A digital signature is a cryptographic mechanism used to verify the authenticity and integrity of digital data. We may consider it as a digital version of the ordinary handwritten signatures, but with higher levels of complexity and security.

You probably know the drill with cryptocurrency exchanges. Sign up with your email, come up with a strong password, verify your account, and start trading cryptocurrency. Decentralized exchanges are like that, minus the hassle of sign-ups. In most cases, there’s no depositing or withdrawing crypto. The trade happens directly between two users’ wallets, with limited (if any!) input from a third-party.

Before diving into the 51% attack, it is crucial to have a good understanding of mining and blockchain-based systems. One of the key strengths of Bitcoin and its underlying blockchain technology is the distributed nature of building and verifying data. The decentralized work of the nodes ensures that the protocol rules are being followed and that all network participants agree on the current state of the blockchain. This means that the majority of nodes need to regularly reach consensus in regards to the process of mining, to the version of the software being used, to the validity of transactions, and so forth.

Financial markets move in trends. It’s important to understand the differences between these trends to be able to make better investment decisions. How come? Well, different market trends can lead to wildly different market conditions. If you don’t know what the underlying trend is, how are you going to adapt to changing conditions?

Nick Szabo first described smart contracts in the 1990s. Back then, he defined a smart contract as a tool that formalizes and secures computer networks by combining protocols with user interfaces.

An options contract is an agreement that gives a trader the right to buy or sell an asset at a predetermined price, either before or at a certain date. Although it may sound similar to futures contracts, traders that buy options contracts are not obligated to settle their positions. Options contracts are derivatives that can be based on a wide range of underlying assets, including stocks, and cryptocurrencies. These contracts may also be derived from financial indexes. Typically, options contracts are used for hedging risks on existing positions and for speculative trading.

NFTs are unique digital collectibles on the blockchain. This feature makes them suitable to use in games as representations as characters, consumables, and other tradeable items. NFT games have become popular in the Game-fi world as a way to earn income. You can sell your in-game NFTs to other collectors and players and even earn tokens with play-to-earn models.