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Opinion: How the new Data Protection Bill sidelines Supreme Court judgment on right to privacy – India Today

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

By Radhika Roy, Tanmay Singh: The wait for Godot seems to have finally come to an end with news reports stating that the Union Cabinet has approved the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022 (DPDP Bill). The Bill, which has seen numerous changes since the recommendation of the Justice BN Srikrishna Committee on Data Protection in July 2018, is slated to be introduced in the Monsoon Session of the Parliament later this month.

Last year, the Data Protection Bill, 2021, was withdrawn by Union Minister for Communications and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnav in the Lok Sabha. Thereafter, on November 18, 2022, the DPDP Bill was released for public consultation. While we are yet to see if any radical changes have been implemented, the DPDP Bill, as structured, reads more as a Data Processing Bill rather than a Data Protection Bill.

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One aspect of the Bill that manages to take the cake is the provision pertaining to deemed consent. The vastness and vagueness surrounding the usage of deemed consent renders the fundamentals of consent to be illusory. Simply speaking, by deeming consent for subsequent uses, your data may be used for purposes other than what it has been provided for and, as there is no provision for you to be informed of this through mandatory notice, you may never even come to know about it.

Moreover, what makes the provision glaringly outrageous is that its understanding of consent surrounding personal data is contrary to the right to informational privacy and the principle of specific informed consent, as established by the Supreme Court in the landmark case of KS Puttaswamy v. Union of India. With over 760 million active users, and a push for Digital India by digitising records and launching platforms such as DigiLocker, BHIM, Parivahan Sewa, etc., a citizen-oriented data protection regime is the need of the hour.

Clause 5 of the DPDP Bill states that the personal data of a Data Principal, i.e. the person to whom the personal data relates, may be processed for a lawful purpose for which the Data Principal has given either their consent or deemed consent. Clause 8 of the DPDP Bill illustrates when a Data Principal is deemed to have given consent. These illustrations range from responding to a medical emergency, involving the Data Principal or any other individual, to breakdown of public order.

The array of reasons for which consent is deemed to be given is extensive, and unlike Clause 7(4) of the DPDP Bill, consent under Clause 8 cannot be withdrawn, though it is not expressly clear why deemed consent is not revocable. Clause 8(a) states that the Data Principal is deemed to have given consent for purposes it has not explicitly indicated that its data cannot be used. Accordingly, by employing a negative checklist and making the Data Principal categorically note purposes for which they do not want their data to be processed, the DPDP Bill places the burden on the Data Principal to ensure that they cover all grounds, failing which their personal data will be processed for purposes with which they may not agree.

What makes matters worse is that the situations for which an individual can be deemed to have given consent are vague and broad. Stretched to its logical conclusion, deemed consent can be interpreted as anything under the sun. What does public order entail, what is the exact extent of purposes of employment; all of these phrases have been left undefined and indeterminate. Such unestablished grounds will allow Data Fiduciaries, i.e. the entity authorised to collect and process personal data, to interpret this clause to their convenience and justify processing personal data for reasons that may not be palatable to the Data Principal, and even evade legal consequences for the same.

With burgeoning fast-paced technology, the right to privacy pertaining to personal information of an individual has assumed significance, i.e. informational privacy. While deciding the constitutional validity of Aadhaar, a biometrics-based ID made by the State, the Supreme Court held in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India that the right to privacy included the right to informational privacy. It was further observed that in the age of information, dangers of violating this right did not just originate from the State, but also non-state actors.

It was in this context that the Supreme Court had recommended to the Union Government to construct a robust data protection regime for which the committee chaired by Justice BN Srikrishna was constituted. While legitimate state interest in accessing personal data for processing was emphasised, the Supreme Court also noted that providing notice and seeking informed consent formed an intrinsic part of procuring this personal data. This observation was based on a report of a Group of Experts on Privacy (dated October 16, 2012), which had been constituted by the Union Government itself.

As per Clause 6(1), every request by the Data Fiduciary to a Data Principal for consent is to be accompanied or preceded by an itemised notice. This notice must contain a description of personal data sought to be collected as well as the purpose of processing such personal data. Clause 7 provides a clear and concise definition of consent, and carves out the responsibilities of a Data Fiduciary while processing personal data based on consent. Clause 7(4), as discussed before, stipulates that consent given by a Data Principal for processing personal data can be withdrawn at any time.

Giving the landmark judgment on right to privacy a complete go-by, none of the aforementioned safeguards have been included in the case of deemed consent, which is the antithesis of informed consent. Not only are you not notified before your personal data is processed or about the purpose for which it is being utilised, you are also left without the option to exercise withdrawal of consent. Additionally, the concept of purpose limitation is laid to waste as deemed consent extends to all purposes, barring those for which the Data Principal has indicated that they do not wish to give consent. The burden of covering all bases while giving consent is on the Data Principal.

Further, the fact that the DPDP Bill fails to differentiate between personal data and sensitive personal data such as name, bank details, and biometric data, invalidates the higher expectation of privacy attached to the latter. This becomes an issue as, even though Clause 9(5) delineates the obligation of a Data Fiduciary to ensure that personal data in its possession remains protected, security breaches are regular occurrences, and in 2017, India experienced 37% of the data breaches in the world.

In June 2023, it was reported that after a major privacy breach on the CoWIN app, a bot leaked personal details on Telegram of all individuals who had been vaccinated against COVID-19. In May 2023, an e-commerce retailer, Zivame, suffered a data breach, and the personal information of thousands of Indian women who had used Zivame was put up for sale. Just a week ago, 12,000 confidential records of State Bank of India employees, including screenshots of SBI passbook and Aadhaar card, were made public on Telegram. Such leaks, coupled with the lax approach to obtaining consent of vulnerable and unaware users, can leave its victims at the receiving end of identity thefts, extortion, etc.

The DPDP Bill creates an illusion of imposing obligations on a Data Fiduciary and strengthening a consent-centric statutory framework. However, in reality, instead of protecting the citizens, or Digital Nagriks, from function creep and data mining by State and non-state actors, the DPDP Bill legitimises the mal-intent of a Data Fiduciary and reduces the burden, both legal and penal. The Bill requires major reconfiguring and the judgment in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India should be the guiding principle while devising the provisions. It seems that the State has forgotten that the Bill is for the protection of people, and not corporates and itself.

(Tanmay Singh is Senior Litigation Counsel and Radhika Roy is Associate Litigation Counsel at the Internet Freedom Foundation, Delhi)

(Views expressed in this opinion piece are that of the author.)

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Opinion: How the new Data Protection Bill sidelines Supreme Court judgment on right to privacy - India Today

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Enhanced performance of gene expression predictive models with … – Nature.com

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

The advances in the field of Machine Learning have revolutionised other fields as well. With the increasing computational power and decreasing costs, the predictive power of modern-day deep learning networks allows scientists to apply those methods to various tasks that would be impossible to solve otherwise. Those advances did not omit the genomics field as well1,2. The first attempts to predict the expression solely on the DNA sequence started just after The Human Genome Project3however, they had a vast number of limitations4,5 and have mainly concentrated on the classical modelling approaches. However, those limitations started to disappear with the expansion of deep learning models. One of the first major studies on the usage of CNNs6 and XGBoost7 started a new era in predicting the expression with the introduction of ExPecto1. Then it continued with the use of CNNs through multiple models, including Basenji28, and finally with the use of transformer-based models like Enformer2. However, in our study, we have decided to take a standard approach available with the help of CNNs and expand it further with the input change to include spatial genomic information. The ExPecto model we decided to advance takes 20kbp surrounding the TSS of a given gene and uses expression from that to train a deep neural network to predict the epigenetic factors. Using those factors the tissue-specific gene expression profile is calculated with a high Spearman correlation score. In our study, we have investigated if the epigenetics marks alone are sufficient for the complex task of prediction of the expressionand have given a hypothesis that while they are incredibly informative, there is still a place for improvement. We decided that we would like to investigate the effects of the spatial chromatin architecture inside cell nuclei on the expression by exploring the models created with 3D information available and without it. To do that, we have modified the ExPecto algorithm accordingly, so it uses not only the 20kbp region around the TSS but also regions that are linearly distalbut are, in fact, spatially close, thanks to the spatial interactions that are mediated by specific proteins of interest. The overview of the algorithm proposed by us, SpEx (Spatial Gene Expression), is shown in Fig.1.

The architecture of SpEx. The spatial heatmaps are used for obtaining the regions close to the TSS (excluding+20kbp from TSS), and sequence from those regions is taken, and put into classic deep learning ExPecto modelwhich generates epigenetic signal over those regions. The classical features from ExPecto are merged with those obtained from spatially close regions, and the decision trees predict the expression levels. See Methods for more information about the algorithm.

To prove the model's validity, we decided to create an empirical study on how specific protein-mediated interactions are helping in the prediction of gene expression. To do that, we have selected the three most important proteins for loop creationcohesin, CTCF, and RNAPOL2. The effects of those proteins being unable to bind or be created properly were shown in multiple studies and were the inspiration for asking whether the machine learning models, provided we add 3D information (from interactions mediated by those proteins), will improve.

Cohesin is a protein complex discovered in 19979,10 by two separate groups of scientists. The complex is made out of SMC1, SMC3, RAD21, and SCC3. However, in human cell lines, SCC3 (present in yeast) is replaced by its paraloguesSA111, SA212, and SA313. However, SA3 appears only in cohesin during mitosis14, and we will concentrate on SA1 and SA2 since they are forming cohesin in somatic cells. The complex is essential in the proper functioning of the cell nucleusas is fundamental for the loop extrusion15, it stabilises the topologically associating domains (cohesin-SA1)16, allows interactions between enhancers and promoters (cohesin-SA2)16. The depletion of cohesin in a nucleus removes all the domains17, and completely destroys the spatial organisation of the chromatin. Mutations of cohesin negatively affect the expression of the genese.g. in Cornelia de Lange syndrome18,19 and cancer20, where the altered complex is incapable of sustaining its proper function, leading to diseases.

CTCF (CCCTC-binding factor) is an 11-zinc finger protein. Its primary function is the organisation of the 3D landscape of the genome21. This regulation includes: creating topologically associated domains (TADs)22,23,24, loop extrusion25, and alternative splicing26. The protein very often works with the previously mentioned cohesin complex, allowing loop formation. CTCF, as a regulator of the genome, binds to specific binding motifs and regulates around that loci. That is why, in case of mutations in the motifs, it might bind improperly, thus allowing disease development. However, not only mutations in the binding sites are disease prone. Mutations in the CTCF protein itself have proven to significantly influence the development of multiple conditions. Some of the examples of diseases induced by a mutation in the CTCF proteins include MSI-positive endometrial cancers27, breast cancers28,29, and head or neck cancer30.

Therere are three common RNA Polymerase complex proteins in eukaryotic organismsI, II, and III31. In this study, we will focus mainly on RNAPOL2, as that is responsible for the transcription of the DNA into messenger RNA32,33, thus having the most significant impact on the expression of the genes. The mechanisms responsible for creating the RNAPOL2 loops are complex and require not only RNAPOL2 protein but also several other transcription factors34,35. The mutations in those transcription factors have been shown to be linked to various diseases36, including acute myeloid leukaemia37,38,39, Von HippelLindau disease40,41, sporadic cerebellar hemangioblastomas42, benign mesenchymal tumours43, xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne syndrome, trichothiodystrophy44, and Rubenstein-Taybi syndrome45.

Multiple studies have shown the spatial landscape created by cohesin-mediated chromatin loops. The first major cohesin ChIA-PET study from 201446 showed the internal organisation of chromatin in the chromosomes. For example, the study provided a list of enhancer-promoter interactions, which can be a starting point for gene expression study.

The next study from 202047 extended the 2014 study and showed that among 24 human cell types, 72% of those loops are the same; however, the remaining 28% are correlated to the gene expression in different cell lines. Those loops mostly connect enhancers to the promoters, thus regulating the gene expression. Another interesting insight from this study is that those different profiles of interactions are effective in clustering the cell types depending on the tissue they were taken from.

CTCF, as mentioned above, is responsible for loop extrusion. That is why it is very popular to investigate CTCF-mediated interactions. Once again, like with the cohesin complexes, ChIA-PET is used for obtaining the interactions mediated by CTCF. One of the major studies from 201548 shows the genomic landscape among 4 cell lines. They discovered that SNPs occurring in the motif of the CTCF-binding site can alter the existence of the loopand by that, contribute towards the disease development. They assessed the SNPs residing in the core CTCF motifs and found 70 of those SNPs. Of those, 32 were available from the previously done GWAS studies, and 8 were strongly associated (via linkage disequilibrium) with disease development.

Another study from 201949 analysed mutations using 1962 WGS data with 21 different cancer types. Such an analysis, enhanced with the usage of CTCF ChIA-PET data, showed that disruptions of the insulators (that are creating the domains) by motif mutations and improper binding of CTCF (and, by that, diminish of the loop) lead to cancer development. Using a computational approach, they have found 21 potentially cancerous insulators.

The transcription chromatin interactions, such as the ones mediated by RNAPOL2, are of great interest as wellthey control the transcription directly, after all. The study from 201250 showed the RNAPOL2-mediated ChIA-PET interactions on 5 different cell lines to show the transcriptional genomic landscape. Another study from 202051 performed the same experiments on RWPE-1, LNCaP, VCaP, and DU145 cancer cell lines. Similar to the 2012 study, they have shown the spatial interactions based on RNAPOL2, but this time in cancer cell lines. Furthermore, they showed that cohesin and CTCF interactions provide a stable structural framework for the RNAPOL2 interactions to regulate the expression, thus making all of the proteins that we describe in this section crucial for the proper expression of the genes.

Those findings were the main motivation for our analysisas based on the evidence, the cohesin, CTCF, and RNAPOL2 interactions should give us more information on the genetic expression, thus improving the metrics for the machine learning models. In this work, we present an extension of the ExPecto1 deep learning model that is enriched with spatial information, thus, as expected, improving the statistical metrics.

ExPecto1 is a model introduced in 2018 for predicting gene expression from the sequence. It uses a deep neural network (namely, Convolutional Neural NetworkCNN). It is composed of, most importantly, 6 convolutional layers, 2 MaxPoolings (the activation function for all the layers is ReLU). For the exact architecture, see the original paper. As mentioned, the input to the network is the DNA sequence, and the output is in the form of the 2002 epigenetic factorscollected from ENCODE and Roadmap Epigenomics. The network takes 2000bp as the window and predicts the epigenomic of its 200bp middle, using the remaining base pairs as the context. The model is then applied to 20,000bp region surrounding TSS, and the step size is determined by the aforementioned 200bp, yielding 2002 features multiplied by 200 bins (100 left and 100 right), so the total number of features describing the gene is 400,400. Then, those features are transformed using exponential functions (10 upstream and 10 downstream TSS), so the final number of the features is 40,040. Then, xgboost (namely, gradient boosting of linear regression models) is used for the prediction of the expression of gene expression. They obtained a Spearman correlation score of 0.819, and the testing was done on chromosome 8.

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Vitalik Buterin Explains How Ethereum Plans to Make Crypto Wallets as Simple as Email – Decrypt

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

Modern account abstraction is really elegant because it doesnt require changes to the underlying protocol like other upgrades before it, said Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin at the Ethereum Community Conference (ETHCC) in Paris.

Developers have been working on account abstraction, or different iterations of it, since 2015, even before Ethereum was launched. The idea is to switch from Externally Owned Wallets, or EOAs, to smart contract-based wallets. If they pull it off, managing a crypto wallet would become as easy as managing an email account.

That would mean users could potentially recover their seed phrasethe private key used to sign trasnactionsas easily as they can reset the password on an email account.

The latest version is EIP-4337 (Ethereum Improvement Proposal 4337), also known as Account Abstraction Using Alt Mempool. The Ethereum (ETH) upgrade would allow users to create non-custodial wallets as programmable smart contracts. This would unlock a number of features, such as easy wallet recovery, signless transactionswhich translates into lower transaction feesand team wallets (also known as multisignature wallets).

According to Buterin, the upgrade could be one of the driving catalysts for Web3 adoption around the world. One of the key properties we want blockchains to have is that they give you money before you register, he said.

The idea, he said, is for users to be able to receive any token, like a stablecoin, that isnt Ethereum with their smart contract wallet and be able to pay the gas fees without having to converthold ETH.

In order to allow for these types of wallets and transactions to be broadcasted, the latest account abstraction upgrade would enable the use of paymasters, which allow users to pay for gas fees with whatever token they are transacting with.

EIP-4337 also incorporates signature aggregatorswhich allow for multiple signers to join together, and only one gets used in a transaction.

Buterin claimed today that this is a pretty big deal, especially in rollups, due to the outsized footprint of a signature on these types of layer 2 solutions. Ethereum layer 2 scaling solutions, like Arbitrum or Optimism, batch transactions together and verify them off the Ethereum mainnet. Account abstraction would allow for signature aggregation. In simple terms, that would allow for more data compression, which translates into cheaper computation, and according to the Ethereum co-founder, will reduce costs by 86 times.

This is not the only Ethereum upgrade currently in the works. Proto-danksharding, or EIP-4884 is also underway. Its quickly become one of the main focuses of development on the network because it sets the foundation for a new data type which will drastically reduce costs and make data usage more efficient.

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WorldVest to Launch MineralCoin as the First Security Token Minted on Bitcoin Satoshi’s Vision "BSV" Blockchain … – AccessWire

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL / ACCESSWIRE / July 18, 2023 / MineralCoin, one of the first real world assets to be tokenized as a security on the Ethereum blockchain in late 2017 will be minted on the BSV blockchain using the Tokenized Smart Contract Protocol making it eligible for secondary global trading on approved platforms.

MineralCoin is a security token earning a mineral production royalty from the acquisition, exploration, and production of global mineral projects with a current portfolio consisting of Bauxite, Iron and Gold located in the mineral rich country of Guinea, West Africa. Since 2010, WorldVest has grown its bauxite concession assets significantly while in the same period, Guinea Bauxite has vaulted to World #1 in global reserves and production is ramping and boasts the highest quality Al2O3 extracted from the Bauxite and used in the production of Aluminum. WorldVest is currently exploring promising gold concessions while developing an artisanal gold production project in the gold rich areas of Siguri, Mandiana and Dinguiraye. As the global metals super cycle continues to grow, the ongoing development of opportunistic global mineral projects throughout Africa and the world generating additional royalty yield to MineralCoin and increasing its intrinsic value.

Since Q4 of 2018 when the world was crazy about ICO's and Cryptocurrencies, WorldVest focused on the tokenization of real-world assets and after six years the security token adoption is now a potential $16 Trillion dollar plus industry forming a foundation of the future of finance. WorldVest CEO, Garrett Krause commented "With the growth, maturity, and performance of Bitcoin Satoshi's Vision "BSV" Blockchain, the original Bitcoin Whitepaper Protocol, together with the all-inclusive Tokenized smart contract platform for the tokenization of real-world assets a viable solution has emerged to revolutionize financial contracts through digital transformation, ushering in the era of financial services" and further commented "This cutting-edge smart contract platform empowers the effortless issuance, management, and transferability of real world assets, like MineralCoin, which harness the scalability, security and performance of the BSV Blockchain."

Tokenized utilizes a unique architecture that combines private and permissioned subledgers within the application layer of the public and permissionless distributed ledger known as Bitcoin SV. According to Tokenized CEO, James Belding, "This architecture offers the best of both worlds: the advantages of a public distributed ledger, such as immutable and timestamped records free from political, jurisdictional, or organizational risks, while meeting stakeholders' needs for performance, privacy, security, compliance, and flexibility." And further states "Ultimately, this approach aims to create a faster, more efficient, and cost-effective financial system, particularly in the private markets, that unlocks a wide range of opportunities and use cases."

For more information, please refer to http://www.MineralCoin.io.

About WorldVest

WorldVest is an innovative project development & management company that seeks direct investments as a principal in select high-growth opportunistic global transactions. Recognizing the disconnect between the needs of projects and the limitations of traditional investment banking, private equity, and venture capital institutions and emerging as a partner and solution provider where one did not previously exist.

Since the initial Tokenization of MineralCoin on Ethereum Blockchain in late 2017, through recent announcement of TroyMoney, a gold and precious metals as money token on the BSV blockchain, WorldVest has been a pioneer and innovator in the tokenization and digitization of real-world assets and financial instruments projected to be the future of Finance.

For more information, please refer to the company's website at http://www.WorldVest.com.

About Tokenized

Tokenized is an award-winning smart contract protocol using the power of BSV Blockchain, as the original Bitcoin Whitepaper Protocol, delivering for a stable, scalable, secure, and economic proof of work platform. For more information, please go to http://www.Tokenized.com and http://www.BSVBlockchain.org.

Investor Relations / Media, please contact:

Garrett K. KrauseTel. (954) 598-1545[emailprotected]

Forward-Looking Statements:

Certain statements in this release and other written or oral statements made by or on behalf of the Company are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Statements regarding future events and developments and our future performance, as well as management's expectations, beliefs, plans, estimates, or projections relating to the future, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of these laws. The forward-looking statements are subject to several risks and uncertainties, including market acceptance of the Company's services and projects and the Company's continued access to capital and other risks and uncertainties outlined in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission are incorporated herein by reference. The actual results the Company achieves may differ materially from any forward-looking statements due to such risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on our current expectations and speak only as of the date of such statements.

SOURCE: WorldVest

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Over 200 Ethscriptions Nabbed in Smart Contract Exploit – Decrypt

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

A new protocol that lets people create and share digital objects on Ethereum has hit a major setback, according to its creator, who said the Ethscriptions main marketplace had been hacked.

Launched last month by Tom Lehman, co-founder and former CEO of Genius.com, Ethscriptions is a novel way to create Ethereum assets that leverage transaction calldata to write non-financial data to the networks blockchain.

The Ethscriptions protocol itself and other applications that tap the technology havent been impacted, Lehman said. Yet, a sizable number of Ethscriptions listed on Ethscriptions.com have been stolen, Lehman said on Twitter on Friday.

About 123 individual addresses lost a total of about 202 ethscriptions in this exploit, he said. Any young protocol will have bumpy landings, but this is definitely not what I meant.

In terms of value, its unclear exactly how much was lost in connection with the exploit. But according to data from NFT marketplace OpenSea, some inscriptions have sold for as much as 5 Ethereum or around $9,600 in the past month.

Lehman told Decrypt that, regarding the Ethscriptions lost, its all terrible, but he specifically lamented the theft of Ethscription #56, describing it as brutal and pointing to the rarity often ascribed to earlier artifacts.

The exploit also has a particular sting, Lehman said, because it was meant to serve as an example that other marketplaces building out support for Ethscriptions could lean on.

The purpose of the marketplace was basically to help show other people how to create marketplaces and help build an ecosystem, he said. Unfortunately, we fell on our face in that area.

Lehman claimed responsibility for the failure, explaining the exploit could be traced to a smart contract that he and Indelible Labs co-founder Michael Hirsch created. A snippet of code allowed people to withdraw Ethscriptions that they didn't own from the marketplace.

Part of the challenge with this new protocol is that you save a bunch of money from limiting the use of smart contract storage, but then you have to be more strategic surrounding how you use contracts in cases like marketplaces, he said. You have to figure out a way to either give smart contracts information or make it so smart contracts dont need that information.

The Ethscriptions.com marketplace will be relaunched once necessary changes are made to the protocol itself, according to Lehman, who said hes been in contact with many of those impacted by the exploit. He praised them on Twitter as the earliest adopters of the Ethscriptions protocol.

Ethscriptions are distinct compared to traditional NFTs, stored in transaction-level data as opposed to being tokens issued on Ethereum by smart contracts, like in the case of the ERC-721 token standard. According to a Dune Analytics dashboard, around 474,000 Ethscriptions have been created so far.

The protocols emergence follows Ordinals rise in popularity, used for creating NFT-like assets on Bitcoin, which has led to a new wave of experimentation with cryptos oldest coin.

Lehman drew attention to the exploit on July 14. Days later, a disclaimer about the impacted state of the marketplace remains. A warning on Ethscriptions.com reads, There is an issue with the marketplace contract! Withdraw your Ethscriptions and do not create new listings!

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Ethereum’s Solidity Developers Have Bridge to Solana via Solang – Crypto Briefing

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

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Solana Labs, known for its high-speed, low-cost blockchain platform, has unveiled a new compiler, Solang, in an effort to bridge the gap between Ethereum developers and the Solana ecosystem, Solana published on July 19.

Solang follows Neons announcement earlier this week, suggesting a coordinated effort to bring the benefits of deploying Ethereum DApps directly onto the network, using Solanas technical capabilities with minimal code reconfiguration.

Both utilize Solidity, but as a Solang statement read, both are complimentary approaches to the same issue of improving compatibilty of Solana with existing Ethereum development approaches.

By opening Solana to Solidity, Solang creates a more accessible platform for Ethereum developers. Until now, Solana has been widely recognized for using Rust or C languages for writing smart contracts, but this move into Solidity could potentially diversify its developer base.

Solangs key features include compatibility with Ethereum Solidity 0.8, allowing a familiar working environment for Ethereum developers. It has the capability to call other Solana smart contracts, which ensures effortless integration within the existing ecosystem. It also supports Solana SPL tokens, widening the range of transactions available on the Solana network.

The new compiler also accommodates program derived addresses, enhancing the systems overall security. Another notable feature is its support for Anchor, a popular framework for Solanas smart contract development, which further streamlines the development process on Solana.

Solang builds native Solana smart contracts and provides access to native Solana built-in functionality, allowing developers to take advantage of Solanas unique attributes. This release aligns with Solana Labs ongoing drive to expand the reach of its ecosystem, following the community-led creation of Seahorse last year, which allowed Solana smart contracts to be written in Python.

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The Role of AI in Smart Contracts – Fagen wasanni

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

Zero Barriers is a six-part series on the Decentralize with Cointelegraph podcast that explores the innovative technology of zero-knowledge proofs (ZK-proofs) and how they can revolutionize blockchain technology and smart contracts.

In the fourth episode, Andrew Fenton, managing editor of Cointelegraph Magazine, discusses the development and impact of ZK-rollups with Eli Ben-Sasson, co-founder and chief architect of StarkWare, and Cem Dagdelen, co-founder of Giza.

Eli Ben-Sasson has been at the forefront of ZK-proofs since their early stages as a conceptual idea, and he played a crucial role in StarkNets superfast Quantum Leap upgrade. Cem Dagdelen, on the other hand, is focused on the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and ZK-proofs through his work at Giza.

The episode explores how ZK-supercharged smart contracts can be combined with other emerging technologies, such as AI. It delves into the possibilities and implications of this fusion and how it can shape the future of blockchain technology.

The Zero Barriers series, created in collaboration with StarkWare, aims to shed light on the scalability of the Ethereum network, the pain points of blockchain technology, and its impact on various sectors globally.

The first three episodes of the series covered topics such as the future of Ethereum and the success of blockchain technology, the challenges and solutions in blockchain technology, and its potential impact on different industries.

Listeners can tune in to the Zero Barriers series on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or any podcast platform of their choice.

It is important to note that Cointelegraph does not endorse the content of this article or any specific products or companies mentioned. Readers are advised to conduct their own research and take full responsibility for their decisions.

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Bitcoin and Smart Contracts: Automating Transactions – The Phuket News

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

Bitcoin smart contracts are undoubtedly automating local and global transactions. Heres what you should know about these innovations.

Most people consider Bitcoin a form of money. However, its gaining more popularity for its use in smart contracts. Currently, this cryptocurrencys capital remains predominantly idle. Thats because about 76% of the Bitcoin supply is illiquid. It doesnt have any transaction history. Therefore, theres a significant opportunity for unlocking Bitcoin productivity by expanding smart contracts. If the Bitcoin network program more smart contracts, it will accelerate its mainstream adoption as a financial service and value storage.

Smart contracts are blockchain programs that run when parties meet predetermined conditions. Typically, people and organizations use them to automate agreement execution to ensure the participants are sure about the outcome without involving an intermediary or losing time. Also, organizations and individuals can use them to automate workflow by triggering certain actions after the parties meet specific conditions.

Bitcoin has relatively simple smart contracts on the main chain. Also, it has more complex smart contracts which developers programmed with its layers. However, Bitcoin doesnt always come up when people discuss smart contracts. Thats because it has a limited scripting language, making it inferior to modern standards concerning blockchain programmability.

Bitcoin smart contracts are either on its mainchain or layered solution. Bitcoin Script or scripting language is relatively simple, making complex smart contracts challenging to deploy on a base layer. Satoshi Nakamoto designed Bitcoin to be relatively unmodified and straightforward to maintain its blockchains durability and integrity. Thats why people can access and use it on a prominent crypto exchange like Yuan Pay Group without understanding its underlying technology.

Although protocol upgrades occur periodically, the developer hoped they could keep the blockchain the same. They only provide minor enhancements on the edges. Here are the basic smart contract functionalities on Bitcoins base layer.

P2PKH is a typical contract that people use in Bitcoin transactions. The script establishes contracts whose execution is by a public key. Also, corresponding private keys create a signature.

Multisig is a Bitcoin address requiring transaction approval by multiple parties before its completion. Most parties use it to execute agreements with predefined signatures to perform some actions, like releasing funds.

HTLC is a conditional crypto transaction whose contingencies are time-bound. It has hardcoded time constraints, and the parties release Bitcoin at a specific date and time. Transaction cancellation occurs when the parties fail to meet specific requirements within the preset deadline.

DLCs use oracles in executing trustless P2P transactions. The Oracles can evaluate real-world events outcomes and provide on-chain information for smart contracts. Most parties use DLCs when they commit to a financial agreement or based on results.

The P2TR script sends Bitcoin while introducing Schnorr Signatures and Merkle Trees. These transactions provide lower transaction fees and better security. Also, they enhance flexibility. The Taproot Upgrade introduced this contract.

Bitcoin has unique layers that may introduce new features without modifying the networks main chain. Instead of changing the Bitcoin code, developers can introduce experimental developments and innovations without altering this cryptocurrencys blockchain. That way, Bitcoin core remains unaffected and straightforward.

Ultimately, users settle Bitcoin layer transactions on its base layer. That means every transactions history is on the Bitcoin ledger. And this is the gold standard for immutability, security, and durability on the blockchain. The verification degree sets the Bitcoin blockchain apart from the other networks. Altering a layer transaction requires changing the mainchain transaction. And this is almost impossible.

Bitcoin smart contracts whose execution is on the layers provide the following advantages:

Higher scalability

Greater programmability

Better efficiency

Some of the platforms where users can create Bitcoin-powered smart contracts include Rootstock and Stacks. However, such venues are increasing since this cryptocurrency has a globally known presence as a digital asset and a payment system.

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Tezos: A Smart Contract Platform with On-Chain Governance – Robotics and Automation News

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

Welcome to the world of Tezos, a groundbreaking smart contract platform that combines cutting-edge technology with on-chain governance.

In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the intricate details of Tezos and explore its unique features, advantages, and potential applications.

Join us on this exciting journey as we uncover the remarkable capabilities of https://thebitcoincode.io/, an online trading platform, and understand why Tezos stands out among other blockchain platforms.

In the world of blockchain technology, Tezos stands out as a truly decentralized network that not only facilitates the creation and execution of smart contracts but also incorporates a self-amendment system through on-chain governance.

This distinctive feature sets Tezos apart from its competitors, ensuring its long-term sustainability, adaptability, and versatility.

At its core, Tezos is a decentralized blockchain network that provides a platform for developers and users to create and deploy smart contracts.

Smart contracts are self-executing agreements with predefined rules that are automatically executed when specific conditions are met.

These contracts eliminate the need for intermediaries, enhance transparency, and enable a wide range of applications across various industries.

What truly distinguishes Tezos from other blockchain platforms is its innovative self-amendment system enabled through on-chain governance. Traditional blockchains require hard forks to implement protocol upgrades or amendments, often leading to disagreements and divisions within the community.

Tezos, on the other hand, empowers its stakeholders to propose and vote on protocol upgrades directly on the blockchain, ensuring a democratic decision-making process.

With on-chain governance, Tezos provides a mechanism for stakeholders to actively participate in shaping the platforms future. The governance process allows stakeholders to propose amendments, improvements, or new features to the protocol.

These proposals are then voted upon by the community, and if approved, they are automatically implemented without the need for disruptive hard forks. This unique approach promotes a cooperative and inclusive ecosystem, fostering collaboration and reducing fragmentation.

At the heart of Tezos lies its revolutionary on-chain governance mechanism. Through this self-amendment process, stakeholders of the Tezos network can propose and vote on protocol upgrades and amendments directly on the blockchain.

This democratic system empowers the community, giving them the ability to shape the future of the platform collectively. It eliminates the need for hard forks, divisive debates, and contentious decision-making, making Tezos a reliable and adaptable platform.

Tezos utilizes a unique consensus algorithm called Liquid Proof-of-Stake (LPoS), which combines the benefits of both Proof-of-Stake (PoS) and Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS) systems.

LPoS ensures that the network remains secure and efficient while providing stakeholders with the flexibility to participate actively in the governance process or delegate their voting rights to others.

Tezos enables the creation and execution of smart contracts, which are self-executing agreements with predefined rules. These contracts are executed automatically when specific conditions are met, ensuring transparency and eliminating the need for intermediaries.

Tezos smart contracts can be written in Michelson, a functional programming language designed specifically for the platform. Its safety features and formal verification capabilities make it ideal for developing complex and mission-critical applications.

Tezos addresses the scalability challenge by utilizing a unique mechanism called baking. Bakers are network participants who validate and add new blocks to the blockchain, and they are rewarded with newly minted XTZ tokens.

This incentivizes the active participation of stakeholders, ensuring the networks security and scalability. Additionally, Tezos is built to support layer 2 solutions, such as sidechains and off-chain scaling solutions, further enhancing its performance and capacity.

Tezos has gained significant traction in various industries and has been adopted for numerous use cases. Its versatility and adaptability make it suitable for applications such as decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), supply chain management, asset tokenization, and more.

Notable projects, including StableTech and TQ Tezos, have already embraced the Tezos platform, highlighting its potential for real-world impact and innovation.

Tezos stands as a formidable force in the blockchain industry, driven by its unique on-chain governance and smart contract capabilities.

Its flexibility, security, scalability, and versatility make it a preferred choice for developers and businesses seeking to build robust and future-proof decentralized applications.

As Tezos continues to evolve and attract more stakeholders, it is poised to reshape the digital landscape and redefine the possibilities of blockchain technology.

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TRONSCAN.SX Unveils Innovative Features to Revolutionize Smart Contract Development and Cloud Mining – CoinTrust

July 20, 2023 | Author: admin

TRONSCAN.SX, a subsidiary of the well-established blockchain technology company TRON, has recently unveiled a pioneering range of features aimed at bolstering smart contract development and cloud mining capabilities on the TRON network. TRONSCAN.SX is committed to enhancing accessibility and efficiency, with the objective of bridging the gap between blockchain technology and individuals as well as businesses on a global scale.

TRONSCAN.SX recently introduced an extensive smart contract development tool that provides users with a smooth and efficient experience in various aspects of smart contract development. This tool enables users to develop, test, deploy, and interact with smart contracts on the TRON network seamlessly. This comprehensive solution offers complete lifecycle management for the development of smart contracts, enabling developers and businesses to effortlessly create and deploy smart contracts. In addition, the tools versatility enables the implementation of intelligent contracts on a wide range of public and private networks, thereby creating new opportunities for innovation.

TRONSCAN.SX revolutionizes cloud mining by providing a comprehensive selection of services that are specifically designed to cater to the unique preferences of users. Users have the option to leverage the platforms token deposit and token generation functionalities in order to choose investment products that are in line with their objectives. The platform provides a range of investment options, including both basic and intelligent choices. This enables users to maximize their returns by utilizing their unused digital assets through straightforward operations. In addition, TRONSCAN.SX offers attractive payback incentives to users who successfully refer others to join the platform. Tier 1 users can receive up to 13% payback, while Tier 3 users can earn 1% payback. These earned paybacks can be withdrawn immediately.

In order to optimize the advantages of cloud mining and foster active user participation, TRONSCAN.SX promotes the sharing of invitation links on well-known social media platforms. By expanding their referral network, users have the opportunity to access higher payback rates. These rates are then directly deposited into their Smart Accounts and can be easily withdrawn into their wallets.

TRONSCAN.SX aims to transform the digital currency mining industry by offering a cutting-edge cloud mining solution on the TRON blockchain network. The platforms objective is to decentralize the cryptocurrency industry by offering a user-friendly and efficient mining solution. This will enhance inclusivity and accessibility, enabling a wider audience to participate in the industry.

The introduction of cutting-edge features for smart contract development and cloud mining by TRONSCAN.SX signifies a notable progression in the blockchain industry. The platform is dedicated to promoting accessibility and efficiency, positioning itself to empower developers and users on a global scale. This will open up new avenues for innovation and fundamentally transform the process of digital currency mining. TRONSCAN.SX plays a crucial role in promoting decentralization and facilitating the broader acceptance of blockchain technology. By doing so, it is actively contributing to the development of a more inclusive and interconnected future within the realm of cryptocurrencies.

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TRONSCAN.SX Unveils Innovative Features to Revolutionize Smart Contract Development and Cloud Mining - CoinTrust

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