Node
What does Node mean?
Computers or virtual machines attached to a network in order to communicate with users and other nodes to construct, store, and serve the data in the blockchain.
Main Idea:
The first definition commonly associated with nodes in a blockchain are those that receive candidate transactions, validate them, then write and attach the next block in the blockchain. However, when one thinks about the entire list of actions (or strategy set, as it is called in game theory), nodes may perform many other activities as well. Chief among the beneficial activities are when nodes honestly validate, store, and serve the data.
Non-beneficial node activities are equally important to consider because they threaten the integrity of the data. For now, it is important to know Geeq’s Strategically Provable Security addresses these threats to protect our users. For more details, please see The Technical Paper.
Nodes in permissionless blockchain technologies are anonymous in the sense it is possible for them to be identified only by their public keys and IP addresses. (Different kinds of nodes may wish to reveal more information.)
How You may Encounter a Node (or Not):
End users of a blockchain may have two direct points of contact with a node (aside from running a node themselves):
- They may submit a transaction to a node in a blockchain network, and/or
- They may query a node for data stored in the blockchain.
It is possible an end user of a blockchain-based service never contacts a node directly. A blockchain is a type of database. These end users may care only about interacting with an application (e.g. an enterprise application) that happens to use a blockchain database.
Nonetheless, the economic value of the blockchain to any end user depends on whether or not the nodes that validate the blockchain data do so in such a way that the data are acceptable to any end user. Blockchains’ best use cases are when users wish to coordinate, collaborate, or transact on the basis of blockchain data, even if these users do not trust each other directly, but do not wish to use a trusted third party.
Want to read more? Geeq’s technology was invented to solve these economic and business issues.
Incentives:
The owners of nodes are real people who pay for the machines and resources required. Whereas many are undoubtedly honest, some are not. It is very difficult to predict or rely on peoples’ intentions in any setting, which is the reason contracts and formal work relationships exist.
In a decentralized economy with completely anonymous participants, we cannot know or assume people are honest. Therefore, we have to observe what they do and act accordingly.
Geeq’s protocols work because all participants must take responsibility for their actions and accept the consequences. Nodes are paid for provably honest work. Dishonest nodes are audited out of the Active Node List and lose their Good Behavior Bonds (GBB).
Why Are There No Miners at Geeq?
Used in a Sentence:
In order for blockchains to become the basic technology for a decentralized society, blockchain technologies must be able to incentivize provably honest behavior from nodes.
Last Updated: March 25, 2021
