The Proof of Stake (PoS) Consensus algorithm was designed to mitigate the huge energy consumption problem in proof of work consensus like that of Bitcoin. Research has shown that energy consumption in Bitcoin mining globally is more than enough for a small country. Proof of Stake allows validators to stake their coins to confirm transactions and find new blocks. The stake is like an assurance or pledges that they will not be a bad actor to game or take over the network.
Proof of work has innovative versions like Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) by Dan Larimer the developer of Steem, Bitshares, and EOS. In DPoS, few validators or witnesses are voted in a fully transparent and democratic way to govern the confirmation and creation of new blocks. They are delegated to govern the network and they get rewards in return. DPoS allows for the inclusion of every coin holder in voting no matter how much stake they possess.
There has been some misconception of what DPoS really is with Cardano’s new innovative consensus- Ouroboros. It is a fashion of Proof of Stake but very different from the Delegated Proof of Stake. Cardano developers have put a lot of research time and effort into making something new, creative, and different from the existing consensus – DPoS. The communication team has made a unique effort to explain what Ouroboros is and how it works in simple terms for the public who might be unwilling to go through research reports.
In Ouroboros, nodes are pooled into staking pools because a single node might not have what it takes (expertise) to create new blocks. Via randomization, staking pools are elected by the Ouroboros algo to produce new blocks based on the weight of their stake. Staking pools produce blocks for the slot which they are elected for. A slot (a fraction of time) is a subset of an epoch.
The consensus also prevents takeovers by selecting the “densest” chain or one which has the most participants and transactions while DPoS selects the longest chain.
Every popular crypto project today is unique in its own way and different from another, instead of divisions, why not let us all move forward as a family under one umbrella- ‘Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Technology’? It is with this we can take the world and win it to our side.
