Have you ever wondered how blockchain and other cryptocurrencies work?
When Bitcoin launched more than a decade ago, blockchain caught the public’s eye.
Blockchain is a decentralized, public online ledger made up of a string of blocks that store digital information using cryptography.
This means every user has their own copy of the blockchain in their own records.
Anyone can add new information with the addition of blocks to the chain.
To ensure security, blockchains have P2P communities.
There the majority of users must agree to the addition of new information before it can be added.
Each block also has hashes that is how they connect to one another in a chain.
It is virtually impossible to rewrite previous blocks’ data without ruining the chain.
This is because these hashes change if the data inside the block is changed,
In addition, the only way to add fraudulent information is to add blocks by completing a randomized math problem first.
One can solve these math problems only by guessing and checking.
To continue a fraudulent blockchain, you’d have to continuously solve this math problem first for all the following blocks which would be impossible unless you had more than 50% of miners in your hand.
Mining in Blockchain
The term “miners” appeared after people found out the first person to solve these problems gets a monetary reward.
Miners usually invest in computers and machines to help solve these problems.
Cons of Blockchain
The downside to a blockchain is that these miners use tons of electricity.
They need it to complete hundreds and thousands of calculations per second which is extremely wasteful to the environment.
Blockchain technology is currently mainly used in cryptocurrency.
Pros of Blockchain
However, it has unlimited potential to benefit all industries.
This includes social reform in politics and education by providing excellent transparency, security, and low cost to build trust.
Blockchain technology has the potential to benefit social reform in politics and non-profit organizations.
It is due to providing transparency, security, and low cost to build trust.
Some Politics
Every four years, politicians stand on-stage, wave their arms, and call pledges upon the American people in hopes to gain votes and be elected as president.
Although some claims are held true, many get lost years down the road till Americans who voted feel betrayed.
This fear and unrest do no good to maintain a healthy relationship between the government and its people.
Not only this, there’s been a rise of suspicion of how candidates have been receiving donations and funds.
While some people idealize a fair voting system through the use of blockchain, there is a greater social system that can abridge all concerns over political campaigns if you created it right.
New hybrid works like Ethereum have been gaining traction, using a mix of blockchain and smart contracts.
Smart Contracts
Smart contracts are contracts that enforce themselves once you’ve met the programmed conditions.
These contracts can only handle goods that can change ownership through the Internet.
In a few years, if the government switches to online currency, we could create blockchains for each political party that can hold politicians accountable for their words.
Those running for office should only be able to use funds in their official political party blockchain to pay for anything regarding their campaign.
This way, there will be a public trail left behind.
This will be in case they’ve received money unethically or from monster corporations who hope to sway candidates’ stance on topics.
Runners will receive donations and support through transactions in the blockchain, just like how people buy and sell Bitcoin with one another.
Secondly, to fight against the lack of pledge follow-throughs, we’ll create smart contracts programmed to allocate the candidates’ funds to certain organizations if they get elected.
Because no one can change data from previous blocks, these contracts would be fool-proof.
It will cause politicians to think twice before claiming to bring assistance to various areas they truly do not wish to prioritize.
Lastly, after someone’s term finishes, the community will upload another block.
It relays important statistics including follow-through percentages for pledges to create a record of their time in office.
This, too, will incentivize elected officials to act for the greater good of the people.
Non-Profit Organizations
You can apply these same ideas to other social reform groups.
For instance, non-profit organizations in order to enhance transparency in their work.
Blockchain technology has the potential to benefit education around the world.
They can do it by creating a reliable, transparent, and inexpensive platform accessible to all.
In today’s society, everything feels right at the tip of your fingers when you have a phone at hand.
Internet`s Role in Blockchain
With the rise of the Internet, this power can sometimes feel overwhelming, especially if you don’t know how to embark on your journey.
Think about it, every second, they upload millions of files online.
As the Internet booms with information, we start hearing about fake news and unreliable sources.
At some point, the amount of unfiltered data becomes less useful and more counterproductive to the Internet’s original purpose.
This purpose is to communicate effectively with others.
High-Quality Education For Free
By using blockchain, we can create high-quality education for free with the collaboration of credible, knowledgeable individuals.
The majority of online learning programs are centralized and cost money.
However, with blockchain, we’d have thousands of volunteers collectively learning from one another while contributing.
In theory, we’d have multiple blockchains for different subjects.
To ensure the quality of the added resources, we’d start off with a group of teachers, educators, and students.
Especially the ones who are interested in helping to turn this project into life.
Each time new information is pending approval, the education board would need majority approval.
However, unlike public records like Wikipedia where people change content written daily, blockchains guarantee safekeeping from changing already approved content.
This is extremely valuable, especially for subjects like history, where we get to learn and reflect on past teachings that no longer seem so black and white.
This transparency will be highly valuable in the long run.
Although blockchain has had a short history, it surely has a great future ahead.
It’s an unprecedented system!
It is using cryptography that has blown up and will continue to blow up as it will restructure many branches of society today.
From cryptocurrencies, politics to education, the list goes on, but one thing’s for sure: blockchain brings power to the people.
It is democracy at its finest.
