Decentralized Blockchain Technology and Research †Free Samples

Question: Discuss about the Decentralized Blockchain Technology and Research. Answer: Introduction In business environment, knowledge is considered as the information needed to make business decisions. In the present era, knowledge is considered as the essential factor in realizing the success. A companys knowledge is dependent upon the intangible assets which includes the information in the mind of the employees, databases, files and other documents. The knowledge management acquisition techniques utilize this information and make it available to a large number of people. The knowledge must be captured and acquired in useful forms which is an integral part of the knowledge management (Hislop, 2013). The knowledge is elicited either from the experts of the domain or through the set of documents pertaining to a particular domain. The acquisition of the knowledge refers to different intra-organizational processes which assist in the creation of the tacit and the explicit form of knowledge. The knowledge acquisition starts with individuals and integrate to the organizational level along with the identification or the absorption of the information. Therefore, acquisition can be defined as the creation of the knowledge in the business corporation through a learning process (Liebowitz, Frank, 2016). It also includes acquisition of external knowledge created through collaboration with the organization, business environment and the universities. The knowledge acquisition refers to the process of learning and encompasses learning as two set of activities, namely, operational routine and dynamic capabilities of the organization. The operational routine refers to the functionality of the firms and the dynamic capability refers to the activities which enhance the routine of the organization. The routines are stable behavior patterns which demonstrates the reaction of the organization as a result of internal or external stimulus. The operational routine of the organization is focused on performing the procedures so that income is generated within the organization whereas the dynamic capabilities refers to making changes in the organization so that competitive advantage can be retained in the organization (Holsapple, 2013). The routines of the organization is developed by the accumulation of experience and established in the organization with the accumulation of the knowledge. The cumulative knowledge accumulation assist the organ ization to innovate and propose technological advances. The cumulative capabilities of the knowledge depends on the capacity of the organization to identify knowledge and acquire it. The knowledge should be assimilated and utilized so that a competitive advantage can be obtained. The organization with high knowledge absorption capacity should be more dynamic and able to exploit the opportunities in the external environment. The reactivity and the proactivity of the organizations is for long-term duration. Another important aspect of knowledge management is that it emphasize on the creative position of the organization within the organization. The creative position or the innovation can be identified in the organization when knowledge is identified which serves as the solution to the problem. If the degree of innovation is limited or dependence of expertise is less, knowledge transformation can be used to foster innovation. In this regard, the present paper is focused on understanding the concepts of knowledge management in business organizations. The knowledge acquisition is an important phase in the knowledge management of the organization. Different business organizations use different strategies for the knowledge acquisition. It is important to protect the information acquired through different means. Blockchain is a novel technology which assist in the protecting information through encryption technology. In the present times, knowledge management is the most integral in developing the core competency of the business organizations. It is the process of creating, sharing and managing information so that the objectives of the organization can be met with the optimal use of knowledge. The knowledge extraction is the process of the knowledge creation from the structured and the unstructured resources. It refers to the reuse of existing knowledge in documented or formal form or generating a schema with the source data present in various departments of the organization. Several organizations collects and store vast amount of information; however, valuable information hidden in the data can be transformed into valuable and useful knowledge. The management of useful information can be a challenge for the business organizations (Jones Sallis, 2013). Information Technology (IT) can aid in knowledge management for creation, sharing, integration and the distribution of the knowledge. Knowledge m anagement can be referred as the process of data usage for the benefits of the organization. In the perspective of Lai, Hsu, Lin, Chen, Lin (2014), KDD process comprises of iterative sequence and methods which includes selection, preprocessing, transformation, data mining and interpretation. The selection refers to the selection of the relevant data from the database to perform analysis. The preprocessing is the process of removing noise and the irrelevant data obtained from different sources. The interpretation or the evaluation of the data mentions to interpreting the patterns into knowledge so that redundant or irrelevant patterns can be removed. It translate the useful patterns into understandable form. According to Raval (2016), blockchain is an emerging technology which has the potential to change the manner in which the data is stored and managed. The blockchain technology has the potential to decentralize the data and information storage which can reduces the role of middleman companies in information regulation. Fleming (2017) has discussed that blockchain technology assists in the creation of decentralized systems, intelligent assets and smart contracts in which there is minimal requirements of the human intervention. This technology has developed new governance systems with increased participation in the decision-making process, autonomous organizations which can operate over different systems without any intervention. According Hofmann, Strewe Bosia (2017), blockchain technology can reduce the role of economic regulators in the society. With this technology, the people can transfer the digital information or data in a safe, secure and immutable manner. It creates self-monitoring digital contracts which can be executed without any human intervention. It also has the potential to create decentralized marketplaces which does not require intervention from the government and the regulatory bodies. In the perception Davidson (2017), technology can result in the shift of power from the centralized authorities in different fields in communication, business or law. With bitcoins, it has resulted in the development of digital currency which can be used in the global payment system, digital asset development and decentralized government. It increases the participation of the social institutions in the organization which increases the participation of the social institutions. Tapscott Tapscott (2016), blockchain technology represents the peer-to-peer economy wherein the peer-to-peer networks, cryptographic algorithms and distributed data storage in which people can agree on a specific state of affairs and record the agreement in a specific and verifiable manner. In the perception of Fleming (2017) blockchain technology coordinates the individual activities over the internet and assures that the data is not tampered and is authentic. A group of individuals cannot reach consensus. It is also nearly impossible to verify the authenticity of the information without a central authority. The blockchain technology solves the problem with the probabilistic approach. The blockchain increases the transparency of the information travelling over the computer network and analyzes it with the help of mathematical techniques. Therefore, it will be really difficult for the hackers or the malicious elements to modify the information unless they have power on majority of systems over a network. According to Swan (2015), there are several protocols in blockchain which ensures that the transactions on a blockchain are not recorded more than once in the shared repository and different activities in the system are coordinated in the decentralized manner. It elimin ates the need of depending on a trusted authority to verify all the transactions. Wright De Filippi, (2015), blockchain can be defined as the database which comprises of the chronological order of transactions which are recorded by a separate computer network. In this technology, there are different blocks which refers to small datasets. Each block is encrypted and contains information of certain transactions, information of the preceding block in the blockchain. The block also contains the key to a complex mathematical puzzle which can be used to validate the data contained in the block. There is a single copy of the blockchain which is shared by each computer in the network. Mainelli Smith (2015) have explored the information is periodically synchronized to assure that the information shared by computers is coon in each of the database. There are also algorithms which assures that only legitimate transactions are recorded in a blockchain and validate the current transactions. It current transaction should align with the previous transaction for the validation. In the views of Atzori, (2015), new information will only be added in the blockchain when there is consensus for the validity of the transaction. When a block if information is added to the blockchain, it cannot be deleted as the information can be accesses and used by every other system in the network. The blockchain is a permanent record which can be used by all the systems in the network to coordinate an action and verify an event. Crosby, Pattanayak, Verma Kalyanaraman (2016) have discussed that blockchain is a novel technology which has lots of potential and emerging use. In knowledge management, blockchain has use in creating censorship-resistant communication, robust file sharing system and creating a fraud resistant digital voting system. It can create powerful decentralized system which can support machine-to-machine communication. It will also be beneficial in internet enabled devices which can be part of internet of things. The knowledge management is the technique of acquired and storing the data so that it can be used to its maximum potential. The blockchain technology is affecting the manner in which the data is stored and acquired in the digital mediums. It affects the manner in which the data is shared and communicated through online mediums. It provides encrypted and decentralized database which also facilities the machine to machine communication between the internet charged devices. Crosby Patt anayak, Verma Kalyanaraman (2016) have stated that blockchain, it is not necessary to route the information through a centralized system or distribution platform in such as email or dropbox. When there are decentralized and encrypted communication protocols, different users can store and retrieve information without the need of government intervention. The blockchain technology can be used to assist in the exchange of data in a decentralized ad secure environment. The information once published on the online platforms is distributed in a large number of computing systems which makes it impossible for the governing authorities to censor the content. In the views of Yli-Huumo, Ko, Choi, Park, Smolander, (2016), the users can compare blockchain technology platform to the cloud computing platforms. They are similar according in their usage. However, on a technological level, both of the technologies are entirely different. In the blockchain system, the users are awarded a digital currency which they can use to store their data on other computers. The users can pay for storage of their own data on other computing system. The people can use blockchain technology to rent their hard drives so that they can rent the hard drives of others. These platforms are designed in such a manner that no central authority is able to view the contents of the file in the system. The central authority is also not able to modify, regulate or terminate the content of any file of hinder its transmission over the computer network. It has been discussed in the literature of Mattila, Seppl Holmstrm (2016) that the decentralized data stores can be seen as a technical replacement of the traditional domain name registry system which has laid the foundation of the entire internet system. Thee domain names are maintained by a global organization (ICANN) which analyzes how people access different websites. The blockchain based applications can create distributed domain registry system which can store different domain names without seeking the assistance from the government and other large organizations to route the organizations traffic. According to Zyskind, Nathan Pentland (2015), it is also capable of managing the data through a variety of untrusted sources. The current internet network contains several internet-enabled devices, some of which will be malicious and untrustworthy. In the traditional internet system, these devices are regulated by a central reference point which assists in machine-to-machine coordination. However, blockchain technology offers an appropriate solution to the above problem. The devices which will be used in the internet platforms can be registered on the blockchain system. The smart contracts can be developed which will allow the tangible property to be controlled over the internet by other machines. The blockchain can store the relationship between different internet-enabled machines and the contracts can define the corresponding rights and requirements of the connected devices. The relationships and the credentials which are required in the blockchain can be encoded in the blockchain with the help of cryptographically activated assets. Encryption ensures that only authorized users have access to modify the content of the blockchain. In the views of Peters Panayi (2016), blockchain technology, each transaction in the public ledger is verified by all the participants in the system. The information once entered to the system can never be released from it. The blockchain comprises of verifiable records of each transaction made within the system. The technology is based on the principle that it is easier to steal from a secluded place rather than a place observed by millions of people. Bitcoin is the most popular example of the blockchain technology as it has developed a multibillion global market in which a person can anonymously make transactions without the control of the government. However, Kosba, Miller, Shi, Wen Papamanthou (2016) have discussed that blockchain is a non-controversial technology which can be successfully applied to the financial as well as the non-financial transactions. It has been discussed that the present financial transactions are based on a central authority. The current digital technology is based on the reliance on a certain trusted authority. The trusted or authentic authority can be email-service provider or other authentic payment platform. In the present times, all the internet users are dependent upon the third party for the security and the privacy of the digital assets. Wamukoya Mutula, (2005) have stated that blockchain technology has the potential to change the digital payment system as it establishes distributed consensus in which each online transaction is recorded within the system. The system is designed in such a manner that it is capable to verify each transaction involving digital assets. The system can verify the transactions without compromising the confidentiality of the transactions including the identity of the parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, the blockchain technology can be characterized by distributed consensus and anonymity. According to Kiviat (2015), one of the key feature of the technology is the use of smart contracts. In these contracts, certain terms and conditions are defined and if the parties entering a contract meet these conditions, the contract is automatically formed. A transaction can be completed in an automatic manner. The Smart Property is another concept related to the control or the ownership of the assets using the Smart contracts. In essence, the property can be any digital such as automobiles, telephones or it can be non-physical like digital information. Bitcoin is also a form of digital currency. As per the literature, this technology can provide evidence to the existence of all the legal documents, health records and loyalty payments. Blockchain technology can protect the privacy of the users by storing the fingerprint of the digital asset rather than storing the actual digital asset. Further, it has been discussed by Guo Liang (2016) that the blockchain technology aims to create a decentralized environment in which there is no third party involved and there is no control over the transactions and the data. According to the literature, all the nodes or the users remains anonymous which makes the system anonymous and the personal identity of the users is remain protected. Bitcoin is the first application of Blockchain technology and has become highly successful as a crypto-currency. Although blockchain has immense potential to establish a distributed database and support anonymous transactions in the internet, it also suffers from several technical challenges. The algorithms should be able to maintain integrity and security in internet transactions. It should be able to enhance the privacy of nodes so that no privacy attack can occur. The privacy attack can create disturbance in the operations of blochian technology. Confirming the transactions in blockchain requi res computational power which is another challenge for the technology. In the views of MacDonald Allen Potts (2016) the advantage of the blockchain technology is that the information contained in the public ledger cannot be modified or deleted once the data has been approved by all the nodes in the system. This characteristic increases the data integrity and the security characteristics of the users. The blockchain technology also has several different uses such as creating an environment for digital contracts or establishing a peer-to-peer data sharing services. The throughput is a potential challenge in the blockchain technology. Since it is a novel technology, the frequency of the transations is limited. However, with time, the throughput of the network is needed to be increased. Another significant challenge is to build the security of the organization. Schaub, Bazin, Hasan Brunie (2016) have stated that currently, in the blockchain technology, due to the slow speed of the technology, it currently requires ten minutes to complete a transaction. However, it is important to increase the efficiency in security which is a trade-off with the time required to complete each transaction. In digital platforms, it is also important to assure that the input of any transactions have not been spent before. This phenomenon is called double spending; therefore, it is important to verify each transaction added to the blockchain. The verification takes a lot of time which slows the speed of the transaction. Currently, the transaction with Visa cards take only a few seconds which is a huge competitive advantage when compared to the bitcoins. Therefore, latency is a big issue for the blockchain technology. The current blockchain technology has the possibility of 51% attack. With this high probability, there is chance that a single entity can gain con trol over the network and manipulate the entire blockchain. Therefore, it is important to conduct more research to enhance the security of the blockchain network. The API (Application Programming Interface) of bitcoin is difficult to use. Therefore, it is important to develop a more user friendly API for the blockchain. The data malleability is another issue for blockchain technology. It is important that when the data gets sent or received in an external environment, it does not get tampered or altered. The malleability states that the signatures which provides evidence for the ownership of the bitcoins do not authenticate the signature themselves. It means that the signature of the possession can be replicated during a transaction. In the malleability attack, the attacker intercepts, modifies and makes a transaction ad do not confirm the prior transaction with the same currency. In the views of Peters Panayi (2016) another challenge in the blockchain technology is the authentication and the cryptography issues. In the blockchain technology, the private key is the major authentication element. The authentication controls the self-certification of the currency. The elliptic curve cryptography is used to derive the users address is not sufficient in providing adequate security to the users. Although in the current computing environment, the energy efficiency is not an issue. However, the mining of the previous transactions in the computing environment requires a lot of energy and resources. It is important to mine the transactions securely and with trustworthiness which requires a lot of energy. Therefore, energy efficiency may arise as a major issue in the near future. In this regard, it is important to conduct the mining efficiently and reduce the wastage of the resources. Huckle, Bhattacharya, White Beloff (2016) have stated that the challenge in blockchain technology is that users find it increasingly difficult to use the blockchain technology. In this technology, new blocks of information are constantly created which can create an interesting environment for the transaction flows. Therefore, it is important to implement supporting tools which can increase the usability of the blockchain network. Zheng, Xie, Dai Wang (2016) have stated that although the privacy and the confidentiality of the customers is maintained by breaking the flow of information in a transaction. The public can see all the transactions without linking the information to a specific identity. The blockchain use a definite framework to maintain the privacy of the users. By the analysis of the network traffic, it can be analyzed that different subset of blockchain can be traced to the IP address of the organization. Zyskind Nathan (2015) have discussed that the core competency of the blockchain technology is that it creates a single version of different databases in a completely distributed manner. It means that there is no centralized authority or control over the database. In the blockchain, different users can write different things in the database. Modification from different nodes can overlap; however, the network should be able to maintain uniformity in the database. In the recent years, there has been a lot of hype regarding the value and the importance of knowledge management in the business organizations. A lot of research has been conducted in knowledge management as a discipline and it has resulted in it edging towards maturity. The fundamental behind the knowledge management is that it is the most valuable resource of the organization and it should be leveraged and made more productive. The evolution of the knowledge management is developed around valuable tools and resources which are focused and the management of the information so that it can be used in a more effective manner (Holzinger, Dehmer Jurisica, 2014). Recently, several trends have emerged in the knowledge management such as social networks, collaboration, relevance and knowledge-based relationships. The organization chart and the formal business process maps states a few things about how the work is actually performed in a business organization. In a business organization, th e information and the knowledge flow in highly informal pattern which is based on which a person communicate while doing work at the office. The blockchain technology is growing in usage in both Information Technology and Information Management in the business organizations. In the future, the business enterprises are perceived as interconnected virtual organizations. These organizations can be realized when all the business enterprises can coordinate their information and knowledge. There are several features of blockchain which can transform the knowledge management practices of the business organization. Firstly, it offers distributed database in which several copies of a single blockchain are developed. These copies reside in server computers in different organizations and different countries. The primary aim of this method is to avoid the situations in which the users have to trust a single authority. The blockchain database file is a sequential chain in which there are several blocks of data. When there is a new transaction in the database, the previous transaction is not omitted but a new transaction is written whi ch points back to the previous transaction. A drawback of this technology is that it increases the data in a massive size. It is because the data is not saved in one central server; but, it is duplicated several times across a peer-to-peer network. When a new block is created, the time-stamping process saves the exact time of the transaction. The encryption is another feature of the blockchain technology. All the data stored and transferred through blockchain is encrypted (Zheng, Xie, Dai Wang, 2016). The content of the blocks are public, it is difficult to identify the value of the data. In blockchain technology, the management of the database is conducted by distributed software so there is no single system which controls the database. In the future, blockchain can be a part of the knowledge management as it can be used for the knowledge procurement. It can be used in Islamic finance to corruption-free foreign aid payment. The key advantage of blockchain is its transparency which can be used to create financial spreadsheets for all the financial transactions of the business organizations. In the traditional times, all the relevant information related to the business organizations was stored within the organization itself. However, challenges arises when the data is exchanged between different entities and the business organization (Sun, Yan Zhang, 2016). The communication channels are just the agent of transmitting the information. It is also essential in improving the medical quality and improving the privacy of the patients. The decentralized, encrypted public ledger can provide a wealth of application in healthcare. It can streamline the resolution of insurance claims, manage internet of things, medical devices and increase the privacy settings of the medical data. It can protect the privacy and the confidentiality of the patients. A research has been going on in which the patients will be given the ability to set the privacy setting of their own data. The technology has not been yet identified; however, a technology can be developed in which the records component will be broken down to smaller pieces and access will be given step by step. No additional information will be given to any potential recipient of the information (Zheng, Xie, Dai, Chen Wang, 2017). The blockchain technology can also be used for the resolution of the insurance claims in an organization. The records of the users can be posted to a private blockchain which can allow access to a few private parties. It avoids the need of the transmission of the data and building the infrastructure to send and store the data at different warehouse. The medical devices should be given specific identifiers and the product storage information should be stored in the blockchain which can automate the maintenance and the management of the medical devices. Conclusion The blockchain is a novel technology which can transform the knowledge acquisition and procurement practices. Blockchain is a technology which allows the digital information to be distributed but not copied. It creates a different kind of internet which increases the transparency of the internet mediums. The information stored in the blockchain technology exists as a shared information and it does not have a central database. It means that the information stored is completely public and can be easily verified. There is no central version of the information which could be corrupted by the users. 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