The most comprehensive crypto glossary for Advanced level
The most comprehensive crypto glossary out there.
Semaphore
In computer science, a semaphore is a variable or abstract data type used to control access to a common resource by multiple threads and avoid critical section problems. It's also zero-knowledge proof which allows Ethereum users to prove their membership of a set which they had previously joined without revealing their original identity.
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Level: Advanced
SegWit (segregated witness)
The process by which the signature data of a transaction is decoupled from a Bitcoin transaction. This is an improvement used by the existing Bitcoin blockchain. SegWit reduces the size required to store transactions in a block and allows for faster transaction processing.
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Level: Advanced
Second-layer solutions
A set of solutions built on top of a public blockchain to extend its scalability and efficiency, especially for micro-transactions or actions. Examples include Plasma, TrueBit, Lightning Network and more.
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Level: Advanced
Vaporware
Software or hardware that has been advertised but is not yet available for purchase, either because it is only a concept or because it is still being written or developed. In crypto, vaporware are projects that are never actually developed.
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Level: Advanced
Verifiable delay function (VDF)
A cryptographic primitive is built to run a given number of sequential steps which allows the end result to be efficiently verified. To achieve their desired result within a distributed system, verifiable delay functions generally involve three main processes: setup, evaluation, and verification.
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Level: Advanced
SHA-256
Stands for Secure Hash Algorithm 256-bit. It is the hash function and mining algorithm of the Bitcoin protocol, referring to the cryptographic hash function that outputs a 256 bits long value.
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Level: Advanced
Rust
A multi-paradigm programming language designed for performance and safety, especially safe concurrency. Rust is similar to C++ but can guarantee memory safety by using a borrow checker to validate references.
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Level: Advanced
Routing attack
An attack on the Internet Service Provider level to affect uptime or participation in a web-enabled system, such as a blockchain. An attacker can split a network into two (or more) non-overlapping components. By preventing nodes inside a component from communicating with nodes outside of it, an attacker forces parallel blockchains to be created.
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Level: Advanced
Hybrid PoW/PoS
A consensus mechanism that uses both proof of work and proof of stake consensus mechanisms in the same blockchain network. The purpose of a hybrid PoW/PoS consensus is to synthesize the better security features of PoW networks with the governance and energy efficiency of PoS networks.
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Level: Advanced
Honest Geppetto attack
An attack in which a hacker runs a large number of nodes in a blockchain network for a sufficient period of time to gain the trust of other nodes. The hacker eventually takes their nodes offline which could disrupt the operation of the network and cause security breaches.
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Level: Advanced
Hierarchical-Deterministic (HD) Wallet
A cryptocurrency wallet that generates a new cryptographic key pair or address from an initial seed phrase every time a new deposit is made to the wallet. The purpose is to increase the security of a wallet by distributing the user's total cryptocurrency balance across many different keys.
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Level: Advanced
Hashed timeclock contract
A special type of smart contract that operates on payment networks. Its most frequent use is in atomic swap transactions, where it acts as a virtual lock for funds and HashLocks are used to unlock those funds during an atomic swap transaction.
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Level: Advanced
Retargeting algorithm
Implemented in most of the proof-of-work blockchains. Retargeting ensures that the average block creation time is maintained by increasing the difficulty of the hashing puzzle. It is created by dividing the hash target of the first block by the hash target of the current block. The constant retargeting means that miners require more processing power over time.
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Level: Advanced
REST API (representational state transfer API)
REST is a type of software architecture that a developer can follow for client-server communication. Since this data is accessed by more than one client, a provider can deliver them with access to the data directly. An application programming interface (API) establishes an online connection between a data provider and an end-user.
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Level: Advanced
Resharding
Allows the user to increase or decrease the number of shards in the stream to accommodate changes in the data rate. Resharding is typically performed by an administrative application that monitors the processing metrics of the shards’ data.
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Level: Advanced