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Blockchain Glossary
ACTOR
In the blockchain industry, any entity that is capable of participating in an action or a network.
ADDRESS
In the blockchain industry, the public address of a private key. Addresses serve as an actor's or an account’s identity and are typically represented in hexadecimal notation.
APPLICATION-SPECIFIC INTEGRATED CIRCUIT (ASIC)
A type of computer processing chip that performs a singular function. Due to its specialization, an ASIC is much more efficient and cost-effective than a generalized computer processor that can perform many functions. In the blockchain industry, ASIC boards have been used to perform the SHA256 hashing required for Proof-of-Work (PoW), greatly outstripping the hashrate of even the most powerful GPU miners.
BANKING SECRECY ACT (BSA)
Legislation passed in the United States in 1970 that requires financial institutions to assist government agencies in detecting and preventing money laundering. BSA requirements include mandatory reporting of certain activities, record keeping for all customers, and limitations on what kind of monetary instruments may be purchased or exchanged.
BITCOIN (BTC)
A decentralized blockchain that specifically transacts tokens between accounts. Bitcoin is the original blockchain-based cryptocurrency. Bitcoin uses Unspent Transaction Outputs (UTXOs) to store data and a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus algorithm.
BLOCK
A single section of discrete data. Blocks typically comprise a list of transactions or actions to be performed when processing the data in the block.
BLOCK DEPTH
A block's position index in the blockchain relative to the latest (most recently added) block. A block that is five blocks before the latest block will have a block depth of 5.
BLOCK EXPLORER
A software, generally with a graphical user interface (GUI), that allows users to read and analyze the data contained on a blockchain.
BLOCK HEIGHT
A block's position index in the blockchain relative to the genesis (zeroeth) block. The 5th block added to a chain will have a block height of 5.
BLOCK REWARD
For blockchains with a native cryptocurrency, miners that produce a block are allowed to allocate a designated number of tokens to be spontaneously generated and sent to an address of their choosing. This reward serves as compensation for the miner's support of the network and incentivizes additional miners to join.
BLOCK, CANONICAL
A block that has been included in the primary blockchain and is directly or indirectly referenced by future blocks. Blocks that are not canonical may have been valid but were discarded in favor of the canonical block.
BLOCK, GENESIS
The original block in a blockchain. The genesis block has a block height of zero, and all other blocks are intrinsically linked to it. Genesis blocks can be configurable to create a fork of a chain for purposes such as pre-loading accounts with tokens for a test network or specifying different block parameters.
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