Distributed Data Show Episode 33: Big Data and Blockchain

DuyHai Doan leads a discussion with Patrick McFadin and Jeff Carpenter on whether blockchain is a database, how blockchains and distributed databases complement each other, and what we can learn about distributed systems by looking at blockchain technology. Highlights: 1:00 - DuyHai gives a quick introduction to blockchain 3:01 - Patrick explains why blockchain != Bitcoin 3:49 - We discuss whether a blockchain can be considered a type of database 5:38 - Blockchain limitations: limited transaction throughput and the difficulty of removing errors once they are in the chain 6:54 - Scalability and efficiency challenges of blockchains based on proof of work 8:44 - Techniques for overcoming scalability challenges of the blockchain 11:34 - How blockchains and distributed databases can be used together 12:39 - If some data moves out of the blockchain, where does it go? How about a log-structured merge tree-style database like Cassandra? 14:23 - On using blockchains for integrity/authenticity 14:47 - What we can learn from blockchain technology in the distributed database world: peer-to-peer protocols and hashing techniques 16:51 - Blockchain and distributed databases will intersect in large scale transactional systems in healthcare, retail and other industries