From Reality Keys to Oraclize. A Deep Dive into the History of Bitcoin Oracles

Before the advent of alternative blockchains such as Ethereum, the future of decentralization was all in the hands of Bitcoin. Together with Nakamoto itself, early developers were trying to leverage Bitcoin potential to decentralize traditionally centralized applications. However, being Bitcoin a decentralized machine, available non-trustless oracles were considered unsuitable. Therefore, strategies had to be elaborated to solve the so-called oracle problem in the newborn scenario. By interviewing early developers and crawling early forums and repositories, this paper aims to retrace and reconstruct the chain of events and contributions that gave birth to oracles on Bitcoin. The evolution of early trust models and approaches to solving the oracle problem is also outlined. Analyzing technical and social barriers to building oracles on Bitcoin, the transition to Ethereum will also be discussed.Comment: Literature background and methodology are deliberately omitted at this stage (preprint). To improve readability for a broader audience, the content is presented more like a stor

Cryptocurrencies and beyond: using design science research to demonstrate diverse applications of blockchains

This thesis investigates blockchain technology and whether its mutually cooperative topology and commons-based peer production practices have implications for society because, instead of the traditional top-down, centralised model of governance, blockchains represent an alternative way of collaborating. Much of the literature anticipates the vast potential of the permanent and publicly auditable nature of the propagated values of blockchains. Indeed, writers have supposed that the smart contract capabilities of the technology may prove revolutionary for areas beyond that of the economic domain targeted by the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, which is the first successful use-case of a blockchain. However, few advanced use cases beyond that economic realm have materialised; this research demonstrates such usecases. This thesis asks four research questions. The first asks whether blockchains can help reduce energy consumption. The second asks whether blockchains can help digitise the informal sector. The third asks whether blockchains can help counter fake news. The final question asks whether blockchains can help address criticisms of humanitarian aid. Those topics are four amongst many urgent problems currently facing humankind, and therefore, the overarching research question of this thesis becomes whether blockchains can help humanity. This work advances the supposed potential of blockchains proposed by current literature by using design science research to create software artefacts that propose solutions for incentivising energy efficiency, fighting financial fraud, providing digital provenance and adding trust to humanitarian aid reporting. By demonstrating blockchain-based software solutions in those four topic areas, this thesis concludes that blockchains can help humanity. However, if they are to help society address some of its problems, blockchains have significant technological and organisational barriers to overcome. Furthermore, the idea that blockchains can help humanity is a form of techno-determinism and this research concludes that it is impossible to solve every issue by diversifying technical operations; humankind must also change political, economic, and cultural goals, too. Nevertheless, this thesis has implications for regulators, despite the barriers and false solutionism offered by technology because, rather than the trusted lawmakers and experts that nations used to look up to as oracles of truth, now it may be possible to look to blockchains, instead

Recommendations for implementing a Bitcoin wallet using smart card

TCC(graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Centro Tecnológico. Ciências da Computação.Bitcoin is a decentralized peer-to-peer electronic cash system that allows any two willing parties to transact directly without the need for a trusted third party. The user's funds are protected by private keys that must be kept safe, preferably not on third party wallet services, but on hardware wallets, which are the best balance between very high security and ease of use. In this work we made a review on cryptography, the Bitcoin protocol and secure elements, then we dived into the project of hardware wallets, discussing different requirements and ways to construct one. Our proposed device uses an anti tamper Java Card to store the private keys. We considered variations of the device, one with a dedicated touchscreen and another with NFC to integrate with a mobile phone. We analyzed security aspects of the project, made recommendations and described some challenges. Finally, we implemented our own open source prototype, showing the architecture of the project, its components, the requirements, the APDU communication protocol and the results

Bitcoin and Volatility: Does the Media Play a Role?

The worlds first successful crypto currency (Bitcoin) has gained a lot of attention both positive and negative. The main issue keeping Bitcoin from being fully accepted by the public is its high volatility and unpredictability. This research provides an empirical analysis that offers insights into the factors that cause Bitcoin to maintain a high price volatility. The primary goal of the research is to determine whether or not the media plays a role on Bitcoin volatility. Our model uses ordinary least squares regression analysis to support the findings of previous research that generally uses GARCH models. The results show that Bitcoin volatility is primarily correlated with Google trends search data. Furthermore we find that negative news announcements have a significant positive correlation with Bitcoin volatility; whereas, economic health indicator variables yield insignificant results. Although our analysis suggest Bitcoin is an unsafe investment tool, we propose a number of future research possibilities that should enhance our understanding of crypto currencies so that they can eventually be utilized to their fullest potential

'Show me the money’ : a discussion of the cryptocurrency market and its potential regulation in South Africa.

Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.The developments of the internet and electronic communication, have created a platform that enables the trade of goods and service through the internet. This connects consumers and businesses to facilitate safe and efficient transactions. Unremitting electronic advances have also brought to light the inadequacies of the current trading system, which struggles to keep abreast with these new developments. Cryptocurrency is one such new technology creating challenges for trade and legal systems regarding confidentiality, security, legal certainty and predictability. The virtual, decentralized nature of this technology and the absence of a specific legal monitoring entity makes the application of traditional legal frameworks untenable and the enforcement of any new legal framework tenuous. For these reasons, the current regulatory status of decentralized cryptocurrencies, or digital currencies, is perplexing. The cryptocurrency platform offers a solution to developing trade issues as cryptocurrencies transcend borders and are international by design. The anonymity of cryptocurrency systems have the ability to surpass current restrictions and allow for virtually instantaneous cross border transactions thereby making it more attractive than traditional monetary systems. This offers some advantages and disadvantages as this system is not without challenges such as its potential use for criminal activities. As such, there are countries that are well ahead in regulating cryptocurrencies and have legislative and institutional frameworks in place. However, a uniform approach to the regulation of these so-called virtual currencies (which differ from the traditional monetary systems) is needed as these differing approaches by governments in their attempts to nationalise regulation, is of great concern. In particular, South Africa has a well-developed money-lending environment, institutions and legislation and it has plans to develop its current institutional and legal framework to accommodate these advances. This thesis examines the legal nature of cryptocurrency in the international electronic commerce economy and treatment by national governments. This thesis will endeavour to discover whether international harmonisation of initiatives by the major international regulatory organisation can develop a universal guideline to harness the potential of this new technology

Bitcoin: The Economic Case for a Global, Virtual Currency Operating in an Unexplored Legal Framework

Bitcoin is a virtual currency created by programmers, which is produced at a predetermined and knowable rate to simulate a limited resource. Its value is derived from the trust of its users and is protected by its limited nature and the cryptography by which the currency is secured and authenticated. Bitcoin has been, and continues to be, used by some for the purchase of illegal substances and in furtherance of crimes. Because Bitcoin is not issued by a central bank or government, its use entails risks, both legal and otherwise, that have not previously been explored. Nonetheless, Bitcoin possesses significant economic upside over traditional currencies and methods of transaction online. As a result, governments should further study Bitcoin and regulate businesses that exchange in Bitcoin, but without attempting to stop or slow the growth of the currency itself and without attacking otherwise law-abiding citizens who transact in Bitcoins

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations and Decentralized Finance, A Bibliometric and Content Analysis

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) present a new technological advancement that may pose a challenge to traditional organizations in terms of governance and decision-making. DAOs offer a novel approach to organization and collaboration by implementing a decentralized, immutable, and trustless system. These organizations run on blockchain technology through the use of smart contracts, enabling autonomous and self-executing operations. Despite their potential, DAOs still face uncertainties regarding their security, governance, and scalability, among other challenges. To determine research gaps and aid in the successful development of DAOs, this paper conducts a bibliometric and content analysis, which is currently missing from existing literature, to provide structural support for this process. This paper identifies the most significant research streams and influential articles on DAOs, providing a comprehensive overview of the current state of this field. Moreover, it investigates the performance of major Decentralized Finance (DeFi) DAOs in light of these research streams, offering insights into their practical applications and effectiveness. To facilitate future research in this domain, the paper proposes several research questions for each identified research stream. These questions aim to address gaps in the current understanding of DAOs, paving the way for novel research that can contribute to the development and enhancement of this innovative technology

Využití decentralizovaných technologií ve vědecké komunikaci

Tato závěrečná práce překládá detailní vysvětlení a argumentuje, proč by moderní decentralizované technologie mohly být využity k vylepšení vědecké komunikace v mnoha směrech. Stávající model vědecké komunikace, který je ovládán vědeckými žurnály, je analyzován společně s momentálními implementovanými ekonomickými modely. Práce taktéž jemně rozebírá recenzní řízení vědeckých prací. Přikládá také vysvětlení, jak by mohlo být zboží produkované vědeckou komunitou nahlíženo z ekonomického pohledu. Technologie blockchainu nabízí funkcionality, které by potencionálně mohly řešit mnoho problémů sužující vědeckou komunikaci skrze decentralizaci. Detailně analyzovány a vysvětleny budou jak permissioned tak permissionless blockchainy, jejich implementace a zajímavé technické/ekonomické/správní aspekty. Bude doloženo, proč je tato technologie tak unikátním produktem pro vědecké potřeby. Nakonec práce navrhne kritéria minimální životaschopnosti vhodné pro posouzení jednotlivých decentralizovaných vědeckých projektů. Existující decentralizované aplikace snažící se o migraci vědecké komunikace z momentálních centralizovaných systému do decentralizovaných budou popsány a prozkoumány skrze prisma těchto kritérií.This thesis presents a detailed explanation and argumentation of why modern decentralized technologies could be utilized in order to improve scholarly communication on many fronts. The current model of scholarly communication, which is dominated by scientific journals, is analysed together with the current economic models in use. The thesis also briefly investigates peer reviews. It also endeavors to explain how scholarly goods might be perceived from an economic standpoint. Blockchain technology offers functionalities that could potentially solve many problems associated with scholarly communication through decentralization. Both permissioned and permissionless blockchains, their implementations, interesting technical/economic/governance aspects and why they are such a unique match for scholarly needs are thoroughly analyzed and explained. Finally minimal viability criteria suitable for assessment of decentralized scholarly projects are proposed. Existing decentralized applications which try to migrate scholarly communication from a current centralized system to a decentralized one are described and examined through the prism of this framework.Institute of Information Studies and LibrarianshipÚstav informačních studií a knihovnictvíFaculty of ArtsFilozofická fakult