4. 工作证明 (Proof-of-Work)
To implement a distributed timestamp server on a peer-to-peer basis, we will need to use a proof-of-work system similar to Adam Back's Hashcash, rather than newspaper or Usenet posts. The proof-of-work involves scanning for a value that when hashed, such as with SHA-256, the hash begins with a number of zero bits. The average work required is exponential in the number of zero bits required and can be verified by executing a single hash.
为了实现一个基于点对点的分布式时间戳服务器，我们需要使用类似亚当·伯克的哈希现金那样的一个工作证明系统，而不是报纸或者新闻组帖子那样的东西。所谓的工作证明，就是去寻找一个数值；这个数值要满足以下条件：为它提取散列数值之后 —— 例如使用 SHA-256 计算散列数值 —— 这个散列数值必须以一定数量的 0 开头。每增加一个 0 的要求，将使得工作量指数级增加，并且，这个工作量的验证却只需通过计算一个哈希。
For our timestamp network, we implement the proof-of-work by incrementing a nonce in the block until a value is found that gives the block's hash the required zero bits. Once the CPU effort has been expended to make it satisfy the proof-of-work, the block cannot be changed without redoing the work. As later blocks are chained after it, the work to change the block would include redoing all the blocks after it.
在我们的时间戳网络中，我们是这样实现工作证明的：不断在区块之中增加一个随机数（Nonce），直到一个满足条件的数值被找到；这个条件就是，这个区块的哈希以指定数量的 0 开头。一旦 CPU 的耗费算力所获的的结果满足工作证明，那么这个区块将不再能被更改，除非重新完成之前的所有工作量。随着新的区块不断被添加进来，改变当前区块即意味着说要重新完成所有其后区块的工作。
The proof-of-work also solves the problem of determining representation in majority decision making. If the majority were based on one-IP-address-one-vote, it could be subverted by anyone able to allocate many IPs. Proof-of-work is essentially one-CPU-one-vote. The majority decision is represented by the longest chain, which has the greatest proof-of-work effort invested in it. If a majority of CPU power is controlled by honest nodes, the honest chain will grow the fastest and outpace any competing chains. To modify a past block, an attacker would have to redo the proof-of-work of the block and all blocks after it and then catch up with and surpass the work of the honest nodes. We will show later that the probability of a slower attacker catching up diminishes exponentially as subsequent blocks are added.
工作证明同时解决了如何决定谁能代表大多数做决定的问题。如果所谓的“大多数”是基于“一个IP地址一票”的方式决定的话，那么任何一个可以搞定很多 IP 地址的人就可以被认为是“大多数”。工作证明本质上来看，是“一个CPU一票”。所谓的“大多数决定”是由最长链所代表的，因为被投入最多工作的链就是它。如果大多数 CPU 算力被诚实的节点所控制，那么诚实链成长最为迅速，其速度会远超其他竞争链。为了更改一个已经产生的区块，攻击者将不得不重新完成那个区块以及所有其后区块的的工作证明，而后还要追上并超过诚实节点的工作。后文展示为什么一个被拖延了的攻击者能够追上的可能性将随着区块的不断增加而指数级降低。
To compensate for increasing hardware speed and varying interest in running nodes over time, the proof-of-work difficulty is determined by a moving average targeting an average number of blocks per hour. If they're generated too fast, the difficulty increases.
为了应对硬件算力综合的不断增加，以及随着时间推进可能产生的节点参与数量变化，工作证明难度由此决定：基于平均每小时产生的区块数量的一个移动平均值。如果区块生成得过快，那么难度将会增加。
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