Crypto Academy || Season 3 || Week 2 - Homework Post for [@awesononso] || The Genesis Block: The Beginning of the Beginning

Introduction

A blockchain is a series of blocks (recorded transactions) that are linked together in a chain. Each block is linked to the one before it, and the chain continues in this way. However, there is the first ever block that is tied to the others. The Genesis Block is the very first block ever created and this is the block that all blocks are linked to that is it is the foundation of the block in the blockchain.

What Is Genesis Block of a Blockchain

As I previously stated in the introduction. A blockchain's genesis block is the very first block of that particular blockchain. Each blockchain, whether Bitcoin, Steem, or Tron, has its own initial block (the first block that existed in that particular blockchain). It's worth noting that a blockchain is made up of a series of blocks that are connected or built on top of one another, with the Genesis Block serving as the foundation block, what am trying to say is that the Genesis block is the ancestral block to which all other blocks are connected.

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The Genesis Block is known as block 0 in Bitcoin and some various networks, while it is known as block 1 in other networks such as Steem, despite that the fact is that they're still the same thing, and it is the first block on the blockchain.

Bitcoin Genesis Block and its Significance

It would be unreasonable to discuss Genesis Block without addressing the Bitcoin Genesis Block, because Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency in the crypto world today, making the Bitcoin Genesis Block the oldest of all blocks in the sector.

It was created in 2009. It operates on a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, in which miners must solve complex cryptographic equations in order to validate a transaction and then add it to a block. Bitcoin is given as a reward to the node (miner) who validated the transaction.

The Bitcoin Genesis Block is the first block in the Bitcoin Blockchain to be mined, and it cannot be linked to any subsequent blocks in the chain. It's called block 0 because it's the foundation block.

The genesis block was created on 3rd of January 2009 when the founder Satoshi Nakamoto made a transaction and was rewarded with 50 BTC for the mining which was sent to this address here and it remain un-withdrawable that is it can not be spent till date probably because it was from a genesis block and there is no existing block to link it to.

Normally, it takes 10 minute to mine a Bitcoin, but after the Genesis block (block 0) was created it took 6 days for the second block (block 1)to be created that is after the Genesis block was created on 3rd of January 2009 the second block was created on 9th of January 2009.

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Looking at the screenshoot above, we can see all the information of the Genesis block which include the Timestamp, and also there is no previous hash to the block because it is the very first block and also we notice the miner was unknown and there was no fee for the transaction.

Satoshi Nakamoto also left a secret message on the genesis block as a hex sigscript, which reads:

The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks.
Link

Significance of Bitcoin Genesis Block

Foundation of Transparency and Security

As the first block in the blockchain sector, it also serves as the foundation for the technology's high transparency and security.

Cryptocurrencies were born as a result of it

The blockchain keeps track of all cryptocurrency transactions. There would have been no recording of cryptocurrency transactions in blocks if there had been no blockchain. So there's no doubt that the Bitcoin Genesis Block was the foundation who helped bring crypto transactions into reality and record them.

It serves as a foundation for all other blocks.

The Bitcoin Genesis Block serves as a foundation for all subsequent blocks, both current and future.

It served as the foundation for Blockchain Technology.

Without the success of the Bitcoin Genesis Block, other cryptocurrencies and blockchains would not exist. It was on this foundation that Steem, Tron, and other cryptocurrencies and blockchains were built.
Imagine if the Bitcoin Genesis Block had failed, no one would have believed or trusted the existence of a decentralized and transparent platform like blockchain.

Go to https://steemworld.org and locate the Steem Genesis Block

The Steem Genesis Block was the very first block on the Steem blockchain. It was developed in 2016 and is known as block 1 unlike the bitcoin genesis block on the bitcoin blockchain which is called Block 0.

Now I will be accessing steem genesis block using a tool called steemworld and this will be done using my smartphone.

• Step 1: Visit the https://steemworld.org and sign in with your user name and posting key

• Step 2: Next step is to input your user name and private posting key...and click "Ok"

• Step: Now locate "Block Explorer" and click on it

• Step 4: The default block is usually 1, since the genesis block is 1 just click on "Ok" to proceed.

• The Genesis block information will be displayed, and all the information on the very first block of the steem will be displayed.

Looking at the information above, we can see that the very first block was created on 24th of March, 2016 at 17:05:00 and it was validate by a witness with the username @initminer. There was zero transaction that is there was no transaction recorded on the Genesis block.

Conclusion

Every blockchain begin with a foundation which is known as the Genesis block, In the bitcoin blockchain, this is known as block 0, while in the steem blockchain, it is known as block 1. The genesis block is important to the blockchain because it set the mining and verifying rules for following blocks.
The first Genesis block was that of Bitcoin since the Bitcoin Blockchain was the first ever blockchain, created by Satoshi Nakamoto, whose identity is unknown till date.

Thank you Professor @awesononso for this amazing lecture, I have completed my homework task and I await your review.

Cc: @awesononso