What is Harmony?
There are countless projects in the blockchain world looking for a way to separate themselves fromBitcoin’s proof of work system; an energy-intensive process that requires miners to use their computing power in order to solve sophisticated mathematical puzzles to verify blocks of transactions in exchange for coins. The majority of projects on Ethereum on the other hand, have turned to proof of stake, in which validators, instead of using their computing power, stake their money on the network to earn the right to validate transactions.
That being said, there is one downside to proof of stake that has caused problems compromising two of the most fundamental qualities of an effective blockchain; decentralization and more importantly, security. So, what is it? The system is built in a way that allows a stakeholder, or multiple stakeholders (validators) to work in conspiracy and accumulate funds and co-opt the network. But with Harmony, validators are kept in line. Let’s see what it can do!
What is it?
Harmony is a layer-1 blockchain-based platform that was created in 2018 and was launched in May 2019as part of the Binance Launchpad’s initial exchange offering. The platform runs on the Ethereum network and aims to find a permanent solution to a persistent issue called the “blockchain trilemma”,which is balancing security, scalability and decentralization. In simple words, it seeks to achieve both scalability and decentralization without sacrificing either. Harmony was created with the addeddimension of privacy, referred to as the “fourth trilemma”. It also includes a native token called ONE, which was named with a vision of “For One and For All” and keeps the ecosystem running smoothly.Harmony ONE has a limited supply of 12.6 million and grants governance rights on holders, allowing them to participate in decisions regarding the future of the network. The platform also allows validators to mint these tokens for themselves and later draw in the form of transaction fees.
How does it work?
In order to make the blockchain more efficient and reduce latency, Harmony uses an approach which itcalls “Effective Proof of Stake”. The blockchain is divided into four networks referred to as “shards” thatrun in parallel but are validated by independent groups of stakeholders. What makes Harmony so special is that unlike proof of stake, it randomly assigns validators to each shard in order to avoid attempts to amass funds and take over the network.
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