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Blockchain: the wave of the future
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 02 Feb 2024
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I assume you're speaking Bitcoin, cryptocurrency that uses Proof-of-Work consensus.
Proof-of-Work is very secure, super decentralized, but it's the culprit behind mining and subsequent electricity drain.
There are other consensus mechanisms, like Proof-of-Stake, to which Ethereum, Solana and many many others have migrated to or were based on to begin with.
Proof-of-Stake requires about 100x less electricity, is reasonably secure and is the default option for modern cryptocurrencies. Thereby the energy argument gets less and less relevant, while the fuss around it is only gaining speed.
Ethereum doesn't seem to have great TPS either ( ~15 transaction/s ), and talks about improving TPS seems to have quiet down.
I think most eth-based transactions happen on different layers and then get settled on the main layer periodically. Same with Bitcoin, come to think of it. TPS doesn't seem like a particularly useful number these days.
You have something like Nano that hits around 50 TPS and also uses proof of stake. Transactions are basically instant and it has no fees. It was always my favourite in terms of crypto personally.
Ethereum is a Layer-1, which is focused on super ironclad security and eternal preservation. It's more of a catalogue than a practical way to transact. Now, Layer-2's on the backbone of Ethereum (Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, etc.) are able to handle thousands of transactions per second.
For example, Polygon has a capacity to conduct up to 7200 TPS (while practically being used to the tune of 50 TPS simply because people don't actually need that much currently).
If you want Layer-1 that is focused on speed, there's Solana, for example, with 300.000 TPS tested and potential for 710.000.
This problem is essentially solved for everyday applications. The reason Bitcoin and Ethereum has such a low TPS is that they've never focused on TPS to begin with, instead opting for the most hyper-secure networks people store value in. I'm not saying Polygon or Solana aren't safe - they're perfectly fine - it's just that Bitcoin and Ethereum have laser-focused on that aspect, making compromising the blockchain even by biggest of institutions entirely off the table.