From 12d2dc7959e09c6e734ddf1dc1cce67ed9b849d5 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Aritra Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2025 18:48:04 +0530 Subject: [PATCH] Fix a minor mistake in the `documentation` Add the `exponentiation` between 2 and 256. --- devguide/block_chain.rst | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/devguide/block_chain.rst b/devguide/block_chain.rst index 4bbfbb3..8138ec6 100644 --- a/devguide/block_chain.rst +++ b/devguide/block_chain.rst @@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ Chaining blocks together makes it impossible to modify transactions included in The :term:`proof of work ` used in Bitcoin takes advantage of the apparently random nature of cryptographic hashes. A good cryptographic hash algorithm converts arbitrary data into a seemingly random number. If the data is modified in any way and the hash re-run, a new seemingly random number is produced, so there is no way to modify the data to make the hash number predictable. -To prove you did some extra work to create a block, you must create a hash of the block header which does not exceed a certain value. For example, if the maximum possible hash value is 2256 − 1, you can prove that you tried up to two combinations by producing a hash value less than 2255. +To prove you did some extra work to create a block, you must create a hash of the block header which does not exceed a certain value. For example, if the maximum possible hash value is 2^256 − 1, you can prove that you tried up to two combinations by producing a hash value less than 2^255. In the example given above, you will produce a successful hash on average every other try. You can even estimate the probability that a given hash attempt will generate a number below the :term:`target ` threshold. Bitcoin assumes a linear probability that the lower it makes the target threshold, the more hash attempts (on average) will need to be tried.