History of Blockchain
Blockchain is defined as a chain of blocks, that each contain some specific information. Thus, a Blockchain is a ledger or file, that is constantly growing and keeps a permanent record of all transactions. This process occurs in a secure, chronological, and immutable manner. When a block is finished storing information, a new block is generated.
Year 1991: Blockchain Technology is introduced by researchers Stuart Haber and W. Scott Stornetta. These researchers desired a computationally practical solution for time-stamping digital documents so that they could not be tampered with or misdated. As a result, both scientists collaborated to create a system using cryptography. The time-stamped documents in this System are stored in a Chain of Blocks.
Year 1992: Merkle Trees formed a legal corporation by modifying a system developed by Stuart Haber and W. Scott Stornetta. As a result, Blockchain Technology became efficient in storing multiple documents to be collected into a single block. Merkle used a Secured Chain of Blocks to store multiple data records sequentially. However, this technology went unused, and the patent lapsed in 2004.
Hal Finney, a computer scientist, and cryptographic activist introduced Reusable Proof of Work (RPoW) as a prototype for digital cash in 2004. It was a significant early step in cryptocurrency history. The RPoW system worked by exchanging a non-exchangeable or non-fungible Hashcash-based proof of work token for an RSA-signed token, which could then be transferred from person to person.