Ethereum (ETH)

Ethereum is a decentralized computing platform that enables smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps) to be built and run without downtime, fraud, or interference.

Key Characteristics

• Smart Contracts: Self-executing contracts with the terms directly written into code
• Turing Complete: Capable of running any program given enough resources
• Proof-of-Stake: Energy-efficient consensus mechanism (since "The Merge" in 2022)
• ERC Standards: Protocols for creating tokens (ERC-20, ERC-721, etc.)
• Gas Fees: Variable transaction costs based on network congestion

While Bitcoin focuses on being a digital currency, Ethereum aims to be a platform for decentralized applications.

Core Technology

• Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM): Runtime environment for smart contracts
  • EVM Compatibility: Many blockchains have adopted EVM compatibility, including Binance Smart Chain, Polygon, Avalanche, Fantom, and others
  • Unified Developer Experience: Allows developers to deploy the same contracts across multiple chains with minimal changes
• Solidity: Primary programming language for Ethereum smart contracts
• Web3.js/ethers.js: JavaScript libraries for interacting with the Ethereum blockchain
• Ethereum 2.0: Major upgrade focusing on scalability, security, and sustainability

Key Features

• Decentralized Finance (DeFi): Financial services without centralized intermediaries
• Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs): Unique digital assets representing ownership of items
• Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs): Community-governed entities
• Layer 2 Solutions: Scaling technologies built on top of Ethereum (Optimism, Arbitrum, etc.)

Advanced

Address Examples

• User Address: 0xd8dA6BF26964aF9D7eEd9e03E53415D37aA96045 (Vitalik Buterin's address)
• Smart Contract: 0xc02aaa39b223fe8d0a0e5c4f27ead9083c756cc2 (Wrapped Ether contract)
• ENS Domain: vitalik.eth (Human-readable address using Ethereum Name Service)

Block Explorer

• Ethereum Mainnet
  • Etherscan
  • Blockchair
  • Etherchain
• Layer 2 Solutions
  • Optimism Explorer
  • Arbitrum Explorer
  • zkSync Explorer
  • Polygon Explorer
  • BNB Chain Explorer
  • Avalanche Explorer
  • Fantom Explorer
  • Base Explorer

Key People

• Vitalik Buterin: Co-founder and face of Ethereum
• Gavin Wood: Co-founder who wrote the Ethereum Yellow Paper and created Solidity
• Joseph Lubin: Co-founder who established ConsenSys, a major Ethereum development company
• Charles Hoskinson: Early contributor who later created Cardano
• Ethereum Foundation: Non-profit organization supporting Ethereum development