Understanding Bitcoin - Cryptography, Engineering and Economics

"Understanding Bitcoin" is the most comprehensive treatment ofcryptocurrencies, taking the reader from a passing knowledge of Bitcoin to adeeper understanding of the economics and the technology behind it. Newer ideassuch as autonomous agents and meta-coins, privacy-enhancing techniques and evenfully anonymous cryptocurrencies based on zero-knowledge proofs are discussed.This book assists the reader to understand all the buzz and excitement aroundthese innovative technologies. Part I first introduces the Bitcoin protocol innon-technical terms, it then presents how the different economic schoolsinterpret Bitcoin. It concludes with an introduction to several of the businessmodels in the Bitcoin ecosystem. Part II explains the technology behind Bitcoin.The treatment is thorough although no prior knowledge of cryptography isassumed and all cryptographic primitives are properly introduced. This partconcludes with a review of the wallet and mining technologies. Part III coversBitcoin from the broader perspective of digital currencies. It presentsprevious attempts at cryptographic currencies, other cryptocurrencies (alt-coins, meta-coins) and innovative applications of cryptocurrencies such as autonomousagents. The tension between those who want to break Bitcoin's privacy (usingbig-data techniques) and those creating technologies to increase it is alsocovered, including cutting edge proposals to create fully anonymousdecentralized cryptocurrencies based on cryptographic zero-knowledge proofs.This part concludes by discussing miscellaneous topics from quantum computingto recent advances in cryptography.