Why do we need QuarkChain?
The current speed on the Ethereum Blockchain is slow, very slow. It's similar to the 56k dialup modem we all used and waited 10+ minutes for an image to load on a simple webpage. Painful. Brutally Painful.
Luckily, there are many scaling projects being developed on Ethereum to increase the amount of transactions per second (tps). The race is on to see which project can transition Ethereum from a slow 56k dialup modem to a much faster broadband connection.
One exciting project is QuarkChain!
QuarkChain is a high capacity scaling solution that promises 1,000,000 million tps. The founder of QuarkChain, Qi Zhou, has worked previously at Google and Facebook. During his time with each company he worked on scaling each platform using a technique called "sharding".
What is Sharding?
Sharding is a type of database partitioning that separates very large databases the into smaller, faster, more easily managed parts called data shards. The word shard means a small part of a whole.
How is QuarkChain different?
Qi Zhou is building QuarkChain from the ground up and will also incorporate the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). This is huge, because any dApps that are currently being built on Ethereum could also be used on top of QuarkChain later!
What is the technology behind QuarkChain?
Two Layered BlockchainsQuarkChain uses a two layer solution.
- Elastic sharding layer
- Root layer
Elastic Sharding Layer
This layer contain shards which process transactions independently.
Root Layer
This layer confirms all blocks from the shards.
Market Driven Collaborative MiningThe goal is to design an incentive mechanism for shards and an appropriate difficulty algorithm.
- Mining difficulty algorithms are designed so that hash power is evenly distributed among shards.
- Root chain has over 50% of the hash power over the network to prevent double spend.
- Each blockchain offers different rewards and difficulty levels so that weak miners can achieve similar levels of expected returns by mining solo when compared to joining a mining pool. This lessens the need for mining pools and results in less centralization.
What is the usage of the QuarkChain Token (QKC)?
The utility token of the QuarkChain network is QKC, and will serve as the medium of exchange between participants on the network. Similar to Ethereum, each transaction on the QuarkChain network will require a transaction fee in QKC, which serves as the "fuel" for the network. Miners will also be rewarded in QKC for validating blocks and maintaining network security.
What Market is QuarkChain targeting?
QuarkChains goal is to make dApps more available on mobile devices. With the increase in tps, it should be possible to build social media, online storage, games, and sharing economy platforms on the blockchain. Once dApps can be built and used daily on mobile devices, then mass adoption will be achieved!
Will QuarkChain succeed?
QuarkChain has a lot of competition in the race to become the scaling solution for Ethereum. Other projects like Raiden, OmiseGo, and Zilliqa have their own scaling solution in development. However, on the testnet, QuarkChain claims to have reached 2,000 tps. This is very promising, and the CEO Qi Zhou does have experience scaling large centralized networks like Facebook and Google.
QuarkChain has a unique 2 layer sharding solution that could potentially change the world!