1/ Did you that the “chain” in blockchain is actually built using a mathematical function called “Hash Function”?
Each block in the blockchain has a reference to the hash of the previous block,thus tieing them all in a chain (or a linked list)
Learn more about Hash function ↓↓
2/ Hash function is a mathematical function that takes data of any size and return an output of fixed size.
It is used to scramble the raw input so it cannot be recognized as it is sent over the internet.
Some interesting attributes about the Hash Function ↓↓↓
3.1/ No matter how big the size of the input the output is always of the same size.
So you could take one Tweet and get the hash of same size.
Or you could take the entirety of all Tweets ever and still get the hash of same size.
SHA-256 generates the output of 256 bits.
3.2/ Hash functions is that they only work one way - You can give the same input and get the same output hash everytime. But you cannot get provide the output and recreate the input. The only way to guess the input would be Brute Force which would be too expensive.
3.3/ Even a small change in the input will lead to a entirely different output. This helps detect any tampering with the inputs.
If an attacker tries to modify one transaction in a block, the hash of the block changes, thus breaking the references in all following blocks
3.4/ e.g. SHA-256 for “Follow me on Twitter” is 08a7f9fccaf8e90d4d1f88c99bd0c9c8ad0b9b4750aee7f9e6cf119adfa9e3df
SHA-256 for “Follow me on Twitter!” is f72addbfc14b6294c67b3c153669e547cf90723434ef66eeda4f56fcd31a2649
4/ Hash functions are also used for #NFTs to store the hash of the image on to the blockchain.
I’m assuming you already know that when you buy an NFT,you are not actually buying the image but a hash referencing the image :)
Hope this was educational and you learned something new
