Author: befreeandopen 2021-06-01 08:21:23
Published on: 2021-06-01T08:21:23+00:00
The discussion on the use of Proof of Burn (PoB) and its comparison with Proof of Stake (PoS) revolves around the similarities and differences between these two systems. PoB differs from PoS in that the coin is burned forever rather than being reusable after waiting longer. However, the author argues that PoB does not have fundamentally different properties than PoS and should suffer from the same problems, such as the lack of definition of the heaviest chain, difficulty adjustment, and trivial attacks against the scheme by wealthy attackers.The conversation then shifts towards the problem of stake grinding in blockchain systems and how collaborative randomness using numbers from multiple parties can be used to address this issue. However, there are concerns about potential vulnerabilities and complexities in implementing these solutions, including the "nothing at stake" problem in PoS, which allows attackers to mint on any chain and benefit from block rewards without any risk.The writer argues that PoB solves this issue by eliminating the "nothing at stake" problem in PoS and makes PoB a simpler and more secure system. However, there are concerns about the exploitable nature of burning coins for future block heights and the possibility of large stakeholders colluding to punish smaller stakeholders.The discussion also focuses on the suitability of PoS for a Bitcoin-like system and the crucial differences between PoS protocols and Bitcoin that make them less secure. There are concerns about oligopolistic control and the need to keep keys for large amounts of coins offline while also having those coins online to make the scheme secure.Finally, the conversation touches on the use of Verifiable Delay Functions (VDFs) and Proof of Work (PoW) in Bitcoin. The use of VDFs may enable more constant block times and reduce the variation in block times, but it may also lead to a winner-takes-all situation. The suggestion put forth is to use a "burned coin + VDF system" as a replacement for PoW, requiring miners to burn coins well in advance and hope that their burned coins get rewarded in some far future to mimic the value gained from PoW without some of the security drawbacks.
Updated on: 2023-05-21T02:40:05.941923+00:00