0x03 - Related Terms and Links

How Did MetaMask Come To Life? The Origin Story, Revealed#

How Did MetaMask Come To Life? The Origin Story, Revealed | Consensys

“WEB3 - Crypto Punks”: An Introduction to Blockchain, Metaverse, NFT, DAO, and DeFi

Private Key && Public Key#

Private Key
With a cryptocurrency wallet, you can store your identity information in one place. When you create a wallet, you receive 12 words, known as your private key mnemonic (SRP). The SRP is typically 12 random words.
These 12 words are the seed of your digital identity, used to generate the keys that grant you access to your wallet. You must not disclose these 12 words, just as you would not disclose your bank account password: If someone obtains your private key mnemonic, they can access your wallet and all the assets within it. Throughout history, where there is wealth, there are bad actors, so it is essential to remain vigilant. To protect your identity and digital assets, you must safeguard your private key mnemonic.

Public Key
After you create a wallet, your public key identifies all transactions associated with you. The public wallet address is a string of letters and numbers representing your account, similar to a bank account number.
It looks like this:
0xd8da6bf26964af9d7eed9e03
You can share your public key freely, but remember that if someone searches your address on a blockchain explorer like Etherscan, they can see the entire transaction history associated with it. This long string of letters and numbers can be difficult to remember, but you can certainly try if you wish. There are tools that make your account address easier to remember, such as the Ethereum Name Service (ENS). With ENS, you can register a .eth name and link it directly to your wallet address, website, and domain.
ENS names are similar to email addresses and are unique. For example, vitalik.eth actually refers to the public key above. Once registered, no one else can have the same .eth name unless you sell or transfer it. After linking ENS to your account, you can provide your ENS during transactions instead of a long string of letters and numbers.
People around the world, from research departments of major tech companies like IBM and Microsoft to global standard organizations like the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), and innovative organizations in the Ethereum ecosystem like Consensys, are working to connect Web3 with traditional identity systems, such as those used for travel, residence, voting, and social security.

About Dapp (Decentralized Application)#

https://ethereum.org/zh/developers/docs/dapps
Decentralized applications (dapps) are applications built on decentralized networks, combining smart contracts and front-end user interfaces. Note that, like open APIs, Ethereum smart contracts have accessibility and transparency, so your dapp can even include smart contracts written by others.
Definition
The backend code of a dapp runs on a decentralized P2P network. In contrast, applications that run backend code on centralized servers.
Dapps can be written in any language (just like an app). They have front-end code and user interfaces that can call their backend. Additionally, their front end can be hosted on decentralized storage, such as IPFS(opens in a new tab).

Decentralized - dapps run on Ethereum, an open public decentralized platform that no single person or group can control
Deterministic - they execute the same function regardless of the environment in which they are executed
Turing complete - dapps can perform any operation based on the required resources
Isolated - they execute in a virtual environment called EVM. Even if a smart contract has issues, it does not hinder the normal operation of the blockchain network

About NFT (Non-Fungible Token)#

https://learn.metamask.io/zh-CN/lessons/nfts-and-creators
https://support.metamask.io/hc/zh-cn/articles/360058238591-MetaMask-%E9%92%B1%E5%8C%85%E4%B8%AD%E7%9A%84-NFT-%E4%BB%A3%E5%B8%81

About DeFi (Decentralized Finance)#

https://learn.metamask.io/zh-CN/lessons/finance-decentralized

DeFi, also known as decentralized finance, is the financial system of Web3, consisting of cryptocurrencies and various things you can do with them.
DeFi consists of protocols, which are projects built on open-source software running on the blockchain, known as smart contracts.
Value transfer and participation in different parts of the Web3 ecosystem are achieved by exchanging one type of token for another. A convenient way to do this directly from your wallet is by using MetaMask Swaps.

From lending, borrowing, earning interest, and obtaining insurance, to more complex financial instruments like derivatives and futures, a whole new decentralized finance industry offers a new option for traditional financial systems, which are typically characterized by profit chasing and opaque processes. In this new infrastructure, the monetary system revolves around cryptocurrencies, and the financial system built using these currencies is referred to as decentralized finance or DeFi.
DeFi enhances the scale, speed, and connectivity of our financial system. It does not adhere to "banker hours"—it is open 24/7, even during nights, weekends, holidays, and natural disasters when funds are most needed. As long as you have internet access, anyone in the world can use it at any time. It offers unprecedented transparency and censorship resistance, allowing anyone to trade with it, audit it, and even build upon it.
DeFi consists of a community of protocols: protocols are tools created as public goods.
Imagine someone proposes a plan (on Ethereum, the plan is called a smart contract) that allows you to obtain a loan. In DeFi, this is called a "lending protocol." These DeFi protocols run predictably according to the program, regardless of who is accessing them, and their usage can be fully tracked through blockchain records. Once the loan protocol is published, anyone can use it to obtain a loan, and they can even copy the code to create their own version. In this sense, protocols are considered public goods: resources available for everyone to use.

About DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization)#

https://learn.metamask.io/zh-CN/lessons/the-age-of-communities
https://consensys.io/blog/what-is-a-dao-and-how-do-they-work
Almost all DeFi applications, from Uniswap to Aave to MakerDAO, are managed by DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations).
A DAO is a community-led entity that uses Ethereum smart contracts to establish basic rules and execute agreed-upon decisions. DAOs use smart contracts to manage many processes and responsibilities similar to those in companies or non-profit organizations. DAO members vote on the protocols and system rules for which their DAO is responsible using tokens. MakerDAO is one such example, where holders of the MKR governance token vote on changes to the DAI stablecoin protocol.

About Cross-Chain Bridges#

https://learn.metamask.io/zh-CN/lessons/bridging-blockchain-networks
There are various types of networks in Web 3, often described in layers. For example, Bitcoin, BNB Chain, and Ethereum are the underlying layer - a layer of public chains (L1) in their respective universes. Many people want to use L1s like Ethereum. The problem is that Ethereum cannot do everything on its own.
Imagine a well-maintained road or highway, with signs and concrete barriers on both sides. As the highway becomes more used, traffic congestion increases. The maintenance costs of this road become high, and the time and fuel spent by drivers on this stretch also increase.
To alleviate traffic pressure, a railway is built above this road, supported by the concrete barriers of the highway. Trains are faster, cheaper, more fuel-efficient, and have a higher passenger capacity. If you could take a train instead of driving, would you do it?
In the Ethereum universe, the L1 Ethereum mainnet is the highway below. This road is well-maintained but increasingly congested, with rising costs of passage. To address this, Layer 2 (L2) networks (similar to the high-speed rail mentioned above) are built on this underlying network to significantly reduce the costs and time of highway passage.
Now, you can park your car at the L2 station and have more commuting options.
The L2 station here is like a cross-chain bridge. There are many exits on the highway (L1) where you can park your car and transfer to a train. Some stations may be cheaper than others, some may be faster, and some stations may have shaky elevators that you would undoubtedly want to avoid.

Layer 2#

https://learnblockchain.cn/article/3259
L2 (Layer 2) is a scaling solution that has a separate execution layer (where code runs, such as an environment like EVM) and runs on top of L1 (in our discussion, L1 is Ethereum). This execution layer inherits the security guarantees and decentralization characteristics of the L1 network. This means that if L2 goes down due to vulnerabilities or infrastructure failures, L1 will also securely protect users' assets within the smart contract bridge.
Assets can be retrieved based on the latest state snapshot submitted to the mainnet. True L2 bridging is completely permissionless and decentralized, so once users deposit funds, they can always access their assets. Currently, several scaling solutions use different cryptographic proof mechanisms, each with different security and scalability trade-offs.

Zero-Knowledge Proof#

https://learnblockchain.cn/article/5233
Zero-knowledge proofs are a method of proving the validity of a statement without revealing the statement itself. The "prover" is the party attempting to prove the statement, while the "verifier" is responsible for validating the statement.
Zero-knowledge proofs first appeared in a paper in 1985 titled "The Knowledge Complexity of Interactive Proof Systems," which provided the definition of zero-knowledge proofs widely used today:
A zero-knowledge protocol is a method by which one party (the prover) can prove to another party (the verifier) that something is true, without revealing any information other than the fact that this specific statement is true.
Over the years, zero-knowledge proofs have been improved and are now used in multiple real-world applications.

About Staking#

https://learn.metamask.io/zh-CN/lessons/what-is-staking

Staking is a fundamental mechanism for protecting and maintaining blockchain networks.
Networks like Ethereum that use Proof of Stake (PoS) have higher security and sustainability than those using Proof of Work (PoW).
Staking is a decentralized public good that helps secure the network and allows users to earn rewards.

About WEB3 Security#

https://learn.metamask.io/zh-CN/lessons/security-in-web3
Remember your private key mnemonic (SRP) and never share it with others.
Hardware wallets: an additional layer of security.

Self-custody, while powerful, also comes with risks and requires appropriate security measures on the user side.
The two most common Web3 attacks you may face are malicious actors attempting to obtain your private key mnemonic and requesting unnecessary token permissions from you.
Using a hardware wallet is an ideal first step to enhance Web3 security.

Supplement on February 21, 2024