcoin.com/bitcoin-hashrate-drops-xinjiang-bla... In the idealized little crypto world no one person has control, sure, but we have one country with the majority of the raw compute power on the earth and a government that has no problem seizing control over that compute power when it suits them. One of the many reasons I am bearish on crypto and have been since 2014.
- etaioinshrdlu 5y ago
  It's definitely not perfect and potentially more fragile than it looks -- but when was the last time a 51% attack happened on Bitcoin? Clearly this shows there is real potential for networks outside anyone's control...
- cyberge99 5y ago
  And bitcoin powered through it all the same. The price dropped briefly, but recovered. That’s pretty resilient if you ask me.
  - taywrobel 5y ago
    The risk isn't the price drop, it's China deciding that it wants to own the bitcoin market one day, seizing control of the hashers, and then doing whatever they want with the network. For instance, refusing to process transactions from American IPs. Would love to see how BTC's price holds up to a state sponsored hijacking of the network using raw compute power.
wolverine876 5y ago
> no one person can alter the laws of physics, just as no one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin I think we're into hyperbole if we're comparing it with physics. It's literally true that "no one person can alter the laws of physics", but it's not the truth.
fiheff 5y ago
> no one person can alter the laws of physics, just as no one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin This is one of the things that concerns me most about Bitcoin, or as the headline addresses: blockchain. The fact that people misunderstand its technology. Blockchain is inequivalent to physics. It is a mathematical model, and so, unlike physics, we understand its machinations precisely. So precisely in fact, we wrote them! And we wrote them utilising other mathematical models that are only effective in the goals of blockchains contingent on the fact that they are, similar to our current ability regarding physics, outside our ability to fabricate. But where the fabrication of laws of physics would require the development of both the mathematics and devices which render the mathematics physically, the fabrication of blockchain would only require the mathematics as it itself is a mathematical model. A proof of an algorithm that can freely manipulate a blockchain will render it useless. You will likely hear from those who support using unproved mathematics in these types of systems that these conjectures have elluded proof for so long it is time to disregard rigor for a more meta analysis of the probability that a proof is likely in order to promote the technology. But the possibility is always present that mathematically there will be a way that 'one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin' until proven otherwise.

taywrobel 5y ago

In April a power outage in China caused Bitcoin hash rate to drop by 45% - https://news.bitcoin.com/bitcoin-hashrate-drops-xinjiang-blackouts-blamed-btc-price-slides/ https://news.bitcoin.com/bitcoin-hashrate-drops-xinjiang-bla... In the idealized little crypto world no one person has control, sure, but we have one country with the majority of the raw compute power on the earth and a government that has no problem seizing control over that compute power when it suits them. One of the many reasons I am bearish on crypto and have been since 2014.

etaioinshrdlu 5y ago
It's definitely not perfect and potentially more fragile than it looks -- but when was the last time a 51% attack happened on Bitcoin? Clearly this shows there is real potential for networks outside anyone's control...
cyberge99 5y ago
And bitcoin powered through it all the same. The price dropped briefly, but recovered. That’s pretty resilient if you ask me.
- taywrobel 5y ago
  The risk isn't the price drop, it's China deciding that it wants to own the bitcoin market one day, seizing control of the hashers, and then doing whatever they want with the network. For instance, refusing to process transactions from American IPs. Would love to see how BTC's price holds up to a state sponsored hijacking of the network using raw compute power.

wolverine876 5y ago

> no one person can alter the laws of physics, just as no one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin I think we're into hyperbole if we're comparing it with physics. It's literally true that "no one person can alter the laws of physics", but it's not the truth.

fiheff 5y ago

> no one person can alter the laws of physics, just as no one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin This is one of the things that concerns me most about Bitcoin, or as the headline addresses: blockchain. The fact that people misunderstand its technology. Blockchain is inequivalent to physics. It is a mathematical model, and so, unlike physics, we understand its machinations precisely. So precisely in fact, we wrote them! And we wrote them utilising other mathematical models that are only effective in the goals of blockchains contingent on the fact that they are, similar to our current ability regarding physics, outside our ability to fabricate. But where the fabrication of laws of physics would require the development of both the mathematics and devices which render the mathematics physically, the fabrication of blockchain would only require the mathematics as it itself is a mathematical model. A proof of an algorithm that can freely manipulate a blockchain will render it useless. You will likely hear from those who support using unproved mathematics in these types of systems that these conjectures have elluded proof for so long it is time to disregard rigor for a more meta analysis of the probability that a proof is likely in order to promote the technology. But the possibility is always present that mathematically there will be a way that 'one person can alter the laws of Bitcoin' until proven otherwise.