BITCAMP
  • Coins
  • Guides
  • Exchanges
  • Blog
  • About
No Result
View All Result
BITCAMP
  • Coins
  • Guides
  • Exchanges
  • Blog
  • About
No Result
View All Result
BITCAMP
Home Coins

What is Ethereum?

Turner Wright by Turner Wright
February 11, 2021
0
What is Ethereum Article

Like Bitcoin, Ethereum is a network running on blockchain technology. However, unlike Bitcoin, the Ethereum network is arguably more complex, allowing users to build and release decentralized applications and smart contracts. This has led to a large number of projects being built on the Ethereum blockchain.

Miners receive the digital asset Ether, or ETH, as a reward for adding blocks to the Ethereum blockchain. ETH also refers to “gas” — the cost set by miners required to perform a network transaction. There is currently no limit set for the supply of Ether tokens to be mined.

Overview for Fast-Readers

  • Ethereum is the brainchild of Russian-Canadian programmer Vitalik Buterin.
  • Unlike Bitcoin, the network stands out for its variety of use cases, e.g. smart contacts.
  • Ethereum’s ecosystem is largely responsible for the boom in decentralized finance projects, or DeFi, in 2020.

Who created Ethereum?

Russian-Canadian programmer Vitalik Buterin first wrote the white paper for Ethereum in 2013, later collaborating with a team of people including Charles Hoskinson, Mihai Alisie, Anthony Di Iorio, Gavin Wood, and Joe Lubin to publicly announce the project the following year. Though this group of founders helped develop the ecosystem, many other projects have stepped up to release their own smart contracts on the Ethereum blockchain.

Vitalik Buterin and Ethereum

When was Ethereum created?

The Ethereum network originally went live with 72 million premined tokens on July 20, 2015.

What is the purpose of Ethereum?

Crypto users can send and receive ETH through crypto exchange like other digital assets, and the token is the second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. Ethereum’s creators designed the network so developers would have the ability to create decentralized applications and services largely without them censoring or leaking data.

Why do people buy Ether?

Ether is the gas fueling the Ethereum blockchain, allowing users to make transactions and execute smart contracts, whereas ERC-20 refers to tokens that are designed for the Ethereum blockchain. Essentially, smart contract projects on the blockchain issue ERC-20 tokens which fall within a set of standards set up by the protocol so they can be traded with other Ethereum users.

Physical ETH Token

How does Ethereum work?

Many have referred to Ethereum as “the world computer,” in that the network is highly decentralized, run by thousands of nodes on volunteers’ computers across the world. These nodes help enforce the consensus rules set by the Ethereum founders, allowing the network to operate and for users to make transactions and set up smart contracts.

Ethereum and Smart Contracts

Ethereum’s smart contract applications allow two or more parties to enter into an agreement with any transactions recorded on the blockchain. The digital contract — not exclusive to Ethereum — is enforced by the blockchain, which requires both parties abide by the terms and conditions set at the time the smart contract was created.

Though smart contracts can be handled on other blockchains, Ethereum was created specifically to let developers launch their own smart contract projects. In 2020, decentralized finance spurred adoption in the Ethereum ecosystem, with billions in total value locked across popular projects.

Ethereum and Decentralized Applications

Decentralized applications, or Dapps, combine an Ethereum smart contract with the project’s own user interface. Because the blockchain was created with the intention of making it simpler for developers to create Dapps, the hundreds if not thousands that exist today have a variety of use cases including social media and online gaming.

What does the future of Ethereum look like?

Ethereum has already taken major steps to transition the blockchain to what many have said is a possible solution to its existing scalability problem, Ethereum 2.0. The blockchain will introduce a proof-of-stake consensus to the network, which will allow users to earn rewards for validating ETH 2.0 blocks.

The platform is currently supported by the Ethereum Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides grants in addition to “non-financial support” to projects in an effort to accelerate the Ethereum ecosystem. Going into the 2020s users may see greater reliance on the blockchain as decentralized finance applications continue to grow and new use cases become available. 

Summary

The Ethereum blockchain has been active for more than five years and shows few signs of slowing down going into the 2020s. While the network has some similarities with Bitcoin, it stands out for its variety of use cases including smart contracts and decentralized finance projects. These have led to a large number of projects being built on the blockchain since it went live in 2015.

ShareTweetShare
Previous Post

What is the Difference Between Bitcoin and Ethereum?

Next Post

How to Buy and Invest in Cardano (ADA) in 2021

Turner Wright

Turner Wright

Turner Wright did not buy Bitcoin before 2013, and has been making up his potential losses with freelance writing work for various crypto publications. He gets his inspiration from a combination of green tea, dark chocolate, and pressure.

Related Posts

What is monero article
Coins

What is Monero (XMR) and How Does it Work?

What is Litecoin Article
Coins

What is Litecoin and How Does it Work?

Article about Ripple XRP
Coins

What is XRP?

Next Post
How to buy invest Cardano

How to Buy and Invest in Cardano (ADA) in 2021

Thebitcamp

  • Coins
  • Guides
  • Exchanges
  • Blog
  • About

© 2021 BITCAMP. Terms of Services and Privacy Policy

No Result
View All Result
  • Coins
  • Guides
  • Exchanges
  • Blog
  • About

© 2021 BITCAMP. Terms of Services and Privacy Policy

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

Cookies are small data files composed of a string of characters that may be stored on the device you use to access Thebitcamp.com. Cookies may create a record of your preferences or other information but do not read data from the memory portion of your device or access other cookie files from other sites you visit. Additional information about each type of cookie can be found in the sections below.

You do not have to accept cookies and consent can be withdrawn at any time. Not accepting or deleting our cookies, may negatively impact the use of our website.
Strictly necessary cookies
Always Enabled

Strictly necessary cookies are necessary for NoGo Media Ltd. and Thebitcamp.com to protect the website from hacking or other threats. You may refuse, block or delete them, but your experience using the website will be negatively impacted and not all services will be available to you.

Performance cookies

Performance cookies help us to understand our users needs and how we can improve our services and website performance. This information is anonymous and aggregated. If you block these cookies, the website will still function, but it will be more difficult for us to make these improvements.