Why Blockchain is so disruptive?!
“In the next century, planet earth will don an electronic skin. It will use the Internet as a scaffold to support and transmit its sensations.”, Neil Gross 1999
Introduction
Before we scratch the surface of Blockchain, some collaborative computing paradigms should be identified such as IoT and Mobile Computing besides the underlying science of all these disruptive technologies: Pervasive/Ubiquitous Computing (UbiComp). UbiComp is about the seamless integration between Physical and Digital worlds which discusses how to provide immersive intuitive User eXperience utilizing all human senses. With this great vision on mind, we face several challenges such as Natural Metaphor, Security, Privacy, Interoperability, Stability, Availability and Maintainability. That is why it is an ongoing effort that will evolve all the time and the possibilities and limits are just infinite. Let us then discover some possibilities!
What is IoT?
Internet of Things is the capability of (Intelligent) intercommunication between objects (Devices: Sensors & Actuators and People) to provide Adaptive, efficient and personalized experiences. IoT comprises an ecosystem that includes things, communication, applications and data analysis. Some application examples: Smart Wearables/Homes/Cities/Grids/Transport/Agriculture/Healthcare
What is Mobile Computing?
Mobile computing is a generic term that refers to a variety of portable devices that allow users to access data (text, voice, and video) from wherever they are without having to be connected to a fixed physical link. Android is considered a major mobile computing platform that runs on more than 80% of world smartphones. Android has a thin version that can run on embedded systems called Android Things. Many OEMs adopts Android for their variety of devices. Household devices such as washing machines, fridges and TVs run Android.
What is BlockChain?
Blockchain at its simplest definition is a type of distributed decentralized database which consists of immutable blocks which are linked and secured via cryptography. It follows the DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology) architecture pattern. The major feature of Blockchain Technology is being Trustless (a common term in Blockchain world) which is ambiguous, confusing and definitely inaccurate. Trustless according to dictionary means: not worthy of trust; faithless; unreliable; false. However, in Blockchain, it means the extreme opposite that is reliable to the extent that we do not need trust by itself and there is no need to rely on any third party to trust it. It is verified through the majority consensus of the nodes participating on the database. Blockchain is still evolving and is far from being mature at the moment but its potential of disrupting general computing architectures is dramatically huge for business and society. Realistic expectations for blockchain projects today involve experimentation, learning and gaining experience with blockchain technologies. Even Quantum Computing[3] could challenge the biggest value of blockchain “Security”. So if we change to another computer paradigm such as Quantum Computing, which could be real soon, this will threaten the Security aspect of Blockcahin.
Let us discover some initiatives!
Imagine a combined solution that benefits from the power of trust and decentralization of Blockchain, Billions of connected devices and data generated through IoT, adoption via so many Mobile device users. Let us discover some interesting Blockchain use cases:
- IoT networks and real-time data transactions: Nokia Sensing as a Service, nucleus.vision, modum.io, flowchain.co, iota…
- Monetizing Social networks(Blockchain alternatives to Facebook, Linkedin…): steem.it, synereo.com, indorse.io, augur.net, akasha.world, gnosis.pm…
- Finance: ripple, corda…
- Gaming: firstblood.io, cryptokitties.co, spellsofgenesis.com, chimaera.io…
- Energy: lo3energy.com, energyweb.org…
- …
As a side note, talking about Energy, I was involved in a hackthon beginning 2018 about how to use Blockchain for Energy in which my team & I has developed a proof of concept about a transparent CO2 Emissions Certificates Market which wins 1st place [1] .
Summary
Blockchain technology and its derivatives is still evolving and experimental that opens the era for new shapes of products and services. Even by name, according to Gartner, Through 2018, 85% of blockchain-named projects will deliver business value without using a blockchain.
Footnotes
*https://speakerdeck.com/aselims/android-and-iot-at-droidconde-16
[1] https://www.enhack.gelsenwasser.de/
[3] https://github.com/theQRL/Whitepaper/blob/master/QRL_whitepaper.pdf
