Crypto and Incentive-based Mechanisms for Blockchain Technology

PhD Course - 25-29, September 2023, Sapienza University, Rome

This PhD course titled "Crypto and Incentive-based Mechanisms for Blockchain Technology" aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of cryptographic tools and incentive mechanisms used in blockchain technology. The course covers topics such as the design and analysis of cryptographic protocols, game theory, and mechanism design for incentivizing behavior in blockchain networks. 

The Blockchain Era started with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin that Nakamoto designed by crucially and cleverly using digital signatures and cryptographic hash functions. Nowadays, mainstream blockchains and their applications strongly rely on more advanced cryptographic tools that in the past were considered of theoretical interest only.

The goal of this course is to overview the various cryptographic notions that have played a key-role for the success of blockchains and their applications.


The action CryBT was organized as part of the SoBigData.it activities to train and attract new users and expand the communities of the research infrastructure (SoBigData.eu). The course provides training on topics that concern cyber security and the compatibility of blockchain-based applications both economically and socially.

The course will include presentations and talks relevant for the sobigdata.it and sobigdata.eu initiative.

Invited Lecturers

Vangelis Markakis

University of Athens

Ivan Visconti

University of Salerno

Philip Lazos

Input Output

“The CryBT event was organised as part of the SoBigData.it project (Prot. IR0000013 - Call n. 3264 of 12/28/2021) initiatives aimed at training new users and communities in the usage of the research infrastructure (SoBigData.eu).”


The course will make of use of research infrastructure of the sobigdata.it and sobigdata.eu project.

Abstract:

1st part) The Blockchain Era started with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin that Nakamoto designed by crucially and cleverly using digital signatures and cryptographic hash functions. Nowadays mainstream blockchains and their applications strongly rely on more advanced cryptographic tools that in the past were considered of theoretical interest only. The goal of this course is to overview the various cryptographic notions that have played a key-role for the success of blockchains and their applications.


2nd part) The purpose of these lectures is to provide an overview of game-theoretic and economic aspects that arise in the design and analysis of blockchain protocols. To this end, we will present recent research that has been carried out on the following selected list of topics: 1) design and analysis of reward sharing schemes in Proof of Stake protocols, where the goal is to decide how to split rewards from block production to the players 2) governance in blockchain systems, concerning the design of voting rules for decision making in decentralized autonomous organizations, 3) transaction fee mechanism design, which concerns the design of appropriate policies for congestion control, 4) tokenomics, involving economic policies for the supply and distribution of tokens in a cryptocurrency system, and 5) stable coins, where the goal is to design cryptocurrencies that can be pegged to a real reserve asset, such as fiat currency. 


zoom link to follow the event.


25-26-27-28-29/09: from 9:30 to 12:30.

25-26-27-28/09: from 14 to 17.