Hello Everyone,

4th Season for the advanced level starts with a short and sweet lesson from crypto prof. @yohan2on. In this lesson, he shared his knowledge about the Internet of Things (IoT) and Blockchain Technology. It's a futuristic topic hence understanding the concepts is of utmost importance. Let's dig into the homework..

Explain why the future Internet of Things depends on Blockchain

• Concept of Internet of Things(IoT) :
  Internet of Things is a broad term but put it into simple terms, it is a network of connected objects which has the ability to collect information from surroundingsthrough sensors and connect to the internet via awireless network andexchange thosedata via machine learning.
  The entire process has limited the human-to-human interaction to help its users to work seamlessly. These devices use atype of artificial intelligence to identify users’preferencesand act for the convenience of their users.
  The most popular example for this concept is the Smart Home. A digital device like Alexa can now assist humans to perform many tasks just from a voice command.

• Concept of Blockchain:
  Digital ledger or a blockchain is basically a transparent and decentralized database that records transactions in a permanent way and only the system is trusted to ensure the integrity of the data. It is basically a decentralized way of keeping records on a long list of transactions. Instead of a centralized database which is prone to human errors&central authority, computer algorithms record and verify the transactions in this system using PEER-TO-PEER network technology.

• Why the future Internet of Things depends on Blockchain?

According to reports, there are over 21 billion objects connected to the Internet right now, but the number is growing at an extraordinary pace. It is believed, there will be nearly 64 billion IoT devices installed around the world by 2026.

"With the number of internet connected devices steadily increasing each year, it's clear that a global protocol is needed to ensure a secure and reliable system to connect these devices and realize their maximum potential.
_{Allison Clift-Jennings, CEO and Co-Founder of Filament}

^{Expansion of connected devices}

This explosion of the Internet of Things has become one of the most disruptive technologies to have ever happened in human history, and the majority of these devices are now connected to networks and allow for secure communication of data.
So, why Blockchain Technology!
We are speaking about technology here. It can have both pros and cons according to personal views. But the strongest vulnerability of using IoT is the Security, because these devices collect all our data and we are prone to cyberattacks even without noticing.

This is where the adoption of Blockchain Technologywill make the Internet of Things more efficient and secure than ever.Blockchain technology can help to empower the IoTfor below areas,

• Security and Privacy Protection
  The most of these devices collect many user information. Sometimes it is hard to analyze which data has been transferred and how they are used for marketing purposes. The current solutions to safeguard these data is limited and prone for hackers. Blockchain technology can overcome such security issues by implementing blockchain's cryptography encryption as a security feature.

• Decentralization
  As opposed to the current centralized models which has single authoritative unit, decentralizationallows data exchanges to be effective and efficient with nodes in use.

• Scalability
  The global average internet connection speed has already improved by 50% between 2013 and 2017. However, even with such speed improvements we still face network errors while connected to multi-Platforms due to high consumption of data. Adaptation to solution such as PoS(Proof of Stake) can eliminate scalability issues.

• Cost-effectiveness
  In recent times, many industries such as Banking, Healthcare, and many others have introduced cost-effective Blockchain Technology solutions to automate their business processes. Transparency among the transactions is key to the cost control and blockchain is the best solution for transparency. Further, PEER to PEER transaction will enable many payment options.

• Combating Malware Attacks
  As the IoT continues to grow exponentially, new security threats emerge. Over the years, we have seen cyberattacks on everything from banks to government bodies to even personal cars. The solution to this problem is Blockchain Technology that is used to record and store transaction information, helping keep data secure and transparent can combat any attacks possible.

Research and create content on the following IoT Blockchain use case: Filament

Filament is an organization whichprovides solutions for blockchain systems for the enterprise and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). Founded on 2012 Filament was one of the Awards winning startup company.
The Filament’s revolutionized idea to integrate the blockchain had eliminate the need for centralized cloud servers used in the market before.

The Filament technology stack is built upon five key principles: Security, Privacy, Autonomy,Decentralization, and Exchange (SPADE)
Web address: https://www.filamentpd.com/
Headquarters: Reno, Nevada, United States
CEO: Allison Clift-Jennings

With its vision to develop the world's first fully programmable internet of things (IoT) platform., the company was able to develop many products that is at the intersection of IoT, robotics, and 3D printing.
The wireless sensors, they developed on 2015 was one of the best Industrial Internet of Things product at that time. The sensor was named as Taps and it allowed computers, phones and tables to be connected within 10 miles of range.
This was popular among the industries such mining operations and agricultural fields. The devices were able to communicate each other over radio instead of WIFI and hasn’t relied on cloud services. The technology used low power and it was autonomous.
This type of innovation that is based on blockchain technology helped industries to communicate even in remote locations.
The Filament was able to architectsoftware and hardware that are truly Internet of Things over the last decade.

Conclusion

Internet of Things (IoT) is a new technology which has advanced over the past five years. IoTallows automated control of devices without physical contact. There are some shortcomings to this technology, and blockchain is an answer to those. In this homework, we discuss how the future of IoT depends on the benefits of blockchain and its significant market growth opportunities for the coming years.