DA INTERWEBZ — Volatile cryptocurrency markets have experienced massive gains in recent months, followed by huge dips and then subsequent signs of recovery. <br /> <br />You may have heard of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether or of the blockchain technology that underpins them. <br /> <br />But what exactly is a blockchain? <br /> <br />A blockchain is a digital database managed by a decentralized network of computers. The blockchain records transactions chronologically and publically, according to online blockchain resource, Blockgeeks.com. <br /> <br />Distributing data through a peer-to-peer network hosted by millions of computers makes it far less vulnerable to hackers than a centralized network and protects files from getting lost. <br /> <br />When a user requests a transaction on the blockchain, it is broadcast to the peer-to-peer network of computers, known as nodes. <br /> <br />The nodes validate the transaction then combine it with other transactions to create a new block of data for the digital database. <br /> <br />That block, which is both permanent and unalterable, is then added to the existing blockchain and the transaction is completed. <br /> <br />Probably the most well known type of blockchain transaction involves cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ethereum, which has a value token called Ether. <br /> <br />More than 900 cryptocurrencies are currently traded on the internet and the market is notoriously volatile. <br /> <br />Blockchain technology can also be used record transactions for digital information such as contracts, or records like land rights and medical files. It may also have a huge impact on the Internet of Things. <br /> <br />According to CNBC, recent drops in the cryptocurrency markets have been driven by profit-taking after Ethereum's exponential surge, uncertainty about a potential split in Bitcoin on Aug. 1 and startups selling large amounts of Ethereum after raising millions in U.S. dollars of the digital currency.
