Steemit Crypto Academy Contest - S2W3 - Blockchain in our lives - By @jamezmccoy

Blockchain is changing everyday life for everyone, what is your opinion on the matter?

No debatably we humans are steadfastly looking for comfort and are steadily creating technologies towards that end to ensure life is easier for us, blockchain technology was made to make life a little bit easier for its users and its adoption in all parts of the would make it even easier
The blockchain technology was the first of its kind, a decentralized financial sector where a user can own a wallet and receive and send funds from the comfort of his home via any internet-connected device, this was made possible via Cryptocurrency a digital currency that is totally decentralized
The blockchain technology has created a vast number of opportunities and has made the financial sector even smoother, the blockchain technology was designed to fit into every aspect of our lives, not just the financial aspect or the health sector. When we eventually have global adoption of the blockchain technology a lot more of our lives would be made easier, activities we consider stressful would be done effortlessly, user data would be more secure and user's everyday lives would be made a lot more comfortable and I know this would have a very positive impact in the world in general

What are the main advantages and disadvantages, in adopting the use of blockchain in everyday life?

ADVANTAGES

• 1: Blockchain is immutable which means that data stored in them can not be erased or modified by hackers or third party
• 2: Blockchain transactions are often seen to be carried out with little or a negligible amount of charges with a relatively good amount of scalability
• 3: Blockchain provides transparency I.e records are published to the Public’s knowledge hence no forgery or the fake transaction can be formed
• 4: No central authorities in blockchain technology hence users are in complete control
• 5: With blockchain technology, privacy is a priority and one does not have to disclose his or her personal information
• 6: With blockchain, a lot of business or employment opportunities would be created, and people like developers or trading schools would be established to teach people how to maximize blockchain technology

DISADVANTAGES

• 1: Records or transactions carried out in the blockchain chain are irreversible hence when one transacts or enters a wrong data it would be saved forever
• 2: Users in the blockchain space are not required to divulge personal information so when fraudulent activity is ongoing in a wallet there is no way the person can be tracked
• 3: In the blockchain, the only way to identify is with a specific set of alphanumeric keys, hence if misplaced assets or wallets are deemed lost forever
• 4: The blockchain cryptocurrency is known for its high rate of volatility and if one does not thread carefully might end up losing assets
• 5: Navigating the blockchain space can prove to be very complicated, especially for those with little or no insight on the subject
• 6: Since blockchain is decentralized assets locked there can not be monitored by regulatory bodies hence one can hide assets in blockchain and avoid taxation

Discuss the future of blockchain, and how this technology is impacting the world.

If we look back to the initial creation of blockchain technology we can accurately say that the blockchain has come a long way since its invention in 2009, we have seen from the first transaction carried out till date a lot of businesses have adopted the blockchain technology. Blockchain in the near future would have taken over the future we will see the application of blockchain in virtually every aspect of our lives, purchases would be made via blockchain, medical records would be stored in blockchain, school fees and even courses in university will be taught concerning the blockchain technology
Its been 12 years since the introduction of blockchain technology and 11 years since the first-ever transaction was carried out, we can see that the blockchain technology has come a long way from just a new tech to a very competitive alternative to the conventional method we had before, Big firms like the Tesla industry are adopting blockchain technology to make payments we have seen the likes of Akira integrating the blockchain technology into the health sector
A few years into the future the blockchain technology would have gained even more attention by then, the Banks would integrate cryptocurrency as a method of payment or withdrawal for its customers, and blockchain would have changed the world entirely in a positive way altogether. Social media, bus pass, hospital bills etc would have be making use of the blockchain technology the era of bank and regulatory approval would have be long forgotten, only time will definitely tell how much ground the technology will cover in our lives

What is your opinion about implementing blockchains in the health sector? Has the implementation been positive or negative? Explain a use case.

In the Health sector, they are a lot of contradictions that happen very often that could have easily been averted with small steps towards embracing blockchain technology, personally, I have experienced a case where a patient's file was mistaken for another and this individual spent a few days in fear of what he never had until he went for another check-up and went back to clarify the mix-up, now I don't think this scenario will be possible if the hospital was using a blockchain-based database or ledger, below are a few areas I believe the blockchain will be applicable to the Health Industry

DATA SAFETY

A big flex the Blockchain has is its pure transparency which in turn gives it utmost immutability and cryptography which is responsible for its strong security. In the current health industry system, we have seen cases where Peoples health records that are meant to be private are being published publically all because of multiple vulnerabilities in the current health industry. Once data is entered into the blockchain it is distributed publicly which means all other nodes maintaining the network have a copy of this information not necessarily detailed or hashed, which means the data cannot be altered, changed, or manipulated by just anyone or accessed by anyone else since in this case, only the individual will be able to decrypt the data or other authorized personnel. In this context, I believe the blockchain will play a big role in data safety and immutability in the current health system

ACCESSIBILITY

The old-fashioned system of documenting patients' health records on pen and paper is still being adopted to date in many health institutions and i believe this is a major setback in the health sector in cases where one has to go overseas or change health institution he has to be carrying around a document containing his medical record back and forth. In this context we know the blockchain to be a public ledger which once written into can't be altered and is seen around the world and a copy is kept on every node all across the world. Now imagine how effective this will be in the health sector where once a patient is diagnosed with an ailment and has to move to another institution for further treatment the record is passed around to other networks and anywhere he goes for treatment his record will be pulled out from the blockchain and treatment will carry on with records and notes entered onto his record from the previous institution. This will make medical records easily accessible from any part of the world without having to be carrying around documents.

TRACEABILITY
The cases of fake drugs is very eminent these days and the major cause for this is the lack of accountability from the institutions producing them on their end and also these institutions do not give ways for one to check the authenticity of these drugs by an average person. So most people can’t really differentiate or have a way of differentiating a fake drug from the real deal hence lots of lives are lost on a daily basis due to fake drug intake. If the blockchain was applied in this case or context every drug pack is assigned a digital signature which can be verified by users on the blockchain like the way we verify transactions to see if the drugs were actually made from a legit source and if we can’t find it we assume the drug is fake and discard it or report to appropriate authorities

With all these applications or use cases of blockchain in the health sector it would evidently have a positive impact in the health sector such as

• Data security
• Hack-proof
• Easy payment system etc.

CONCLUSION

Blockchain in the health sector would entirely change a lot of things so would it if we learn to embrace it earlier, the blockchain technology is not limited to just the financial sector and the health sector it can be applied to virtually every aspect of our lives. Blockchain is here to change the game !!!