Bulletproofs: Range Proof Verification at Logarithmic Scale
Bulletproofs cut Monero range proof sizes from ~13 KB to under 800 bytes. The mechanism is a recursive inner product argument, and the math holds up.
№ 002SecurityVerifiable Delay Functions and Randomness Beacon Security
VDFs make on-chain randomness manipulation structurally expensive via a sequential delay no adversary can compress. The mechanics, caveats, tradeoffs.
№ 003SecurityKeccak-256 Preimage Resistance and Ethereum's State Trie
How Ethereum's Keccak-256 hash function blocks preimage attacks on the state trie, explained with concrete mechanics and a worked example.
№ 004SecurityMerkle Mountain Ranges: Proof of Inclusion Explained
MMRs let blockchains prove data inclusion against a growing history without invalidating old proofs. The mechanic, the math, and the tradeoffs.
№ 005SecurityHomomorphic Encryption vs Zero-Knowledge Proofs
HE computes on encrypted data; ZK proofs verify claims about it. Understanding the mechanical difference prevents costly architectural mistakes.
№ 006SecuritySilent Inflation Bugs in Zero-Knowledge Proof Systems
ZK inflation bugs mint tokens from nothing while every proof verifies clean. The mechanism, the failure modes, and what a real detection framework requires.
№ 007SecurityPedersen Commitments and Confidential Transactions Explained
Pedersen commitments hide transaction amounts while letting anyone verify no coins were created from nothing. The exact mechanism, step by step.
№ 008SecurityHow zk-SNARKs Stay Small Without Breaking Soundness
zk-SNARKs produce tiny proofs that verify in milliseconds. Here's the exact mechanism that makes them compact without letting cheaters through.