The mechanism by which a blockchain network agrees on the next valid block. Proof-of-work (Bitcoin) relies on miners expending energy to solve puzzles. Proof-of-stake (Ethereum, Solana) relies on validators staking tokens that can be slashed for misbehavior. Other variants exist (delegated proof-of-stake, proof-of-history, proof-of-authority); each has different decentralization and throughput trade-offs.
Consensus
The mechanism by which a blockchain network agrees on the next valid block. Proof-of-work (Bitcoin) relies on miners expending energy to solve puzzles. Proof-of-stake (Ethereum, Solana) relies on validators staking tokens that can be slashed for misbehavior. Other variants exist (delegated proof-of-stake, proof-of-history, proof-of-authority); each has different decentralization and throughput trade-offs.
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