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A beginner’s guide to how cryptocurrencies work
Article

A beginner’s guide to how cryptocurrencies work

From Bitcoin to blockchain, here's what to know.

Charlotte Hu
PopSci, 2021
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Background
  • For Beginners
  • Hot Topic

Recommendation

Digital currencies are thriving, as advocates, traders and investors use them for speculation and as inflation hedges and fiat currency alternatives. Would-be investors might benefit from a blockchain-101 tutorial, and that’s what technology editor Charlotte Wu offers in this primer examining distributed ledger operations, transaction processing and other details of the crypto ecosystem. Cryptocurrency enthusiasts and new entrants into the world of digital tokens will find this a basic but useful reference guide.

Take-Aways

  • Cryptocurrencies are becoming more widely recognized as viable financial instruments.
  • The foundation of all cryptocurrencies is blockchain technology.
  • Blockchain relies on participant consensus to validate transactions.

About the Author

Charlotte Hu is assistant technology editor at Popular Science.

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