Principles of Blockchains

Blockchains are decentralized digital trust engines that are the underlying technology behind Web3, a loosely defined denotation of the Internet architecture in the years to come, including decentralization of the platform economy of the modern Internet (Web2). In this course, we conduct a full-stack study of blockchains, viewing them as a whole integrated computer system involving networking, incentives, consensus, data structures, cryptography and memory management. The course uses the Bitcoin architecture as a basis to construct the foundational design and algorithmic principles of blockchains.