Unchained

Why Ethereum's Merge Was Delayed and Why It Won't Reduce Gas Fees Much - Ep.341

Apr 15, 2022

Tim Beiko, the coordinator for core developers at the Ethereum Foundation, dives deep into the complexities of Ethereum's transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake. He discusses the reasons behind the potential delay of the merge, the role of difficulty bombs, and the innovative concept of shadow forks. Tim explains how these technical challenges could slightly impact gas fees and outlines strategies for scalability post-merge. He also hints at a cautiously optimistic timeline for a secure rollout.

36:04

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Episode guests

Tim Beiko

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Episode notes

Intro

5min

Navigating the Uncertainties of Ethereum's Merge

3min

Navigating Ethereum's Upgrade Process with Shadow Forking

5min

Understanding Ethereum's Merge: Challenges and Solutions

9min

Exploring Ethereum's Future and Cryptocurrency Developments

4min

Crypto Landscape Update

9min

Tim Beiko, the Ethereum Foundation coordinator for core developers, discusses his recent estimation that Ethereum’s merge, where the network transitions from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake, will be delayed until the second half of 2022. Show topics:

what the Ethereum merge is
why an upcoming difficulty bomb could force developers to delay the merge
what shadow forks are and how they affect the decision to go forward with the merge
how network difficulty is used in Ethereum to keep a balance between the blockchain and miners
Tim’s (purposefully vague) timeline for the merge
how the merge could increase Ethereum’s throughput by 9% – and thus potentially reduce gas fees slightly
how the Ethereum Foundation plans to address gas fees and scaling issues post-merge

Announcing The Cryptopians Book Clubs!

On April 26th, I will be selling NFT tickets to five 90-minute virtual book clubs in which 22 people can discuss "The Cryptopians" with me and with each other — without worrying about spoilers! Two of the book clubs will also feature special guests.

The sale will go live on Tuesday, April 26, at 1pm ET/10am PT, and tickets will be $100 each. (The sale will be on Bitski, but the NFTs will not be visible until the sale goes live on the 26th): https://www.bitski.com/@laurashin/created

Here is the schedule:

Monday May 2, at 8pm ET/5pm PT with Laura Shin
Tuesday, May 3, at a time TBD with guests Christoph Jentzsch, Lefteris Karapetsas, and Griff Green
Thursday, May 5, at 6pm CET/12pm ET/9am PT with Laura Shin
Monday, May 9, at 6pm CET/12pm ET/9am PT with guest Andrey Ternovskiy
Tuesday, May 10, at 9pm CET/3pm ET/12pm PT with Laura Shin

If you'd like to participate, be sure to mark your calendars for the sale time on April 26th. Hope to see you in one of the book clubs!

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: https://crypto.onelink.me/J9Lg/unconfirmedcardearnfeb2021

Coinchange: https://coinchange.io

OnJuno: https://onjuno.com/

Galaxis: https://galaxis.xyz/

Episode Links

Tim Beiko

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TimBeiko

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