CBC CBC Blockchain Architecture & Design 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which consensus mechanism requires validators to lock up cryptocurrency as collateral to participate in block creation?
- Proof of Work
- Proof of Stake (Correct answer)
- Delegated Proof of Authority
- Proof of Elapsed Time
Correct answer: Proof of Stake
Proof of Stake requires validators to stake (lock up) cryptocurrency as collateral, which they forfeit if they act dishonestly.
Question 2: In a blockchain network, what is the primary role of a full node?
- Mine new blocks only
- Store only block headers
- Maintain a complete copy of the blockchain and validate all transactions (Correct answer)
- Relay transactions without validation
Correct answer: Maintain a complete copy of the blockchain and validate all transactions
Full nodes store the entire blockchain history and independently validate every transaction and block against the protocol rules.
Question 3: What is the Merkle tree structure used for in blockchain design?
- Encrypting wallet private keys
- Efficiently verifying transaction inclusion in a block (Correct answer)
- Storing smart contract bytecode
- Managing peer-to-peer connections
Correct answer: Efficiently verifying transaction inclusion in a block
Merkle trees allow lightweight clients to verify whether a specific transaction is included in a block without downloading the entire block.
Question 4: Which blockchain topology is best suited for a consortium of competing enterprises that require shared data but controlled access?
- Public permissionless blockchain
- Private single-organization blockchain
- Permissioned consortium blockchain (Correct answer)
- Federated sidechain
Correct answer: Permissioned consortium blockchain
A permissioned consortium blockchain allows known, vetted participants to share data while restricting access to unauthorized parties.
Question 5: What does 'sharding' achieve in blockchain architecture?
- Reduces storage by deleting old blocks
- Improves scalability by splitting the network into parallel processing groups (Correct answer)
- Increases security by adding more encryption layers
- Simplifies smart contract execution
Correct answer: Improves scalability by splitting the network into parallel processing groups
Sharding partitions the blockchain network into smaller shards that process transactions in parallel, significantly increasing overall throughput.
Question 6: In blockchain design, what is a 'genesis block'?
- The most recently mined block
- The block with the highest transaction volume
- The first block in a blockchain, hardcoded with no predecessor (Correct answer)
- A special block used for smart contract deployment
Correct answer: The first block in a blockchain, hardcoded with no predecessor
The genesis block is the very first block in a blockchain, hardcoded into the protocol with no reference to a previous block hash.
CBC CBC Blockchain Architecture & Design 1
Which consensus mechanism requires validators to lock up cryptocurrency as collateral to participate in block creation?