The Blockchain: A Pendulum Between Past and Future
The concept of blockchain has sparked extensive reflections, proposing a new paradigm capable of revolutionizing the global economy (Bitcoin), inaugurating a new era of decentralized and disintermediated applications (Ethereum), in addition to the possibility of creating non-fungible digital assets (NFTs), along with many other forthcoming innovations. But what lies behind this revolution? What makes this technology so innovative? At the heart of it all lies a dimension that humanity has sought to understand since its conception: time.
The blockchain can be considered as an incorruptible timestamp applicable to native digital or digitizable products. Block by block, information is layered, allowing to trace back to the exact moment when specific information was recorded, keeping it public and immutable.
Just like a pendulum marking time, the blockchain creates a bridge between past and future, between the data and the information it encapsulates. One of the most evident examples in this regard is notarization, traditionally the prerogative of notaries, which could soon see such monopoly overturned. However, this is just one of the many possible and imaginable applications: blockchain technology can penetrate fields such as politics, as in the case of electoral voting, not only making the vote unique and private but also impossible to manipulate, as already happened in Guatemala 1. Or it can be used as a tool to indisputably prove copyright or patent rights for certain inventions.
Bitcoin, the Cradle of Time
After this necessary premise, it is not surprising that in the Bitcoin white paper, published by Satoshi Nakamoto on October 31, 2008, there is no direct reference to the word “blockchain,” but instead talks about “chain of blocks.” In fact, the word “timechain” is mentioned in the notes of the anonymous inventor, almost emphasizing that the true protagonist is not the block, but time 2. There are many other clues that lead us to conceive this technology as time-centric.
“Tik tok another block,” one of the popular sayings within the community, or the amusing misunderstanding behind the name “Moscow Time,” born from an interview with Jack Dorsey (computer scientist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist of Bitcoin), during which a clock behind him showed 19:52, coincidentally matching the time in Moscow at that exact moment, while in reality, it represented the value of 1 dollar expressed in Satoshi (1952 sats), the smallest unit in which a Bitcoin can be divided 3.
A fascinating and paradoxical protocol, capable of marking time in a completely new way, but incapable of predicting when the validation of the next block will occur.
Although rigorous mathematical calculations assure us that, on average, a block will be added to the chain every 10 minutes, there is no way to know the exact moment when this will happen; it could be seconds or hours 4.
This and many other peculiarities have made Bitcoin an interesting case study for cryptography enthusiasts initially, then transforming over time from a mere object of interest for nerds into a globally recognized asset by the most authoritative institutions, as confirmed by the recent SEC approval of the Bitcoin ETF 5.
It is evident that the true innovation of Bitcoin and the Timechain is linked to the domain of time. The time for a new era has come: synchronize your clocks, because we’re in for a ride.
Sources:
2 https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/bitcoins-blockchain-is-the-timechain
3 https://thebitcoinmanual.com/btc-culture/glossary/moscow-time/
5 https://it.cointelegraph.com/news/sec-spot-bitcoin-etf-approvals
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