CRYPTO ACADEMY/SEASON 3/ WEEK 2/HOMEWORK POST FOR PROFESSOR @awesononso ON THE GENESIS BLOCK: THE BEGINNING OF THE BEGINNING / BY @ruthjoe
Hello steemians,
Am so excited to be a part of this weeks lectures. It has really an interesting subject taught by professor @awesononso. While reading through the lecture i was really amazed because i have never heard about the subject so i say thank you to the professor and thank you to @cryptoacademy for this medium to learn new things.
After going through the lectures am here to do the homework given at the end of the class.
QUESTION 1: WHAT IS GENESIS BLOCK OF A BLOCKCHAIN
Firstly, it is important to briefly look at what a block is..A block in a blockchain, is seen as an important feature found on the blockchain because it is a part of what makes up the blockchain. A block contains data and informations such as the numbers of transactions carried out, the block number and other essential features.
Now that we have briefly seen what a block is, i will move on to explain Genesis block of a blockchain.
The word Genesis can also mean starting point. Therefore Genesis block can be referred to as the starting point of all blockchain. To start means to begin or to be the first hence Genesis block is also referred to as block O. Genesis block chain is the pioneer of all other blockchain, so i can firmly say that Genesis blockchain is the father of all other blocks on the blockchain.
There is no account of an existing block before the Genesis blockchain, so its not traceable to any source thus it is a special kind of block found on the blockchain.
One very importance of the Genesis block on a blockchain is this: usually on a blockchain, for a new block to be formed, the hash of the block 0 ( Genesis block) is added or included to form a new block hence this makes Genesis block a foundation of the new blocks formed.
QUESTION 2: WRITE ON THE BITCOIN GENESIS BLOCK AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE
BITCOIN GENESIS BLOCK
It is important to note that Bitcoin is the oldest and first cryptocurrency that ever existed.
Bitcoin genesis block was created by someone called Sotashi Nakamato. He created the bitcoin Genesis block in the year 2009 January 3 because of the instability in the traditional banking reserve. Bitcoin Genesis block is the foremost block transaction ever done on the blockchain, so it is referred to as bitcoin Genesis. The reward gotten from this transaction was said to have a total of 50 btc, but one amazing fact about this reward is that it can not be spent or collected by anyone.
It is believed that the Bitcoin Genesis block transaction was done in response to an article published on a news paper called The Times which the headline was Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks . This headline corresponds with the secret message that was sent by satoshi Nakamoto on the date of said transaction.
After he made his first transaction, it took about 6days for the second to be made, which is not usually the case today, as it takes about 10mins.
Till today there is no trace of Satoshi Nakamoto whereabout. But some loyalist of his has found a way of appreciating him for what he has done to the crypto world, they often pay in some coins into his wallet which has also lead to the increase of btc in the wallet.
I used the online tool given by @awesononso to convert the secret message into english text formart for myself as seen below.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BITCOIN GENESIS BLOCK
The significance of bitcoin Genesis block to mankind and the cryptoworld can not be overemphasized. And below are some of its significance.
Today bitcoin Genesis block has made crytocurrencies to become an alternative to traditional money : imagine if they were nothing like cryptocurrencies? So all thanks to the first minning ever.
Another significance is that it has become a yardstick for all other block on the block chain in terms of arrangement and setting.
Bitcoin Genesis block having bitcoin as its first cryptocurrency has paved way for other cryptocurrencies to come up, like the steem, Tron etc.
It has made decentralization realizable, which people never thought could happen, creating room for more opportunities in the world of crypto.
Another important significant is that it has made more people wealthy.
QUESTION 3: Go to https://steemworld.org and locate the steem genesis block. ( you must provide screenshot and sign in as proof of completion)
The following are the steps i took to locate the steem genesis block.
Step 1: I clicked on the steemworld link given in the homework by @awesononso, which is https://steemworld.org
Step 2: I scrolled my screen to the left in other to locate Block explorer and clicked on it
Step 3: I clicked ok for block 1
As you can see from the screendshot below, block 1 is loading
Step 4: block 1 opens up, showing features of the block such as timestamp,block Id, previous Id,signing key, witness,witness signature, transaction merkle and extensions..as seen in the screenshot below.. As seen in the screenshot below.
Step 5: To sign in, i located sign in at the right top corner and clicked on it. As shown below.
Step 6: It opens up asking me to fill in my steem account name and my steem active posting key as seen in the screenshot below.
Step 7: I filled in my steem account name and my steem active key then i clicked ok (for security reasons my active posting key is hidden by me)
Step 8: I have successfully signed into the steem genesis block as shown in the screenshot below.
CONCLUSION
Its been so amazing learning about history/beginning of crypto. I never thought such story existed but now i know better going through the lectures. Genesis block and Bitcoin Genesis has been interesting learning about. The creation of both has transformed mankind forever!!