Author: Richard Hein 2017-09-25 23:30:23
Published on: 2017-09-25T23:30:23+00:00
Patrick Sharp, a recent computer science graduate, has proposed an idea to limit the maximum length or size of the blockchain in order to make it sustainable and prevent centralization. He suggests trimming old blocks whose transactions are now spent, as they hold no real value and take up unnecessary space and cost. His proposal is to limit the blockchain length to either 2^18 blocks (slightly less than 5 years) or 2^19 blocks (slightly less than 10 years), and trim the oldest block(s) beyond this limit each time a new block is mined. This would ensure the immortality of Bitcoin by keeping the costs of miners balanced with the costs of users. However, his proposal may face friction from some users who benefit at the great cost of miners, but Patrick believes this is the next step in evolution that Bitcoin needs to take.
Updated on: 2023-06-12T19:04:12.003701+00:00