Quality and Innovation with Blockchain Technology

Quality​ ​and​ ​Innovation​ ​with Blockchain​ ​Technology Morgan​ ​C.​ ​Benton​ ​and​ ​Nicole​ ​M.​ ​Radziwill Abstract In​ ​recent​ ​years,​ ​hype​ ​surrounding​ ​the​ ​proliferation​ ​of​ ​blockchain-based​ ​technology​ ​has​ ​been significant.​ ​Apart​ ​from​ ​the​ ​creation​ ​of​ ​bitcoin​ ​and​ ​other​ ​cryptocurrencies,​ ​it​ ​has​ ​been​ ​difficult​ ​to determine​ ​what​ ​practical​ ​utility​ ​might​ ​lie​ ​in​ ​the​ ​adoption​ ​of​ ​blockchain,​ ​mainly​ ​because​ ​there​ ​are so​ ​few​ ​in​ ​existence​ ​at​ ​present.​ ​Even​ ​so,​ ​interest​ ​in​ ​the​ ​technology​ ​has​ ​increased​ ​tremendously. This​ ​paper​ ​is​ ​a​ ​primer​ ​for​ ​software​ ​quality​ ​professionals.​ ​It​ ​briefly​ ​describes​ ​the​ ​history​ ​of blockchain​ ​technology,​ ​attempts​ ​to​ ​define​ ​and​ ​disambiguate​ ​terminology,​ ​fosters​ ​a​ ​general understanding​ ​of​ ​how​ ​blockchain​ ​works,​ ​and​ ​discusses​ ​how​ ​and​ ​why​ ​software​ ​quality professionals​ ​might​ ​want​ ​to​ ​invest​ ​time​ ​and​ ​energy​ ​in​ ​learning​ ​about,​ ​implementing,​ ​or​ ​using blockchain-based​ ​technologies​ ​in​ ​their​ ​own​ ​organizations​ ​--​ ​or​ ​alternatively,​ ​improving​ ​the quality​ ​of​ ​blockchain​ ​technology​ ​itself. Keywords Distributed​ ​systems,​ ​blockchain,​ ​Bitcoin,​ ​cryptocurrency,​ ​innovation,​ ​supply​ ​chain Introduction In​ ​October​ ​2008,​ ​a​ ​mysterious​ ​persona​ ​named​ ​Satoshi​ ​Nakamoto​ ​published​ ​a​ ​whitepaper​ ​called “Bitcoin:​ ​A​ ​Peer-to-Peer​ ​Electronic​ ​Cash​ ​System”​ ​on​ ​an​ ​internet​ ​mailing​ ​list.​ ​By​ ​January​ ​2009, Nakamoto​ ​released​ ​version​ ​0.1​ ​of​ ​the​ ​Bitcoin​ ​software​ ​on​ ​Sourceforge.​ ​Although​ ​it​ ​was​ ​not backed​ ​by​ ​any​ ​government,​ ​existed​ ​as​ ​a​ ​purely​ ​digital​ ​product,​ ​and​ ​possessed​ ​no​ ​apparent intrinsic​ ​value,​ ​it​ ​began​ ​to​ ​be​ ​traded​ ​for​ ​goods​ ​and​ ​services​ ​of​ ​real​ ​value.​ ​The​ ​price​ ​of​ ​a​ ​bitcoin hovered​ ​under​ ​$10​ ​USD​ ​for​ ​years,​ ​and​ ​then​ ​in​ ​early​ ​2013​ ​it​ ​underwent​ ​a​ ​sudden​ ​spike​ ​to​ ​over $100,​ ​then​ ​in​ ​late​ ​2013,​ ​to​ ​over​ ​$1000,​ ​and​ ​then​ ​again​ ​in​ ​early​ ​2017,​ ​it​ ​rapidly​ ​spiked​ ​again getting​ ​to​ ​over​ ​$5000​ ​by​ ​September​ ​(coindesk.com,​ ​2017).​ ​While​ ​it​ ​appears​ ​that​ ​the​ ​price​ ​of bitcoin​ ​is​ ​being​ ​driven​ ​up​ ​by​ ​a​ ​mix​ ​of​ ​financial​ ​speculation,​ ​and​ ​a​ ​rise​ ​in​ ​ransomware​ ​attacks where​ ​the​ ​attackers​ ​demand​ ​payment​ ​in​ ​bitcoin​ ​(Lee,​ ​2017),​ ​the​ ​buzz​ ​around​ ​bitcoin​ ​has brought​ ​a​ ​lot​ ​of​ ​attention​ ​to​ ​the​ ​technology​ ​that​ ​serves​ ​as​ ​its​ ​foundation:​ ​the​ ​blockchain.

The​ ​hype​ ​surrounding​ ​blockchain​ ​technology​ ​has​ ​been​ ​intense​ ​over​ ​the​ ​last​ ​few​ ​years.​ ​Although the​ ​two​ ​technologies​ ​are​ ​very​ ​different,​ ​many​ ​people​ ​have​ ​confused​ ​blockchain​ ​with​ ​bitcoin,​ ​the cryptocurrency​ ​that​ ​made​ ​it​ ​famous.​ ​Furthermore,​ ​bitcoin’s​ ​success​ ​has​ ​sparked​ ​the​ ​creation​ ​of nearly​ ​1000​ ​new​ ​cryptocurrencies​ ​(Wikipedia,​ ​2017),​ ​and​ ​driven​ ​a​ ​craze​ ​for​ ​ICOs,​ ​or​ ​Initial​ ​Coin Offerings​ ​(Wilhelm,​ ​2017),​ ​leading​ ​to​ ​the​ ​misconception​ ​that​ ​the​ ​only​ ​(or​ ​at​ ​least​ ​primary) application​ ​of​ ​blockchain​ ​technology​ ​is​ ​to​ ​the​ ​creation​ ​of​ ​cryptocurrency.​ ​Even​ ​critics​ ​of blockchain​ ​(e.g.​ ​Coppola,​ ​2016)​ ​tend​ ​to​ ​emphasize​ ​the​ ​limitations​ ​of​ ​the​ ​technology​ ​from​ ​the perspective​ ​of​ ​the​ ​financial​ ​industry,​ ​rather​ ​than​ ​recognizing​ ​the​ ​broader​ ​implications​ ​of distributed​ ​ledger​ ​technology.

However,​ ​the​ ​blockchain​ ​is​ ​capable​ ​of​ ​supporting​ ​quite​ ​a​ ​bit​ ​more​ ​than​ ​cryptocurrency​ ​creation, and​ ​some​ ​of​ ​the​ ​newer​ ​platforms​ ​for​ ​blockchain​ ​development​ ​should​ ​be​ ​prompting forward-thinking​ ​software​ ​quality​ ​professionals​ ​to​ ​engage​ ​in​ ​innovation​ ​in​ ​this​ ​domain.​ ​Just​ ​over the​ ​past​ ​four​ ​years,​ ​research​ ​that​ ​includes​ ​the​ ​terms​ ​“blockchain,”​ ​“quality,”​ ​and​ ​“software quality”​ ​has​ ​become​ ​commonplace​ ​(see​ ​Figure​ ​1).​ ​This​ ​paper​ ​will​ ​give​ ​a​ ​brief​ ​overview​ ​of​ ​the history​ ​of​ ​blockchain​ ​technology,​ ​describe​ ​how​ ​it​ ​works,​ ​and​ ​discuss​ ​examples​ ​of​ ​how​ ​it​ ​may influence​ ​and​ ​be​ ​impacted​ ​by​ ​professions.

Figure​ ​1.​ ​Frequency​ ​of​ ​papers​ ​in​ ​Google​ ​Scholar​ ​obtained​ ​by​ ​using​ ​the​ ​search​ ​terms​ ​(+“blockchain” +“quality”​ ​and​ ​-“software​ ​quality”),​ ​compared​ ​to​ ​(+“blockchain”​ ​+“software​ ​quality”)

History As​ ​early​ ​as​ ​1975,​ ​George​ ​Pake​ ​at​ ​Xerox​ ​PARC​ ​(and​ ​others)​ ​were​ ​already​ ​predicting​ ​the​ ​advent of​ ​a​ ​“paperless​ ​office”​ ​(Business​ ​Week,​ ​1975).​ ​Nearly​ ​as​ ​predicted,​ ​by​ ​the​ ​early​ ​1990s,​ ​it​ ​was clear​ ​that​ ​many​ ​or​ ​mo

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