The Technological Marvel That is Ethereum

Feb 23, 2018

Have you been wondering what the hoopla about Ethereum is? There hardly seems to be a discussion about cryptocurrency these days without Ethereum being involved. Not that all the attention is unwarranted! It commands the second highest value among virtual currencies and its popularity is rivalled only by bitcoin.

Allow me to strip down Ethereum to its very basics and give you a clear understanding of its enormous potential. To define Ethereum in one line, it's a decentralized network of computers which enables a whole new generation of apps to be developed.

As usual, I'll start with a real-world example to make it easier.

Let's say you are using a popular messaging app to send a message to a friend: "It's rather cold in Mumbai today." This message must compulsorily pass through the servers that the company owning the app has paid for. The entire message is now in possession of the company servers and will remain so unless deleted voluntarily. This is classic example of a centralized network.

Now let's understand how a decentralized app works. Your message will ultimately reach your friend as intended but not through a single server. It will be broken into bits and every piece will travel through different volunteer computers.

The volunteers will be normal people like you and me. No intermediate user will have full access to the message. Once the message passes through this decentralized network, it simply assembles itself back and reaches your friend.

Now, the first question that comes to mind is this: why would volunteers share electricity, processing power and hardware for free? Well, they are rewarded for their help in a unique manner. Each participating computer gets a digital asset called 'ether' in lieu of their participation.

Ether is the fuel that runs decentralized apps, also known as dApps. Computer owners who volunteer need to sell ether in exchange for money. dApp developers need ether which they are willing to buy with money. This is how a market for Ethereum is established.

The potential real-world applications of Ethereum in blockchain technology are mind-boggling. Here are a few that are an indicator of its power:

Security: Hackers carry out attacks by targeting a single server which they know contains vital information. With Ethereum, there's simply no single entity to attack. This makes Ethereum invaluable for developing security apps.

Transactions: Assume that you make a deal with a content writer directly instead of an intermediate agency. 'Smart Contracts' on Ethereum make it possible to exchange anything of value, completely risk-free. Your money will be held in escrow and a smart contract releases it when the writer makes the content available for download.

Privacy: It's no secret that search engines and social media apps capture your data to sell to advertisers. Ethereum blockchain technology makes this next to impossible by logging each time the company uses your data and making it publicly available!

As you can see the real-world applications of Ethereum are potentially endless. If you are looking to invest in this technology, we recommend that you take advice from cryptocurrency experts who offer unbiased and reliable views.

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Remember, this is the biggest boom in history.

And I believe... you will NEVER see this again... not in your lifetime.

It already happened with Bitcoin, where just $100 invested eight years ago... would be worth $18.5 million today!

And now it could happen all over again with other major cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and the blockchain technology.

That's why Enroll yourself now before you get left behind.

Warm regards,

Prasheel Vartak,
Editor, Crypto Confidential

© 2018 Common Sense Living Private Limited

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