Ethereum: Can the bitcoin block be less than 1 MB?
The question of whether a bitcoin block may be less than 1 MB has triggered a debate between miners and enthusiasts. In this article, we immerse ourselves in detail about how the Bitcoin consensus mechanism works, and examine the theoretical limits of the block size.
Understanding the Bitcoin Consension mechanism
Bitcoin uses a consensual mechanism called Work Proof (Pow) to verify transactions and to create new blocks. Miners compete to solve a complex mathematical puzzle that requires significant computational power and energy expenditure. The first miner to solve the puzzle gets a new block to the blockchain and sends it to the net.
Problem: Removing requirements
To solve the mathematical puzzle, miners must find the hash that meets the specific requirements:
1.
- Block size : Number of bytes needed for each block header.
- Consenso goal : Target hash speed set in the network.
To calculate these values, miners must perform a series of calculations using their specialized hardware (i.e. J. GPU or ASIC) and energy to drive them. For example::
- Each byte in the block header is equivalent to 256 bits (8 bytes).
- The block requires approximately 2^192 (10^{80}) to solve the hash per second (h/s).
- The formula of mining modification requires a specific speed speed, which can be calculated using a cryptographic algorithm.
Theoretical limits: Can the block be less than 1 MB?
To answer whether the bitcoin block may be less than 1 MB, we must consider the theoretical limits of Pow and hashing requirements. Here are a few key points:
* Size hash : The total number of bytes required for the block head is fixed to approximately 256^x (eg 2^128), where X represents the target speed hash.
* Block size : The minimum block size required for each head is also fixed, usually around 1-2 MB.
Assuming the theoretical limits of Pow and hashing requirements, a hash block below 100GB would require a huge amount of energy spending to be solved, which is impractical. In fact, the extraction of the block would exceed 20-25 GB probably led to a significant economic loss due to excessive energy consumption.
Conclusion: Theoretical limits and practicality
Although there are theoretical limits for blocking size, practical considerations such as energy efficiency, profitability and network overload, historically shifted the size of bitcoins above 1 MB. When the network is constantly evolving, it is possible to examine alternative consensual mechanisms or adjust the size of the block in a way that balances energy consumption with profitability.
However, it is unlikely that the Bitcoin block will be less than 1 MB due to its fixed hash and limited computing power requirements.
More sources:
- Block size restrictions (Bitcoin Wiki)
- Evidence of work (bitcoin replacement of stack)
I hope this article has given a view of the theoretical limits of the Bitcoin Consension mechanism and the size of the block. Do you have any subsequent questions or concerns?