What are blockchains and why are their important?

Blockchains are digital ledgers (The system) that record transactions which are done in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other cryptocurrencies. They are maintained and distributed through several peer-to-peer computers network. They are extremely difficult to hack or change the information once the transaction goes through the blockchain.

So, what make the blockchains secure? Well, let’s take Bitcoin for explain, since it is the more secure network. Each new block is link to the previous one and will use the information, the signature, and the cryptographic hash (Proof of Work) from the previous block on its ledger. The hash is what validates the transaction or the message. If someone were to change the block it would change the next block and would require finding the new hash numbers for each block and have 51% of the network computing power, which is lots of work because someone would need the find the number in 1 billion number of sequences. So, in the end that block will be rejected by the validators and the reason why is because that block is not the same being reported as the other miners. 

The first Blockchain was introduced between 2008-2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto, which revolutionized Finance and Technology by providing a thrustless system to transact between to people with out the middleman to verify the transaction. For each block that was mine and validated the miner would receive a payment for their work in Bitcoin. This has led to the creation of Cryptocurrency, DEFI (Decentralize Finance) Exchange, NFTs, and Web 3 innovation.

The purpose of the blockchain is that it provides security, trust, and transparency. It also allows a person to trust the person at the other end of the transaction with see them. Businesses can use a private blockchain ledger that is trusted and can only be access it members with permission. The user can make transaction, run a full node, and validate/authorize an update in the transaction.

There are some disadvantages like scalability, which is the number of transactions that can be made per second. For example, Bitcoin process up to 10 TPS compared to Visa, which runs 2400 TPS or transaction per second. Also, the energy consumption for Bitcoin on average is 0.5% of the global energy.  There are also high transaction fees like Ethereum. And there are others that are not as secure or constantly run into network outages issues like Solana.

Blockchains are becoming more in demand for the advantages that it provides. They are currently being use in HealthCare Industry, Governments, Retails and Commercial Business, Banking and Financial Service, Real Estates, Insurances Services, and more.  Well known companies like Walmart, Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, PayPal, and Google have already invested millions in Blockchain Technology and are using it for their Supply-Chain Management, Cross Border Payments, Compliance and Audits Departments, Taxes, and Insurance, IoT, Identity and Cybersecurity Management. What is the Key Point of Blockchains:

Key points to remember:

1. The purposes of Blockchain is to transact in a trusted, transparent, and secure way between peers without a third party.
2. Since it’s introduction in 2008-2009 they are currently being use in many industries by between small, medium, and large companies.
3. There are a few disadvantages like scalability issue and energy efficiency, high fees, outages, and security.
4. Many companies are heavily invested in Blockchain Technology and have invested millions to have it implemented in their own company. 

If you which to get your feet wet or learn more about Blockchains I suggest that you invest time in online courses, watch YouTube videos, search information about blockchains online, or follow in a blockchain on Twitter. If you decide to switch career and what to participate in a blockchain project, you might need known or learn basic coding. There are companies who are working on blockchain projects that are looking for developers, engineers, and analyst with the knowledge base.

This a great chance for you to earn extra money for this skill.  A Blockchain Developer/Engineer can earn anywhere between $60,000 to $170,00 annually and Analyst is $50,00 to $90,000 annually. You can go on Google search engine and search for Indeed.ca, Linken.com, or Glassdoor.ca to look for company that are hiring for those positions.

Here are a few links to help you in your journey:

https://www.edx.org/

https://www.coursera.org/

https://www.pluralsight.com/

https://www.udemy.com/