Advanced blockchain Terms

Atomic Swap: A smart contract technology that enables the exchange of one cryptocurrency for another without the need for a trusted third party.

Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT): The ability of a distributed network to reach consensus despite nodes failing or acting maliciously.

Consensus Algorithm: The method by which a blockchain network agrees on the validity of transactions. Examples include Proof of Work (PoW), Proof of Stake (PoS), and Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS).

Decentralized Application (DApp): An application that runs on a decentralized network, utilizing smart contracts for backend processes.

Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A type of public key cryptography based on the algebraic structure of elliptic curves, used to secure transactions on the blockchain.

Interoperability: The ability of different blockchain networks to communicate and share data with each other.

Liquidity: The ease with which an asset can be converted into cash or other cryptocurrencies without affecting its market price.

Oracle: A service that provides smart contracts with external information, triggering contract executions when predefined conditions are met.

Proof of Authority (PoA): A consensus mechanism that grants a small number of nodes the authority to validate transactions and create new blocks.

Proof of Burn (PoB): A consensus mechanism where miners "burn" (destroy) coins by sending them to an unspendable address, providing them with the right to mine new blocks.

Sharding: A scalability method that involves splitting a blockchain network into smaller, more manageable pieces (shards), each capable of processing transactions independently.

Stablecoin: A cryptocurrency designed to minimize price volatility by being pegged to a stable asset, such as a fiat currency or a basket of goods.

Tokenomics: The study and design of the economic system around a cryptocurrency token, including its distribution, circulation, and incentivization mechanisms.

Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP): A cryptographic method by which one party can prove to another that they know a value without revealing any information apart from the fact that they know the value.