Blockchain and the problem of provenance
區塊鏈技術和所有權問題
Blockchain is the technology that makes the NFT revolution possible, so understanding it is key.
正是區塊鏈技術使NFT革命成爲可能，因此，瞭解區塊鏈技術是關鍵。
Oftentimes, the easiest way to wrap your head around a complicated new invention is to start with the question: “What problem was this designed to solve?” When it comes to blockchain, the answer is the problem of provenance. That is, the history of ownership.
通常，在理解一個複雜的新概念時，最簡單的方式就是提這樣一個問題：它試圖解決什麼問題？而區塊鏈技術，要解決的則是所有權的問題。即，所有權的歷史。
Blockchain is a digital “living ledger” that grows each time it is used for something. Generally, this “use” will be a financial transaction. Blockchain cannot be altered inappropriately, and it cannot be forged or counterfeited. A blockchain exists electronically, and requires a digital record—powered by a computer server—to maintain the integrity of its living ledger. Each time a transaction occurs, that transaction is recorded on this digital ledger. This ledger is transparent, so any participant in the technology can see it, and can verify that it happened. The transactions are also time-stamped and irreversible. (There are no “returns” in the world of block-chain. A transaction can’t be reversed, recalled, or undone. Something can be sold and resold, but there is no “undo” button.) Blockchain transactions also have the quality of “unanimity”—that is to say, all participants in the network agree to the validity and binding nature of all blockchain transactions.
區塊鏈是數字化的賬本，隨着應用而不斷增加。普遍來講，這個用途是用於轉賬。區塊鏈不能被篡改，也不能被僞造。區塊鏈以電子形式存在，需要電子記錄——一般由計算機服務提供——來維持電子賬本的可靠性。每當一筆轉賬發生時，這筆交易就被記錄在電子賬本上。這個賬本是透明的，因此任一位參與此交易的人員都可見，也能證明轉賬的確發生。轉賬同時也是有時間戳，不可逆的。（在區塊鏈世界裏是沒有“回頭路”的。一筆轉賬無法被退回，收回或是取消。可以售賣或是再次售賣，但是沒有取消按鈕。）區塊鏈轉賬也需要共識——即，網絡中所有的參與者需要承認交易的有效性。
Blockchain transactions are secure because everyone involved in the chain is also involved in verifying the transactions. (This is sort of like if everyone using a physical piece of currency—like the US dollar—was also involved in checking bills for authenticity, and likewise making sure all bills were being legally used by the last person who had obtained them through a transaction.) Blockchain-backed currencies and tokens prevent forgery and fakery because of this kind of technological transparency. If someone tried to tamper with a block on a blockchain, every other user of the same blockchain would immediately know. This would be like if a counterfeiter bleached a $1 bill and reprinted the design of a $100 bill on top of it; everyone using that currency would immediately know. This is one reason that—although it runs on digital technology—a blockchain can’t be “hacked” in the way a computer network can.
區塊鏈轉賬是安全的，因爲區塊鏈中所有的參與者都參與確認這筆交易。（這類似於每個人都使用紙幣時——比如美元——也在驗證貨幣的真實性，即確保在交易中最後一位使用貨幣的人是合法地使用。）基於區塊鏈發生的貨幣可以避免僞造是因爲這一技術是透明的。如果有人試圖在區塊鏈上篡改一個區塊，那麼在區塊鏈上的所有人會立即馬上知道。這好比如果有人漂白了一張1美元的紙幣，在上面再次打印了100美元的面額在上面；每個用那張紙幣的人會立即知道。這就是區塊鏈儘管運行在數字技術上，卻無法被黑客攻擊的原因。
Furthermore, most blockchain networks are getting bigger all the time, adding more users to the chain; this makes transactions on the chain safer and safer, because there are always more users who would notice if anything were amiss.
進而，大部分的區塊鏈網絡都在越長越大，在鏈上增加了更多的用戶，這也讓鏈上的交易越來越安全，因爲出錯時，會有更多用戶發現。
To best understand the technology, it may be helpful to consider blockchain’s most prominent example, which is definitely Bitcoin. The blockchain that runs Bitcoin was created by a mysterious person (or persons) known as “Satoshi Nakamoto.” In creating his cryptocurrency, Nakamoto devised a way that the history of each Bitcoin would be verified electronically with a digital timestamp, and a record of each Bitcoin would be maintained in an electronic ledger. What would power this ledger? The answer is Bitcoin mining.
要想理解區塊鏈技術，最好的方式就是用區塊鏈最突出的應用案例——比特幣來理解。運行比特幣的區塊鏈是由一個名叫“中本聰”的神祕人士創造的。在創造他的貨幣時，中本聰發明了這樣一種方式，即每一個比特幣都有一個數字時間戳，每獲得一枚比特幣都會有一條記錄。是什麼爲這一賬本提供動力？答案是比特幣挖礦。
Nakamoto designed his system such that the record of all Bitcoin transactions could be decentralized and maintained by a network of computers around the world that were actively “mining” Bitcoins. We use the word mining, but what these computers are actually doing is solving a series of complex mathematic problems that then maintain the chain of transactions in the Bitcoin ledger. (Why would anyone do this mining? Because the miners are rewarded periodically for this work with new Bitcoins of their own.) There are some downsides to this model, such as environmental implications—which we’ll address—but as a system for maintaining the integrity of Bitcoin, this mass collaboration/verification model works well.