Thread by @InputOutputHK

The #Cardano blockchain has been built on peer-reviewed research, a scientific methodology & engineering best practice.

We recently published a series of articles looking at some of the foundational research from IOG that has helped to build #Cardano.

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IOG’s foundational research for #Cardano

We begin with the research that laid the groundwork for the secure, decentralized, and scalable ledger we all know today.

essentialcardano.io/article/cardan…
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Ouroboros

The first of IOG’s research papers was ‘Ouroboros: A Provably Secure Proof-of-Stake Blockchain Protocol’, academically peer-reviewed and published at Crypto 2017.

eprint.iacr.org/2016/889.pdf

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#Ouroboros lies at the heart of how Cardano operates as it is the blockchain’s proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus protocol.

Since 2017, further research has led to different Ouroboros protocol versions, adding features and functionality to support Cardano’s evolution.

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The different versions include:

Ouroboros Classic (eprint.iacr.org/2016/889.pdf)
Ouroboros Praos (eprint.iacr.org/2017/573.pdf)
Ouroboros Genesis (eprint.iacr.org/2018/378.pdf)
Ouroboros Chronos (eprint.iacr.org/2019/838.pdf)
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Delegating through PoS

Community is everything on #Cardano. Maximizing stakeholder participation in maintaining the network was the objective of 2020’s ‘Account Management in Proof of Stake Ledgers’.
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The paper focused on how network users could delegate their stake to other participants.

eprint.iacr.org/2020/525.pdf

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The next paper ‘Reward Sharing Schemes for Stake Pools’, also published in 2020, discussed possible mechanisms to incentivize stakeholders for their activities.

For validating transactions & minting blocks, SPOs & delegators receive ada rewards.

arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/pape…
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This all results in a reliable and decentralized ledger secured by cryptographic techniques and game-theoretic reward mechanisms.
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Smart contract support on Cardano

The second article in the series looks at the research that went into Cardano’s innovative EUTXO model & how it facilitates more efficient smart contracts.

essentialcardano.io/article/overvi…
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EUTXO

When looking to build on Bitcoin’s UTXO accounting model, IOG researchers wrote two significant papers:

The Extended UTXO Model (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
Native Custom Tokens in the Extended UTXO Model (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
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These papers fully describe the EUTXO model implemented on Cardano. A model that adds smart contract expressiveness to UTXO’s security and scalability.
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Plutus

A smart contract blockchain needs a functional programming language to operate optimally. This is where Plutus comes in.

Plutus smart contracts were delivered based on the EUTXO research listed above and on the following:

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-Unraveling recursion: compiling an IR with recursion to System F (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
- System F in Agda, for fun and profit (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
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Plutus is now a dynamic, expanding programming environment for #Cardano smart contracts.
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Marlowe

However, if blockchain technology is to be adopted by all, we see a need for a web-based platform to build and run low-cost financial smart contracts. This structure is better known as Marlowe.
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Research papers on Marlowe include:
Marlowe: financial contracts on blockchain (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
Efficient static analysis of Marlowe contracts (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
Marlowe: implementing and analysing financial contracts on blockchain (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
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Tokens, stablecoins, and fees

The third article in the series listed IOG’s research into Cardano assets, stablecoins, and transaction fees.

essentialcardano.io/article/resear…
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Multi-asset support

On Cardano, you can create your own tokens simply, efficiently & at a low cost compared to other blockchains. This is thanks to the research that went into figuring out how to create a wide range of user-defined tokens through minting policies.
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The papers written during this research include:

UTXOma: UTXO with Multi-Asset Support (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
Native Custom Tokens in the Extended UTXO Model (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
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Djed

Aside from custom tokens, IOG also carried out research on the implementation of a stablecoin on #Cardano.

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This research into a stablecoin contract based on algorithmic design is found in ‘Djed: A Formally Verified Crypto-Backed Pegged Algorithmic Stablecoin’ (iohk.io/en/research/li…)

Djed is currently being implemented by @COTInetwork
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Babel fees

Cardano’s EUTXO model enables the use of Babel fees – a mechanism that will allow for transaction fees to be paid in coins other than ada on Cardano.

The research into this mechanism is written in ‘Babel Fees via Limited Liabilities’ (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
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Cardano’s scalability

The fourth and final part of the research series delves into the papers written on different ways to scale the blockchain.

essentialcardano.io/article/an-ana…
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There are two main categories of scaling solutions: layer 1 and layer 2.

IOG’s research has looked into both categories & written papers on👇
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Layer 1 solutions

Pipelining
Input endorsers
Tiered pricing

Note that the papers detailing the research into these layer 1 solutions haven’t yet been formally published.
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Layer 2 solutions

Proof-of-Stake Sidechains (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
Hydra: Fast Isomorphic State Channels (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
Mithril: Stake-based Threshold Multisignatures (iohk.io/en/research/li…)
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The papers listed above represent a small portion of the innovative research that has gone into making #Cardano a secure, scalable, and decentralized blockchain.

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At the time of writing, there are 144 papers hosted in the IOG research library. With many more to come.

iohk.io/en/research/li…

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IOG remains committed to its approach; fundamental research is critical to laying firm, secure foundations for future growth for #Cardano, and across the industry.

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