Article – “ Blockchains : future of Content?

One billionaire tweets about bitcoins and we see sudden jump in its prices! That does sounds thrilling
but the buyers endured with the misfortune later. In the present time , people from all corners have
ventured into trading , Share Market , crypto , etc. But Not all are successful at it. Major reason being
lack of knowledge about the field. To prove my point , I went to bunch of people dealing in Bitcoins and I
questioned them what do they know about Block chain? Majority of them could not answer or just gave
vague replies .

So , What is Block chain? How could it be associated with bitcoins? Is it restricted to bitcoins or more?
How about we examine in the easiest words!

Block chain was created in 1991 as a ledger of transactions that were irreversible. But it came into
application solely only after the launch of bitcoins. Ledger of transactions sounds like a database , then
what makes it extraordinary? Well , Block chain is a sort of database where the data is stored in the
blocks or groups that are chained together in a chronological manner whereas databases are different in
terms of storage where data is stored in a tabular form and in a limited manner. So , one can say that '
All block chains are databases but not all databases are block chains”.

Block chains are usually famous for storing cryptocurrency . blockchain is used in a decentralized
manner so that no single person or group can have control—instead, all users collectively retain control ,
this database stores each and every bitcoin transaction which is accessible to all the bitcoin network’s
called nodes. Because of which , it is possible for every user to access the data and track every
transaction but the sender or the receiver cannot be tracked due to anonymity. Here, Bitcoin’s block
chain is being used in a decentralized way. Though, private and centralized block chains, where the
computers that make up the bitcoin network are owned and operated by a single entity, do exist.

Block chains are used not only for monetary transactions but for other purposes too like for legal
contracts through “smart contracts” , product entries tried by IBM , votes in an election tried by west
Virginia in 2019, state identification etc. There are various companies that have implemented this
database to track and analyse their grievances like IBM , Pfizer , Walmart etc. It’s very popular form of
database as its pros exceed the cons , namely-

 More transparent as it’s easy to track. All the nodes carry same data , so if one user alters it ,
others can pinpoint the error.
 More secure because the transactions are stored chronologically in blocks called hash i.e. the
code created by math function which turns digital info into string of no’s and letters. If anybody
tries to alter or reverse , then the hackers chain will be declared illegitimate unless he’s very rich
and resourceful.
 Reduced cost as there’s no third party involved which makes the transaction cheaper and quick
too depending on network congestion.

Due to it’s decentralised nature , The government exercises no control and therefore fails to track down
the users . Hence, there had been a history of using it in illegal operations . The network doesn’t dictates
how to use the platform and cryptocurrency which opens up the space for instant transactions with illicit
reasons. Therefore one needs to be vigilant ,updated , and conduct detailed research before proceeding
for investment.