美国有线新闻 CNN 比特币盛行 揭密其底层技术区块链

 

RAMY ZABARAH, MULTIPLATFORM EDITOR, CNNMONEY: Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum have been getting a lot of hype lately. And while some investors¹ believe that these coins could be the future of money, other experts believe that what's actually more valuable is the underlying² technology. It's known as Blockchain.

It's basically a public list of transactions, a more transparent³ record. You could think of this digital ledger⁴ like a game of dominoes. The Blockchain is powered by a decentralized network of computers that all work on the same task, no one owns the system, everyone helps run it.

Whenever a transaction is initiated⁵ between two computers, it has to be certified⁶ by another. That makes it difficult for anyone that cheat. For the sale to go through, a bunch of mining computers have to try and solve a cryptographic puzzle, sort of like a really complicated math problem. Once one computer solves that puzzle, a record of a successful transaction gets added to the list for everyone to see. All editions are permanent, so no one can delete or change the data. You could only keep at it.

You maybe asking yourself, what's so great about this glorified⁷ list? Well, since the ledger can't be changed after the fact, getting away with fraud is a lot harder. Blockchain advocates also argue that this technology cuts out the middleman by fulfilling the role of institutions like banks and government agencies. This means more direct access to your property, not to mention the possibility of much smaller transaction fees.

Sounds promising⁸, but does it live up to the hype?

The exchange of cryptocurrencies is a clear use case. But Blockchain could also be useful for other types of record keeping. Let's say you're a farmer and you lose the deed to your land in a fire or a flood. If the government lost your paperwork, too, you may be out of luck. But if you uploaded that deed to the Blockchain, it's easy to prove that you own that land.

In fact, people are experimenting with Blockchain technology in a variety of places, from preventing voter fraud to storing health records, to authenticating⁹ memes on the Internet, even the very institutions Blockchain threatens to disrupt, or exploring the technology's possibilities with companies like Bank of America investing in their own Blockchain tools. But for right now, those experiments are still in the early stages and it might be a while before we see the kind of crazy Blockchain takeover that the media is talking about.

1 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

2 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

3 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

4 ledger   

n.总帐，分类帐；帐簿

参考例句：

• The young man bowed his head and bent over his ledger again.那个年轻人点头应诺，然后又埋头写起分类帐。
• She is a real accountant who even keeps a detailed household ledger.她不愧是搞财务的，家庭分类账记得清楚详细。

5 initiated   

n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始，创始，启蒙，介绍加入

参考例句：

• He has not yet been thoroughly initiated into the mysteries of computers. 他对计算机的奥秘尚未入门。
• The artist initiated the girl into the art world in France. 这个艺术家介绍这个女孩加入巴黎艺术界。

6 certified   

a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的

参考例句：

• Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
• The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。

7 glorified   

美其名的，变荣耀的

参考例句：

• The restaurant was no more than a glorified fast-food cafe. 这地方美其名曰餐馆，其实只不过是个快餐店而已。
• The author glorified the life of the peasants. 那个作者赞美了农民的生活。

8 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

9 authenticating   

v.证明是真实的、可靠的或有效的( authenticate的现在分词 )；鉴定，使生效

参考例句：

• Specifies the password used for authenticating to a remote server. 指定用于对远程服务器身份验证的密码。 来自互联网
• Property indicating which hash algorithm to use when authenticating the message. 表示验证消息时要使用的散列算法的属性。 来自互联网