Bitcoin Power Law
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  • 👨‍🔬What is Bitcoin's Power Law theory?
    • 🌌Power Laws
    • 🌍Scale Invariance
    • 🌀Santostasi's iteration
    • References
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  • Iterative process is the key
  • Practical Example: Metrics
  • 1. Addresses as a Function of Time
  • 2. Price as a Function of Addresses
  • 3. Hash Rate as a Function of Price
  • Iterative Process in Bitcoin's Dynamics
  • Role of Difficulty Adjustment as a Curbing Mechanism
  • Conclusion
  1. What is Bitcoin's Power Law theory?

Santostasi's iteration

Core of Bitcoin Power Law Theory aka BPLT

PreviousScale InvarianceNextReferences

Last updated 10 months ago

Iterative process is the key

Price, hash rate, and the number of active addresses (filtered to exclude dust addresses) all exhibit power law relationships with each other and over time.

These variables interact in a continuous feedback loop, where each one influences the others.

Power laws are mathematical expressions of the form y=Axny = Ax^ny=Axn and are prevalent in both natural and social phenomena, including city and nation growth.

They arise whenever an output becomes a new input in an iterative process.

This concept perfectly aligns with Bitcoin's nature, where, for example, the current hash rate affects future hash rates in a self-sustaining cycle.

The theory is supported by the well-known diagram below, illustrating these interactions.\

This concept is mirrored in Bitcoin's market dynamics, where similar patterns of growth and behavior are observed across different time frames.

In fractal geometry, a simple rule is applied repeatedly to create increasingly complex structures. Similarly, the iterative processes in Bitcoin, as described by Giovanni Santostasi, demonstrate scale invariance through power law relationships between key metrics like hash rate, price, and the number of active addresses.

Practical Example: Metrics

In Bitcoin, the iterative nature of its market dynamics can be expressed through the following power law relationships:

1. Addresses as a Function of Time

Addresses=t3\text{Addresses}=t^3Addresses=t3

This indicates that the number of active Bitcoin addresses (Addresses)(\text{Addresses})(Addresses) grows proportionally to the cube of time (t3)(t^3)(t3), suggesting a rapid increase in user adoption over time.

Greater user trust and attracting more users, which further increases the price.

2. Price as a Function of Addresses

Price=Addresses2=(t3)2=t6\text{Price} = \text{Addresses}^2 = (t^3)^2 = t^6Price=Addresses2=(t3)2=t6

The price (Price)(\text{Price})(Price) increases quadratically with the number of addresses (Addresses2)(\text{Addresses}^2 )(Addresses2), reflecting that as the network expands, the value derived from Bitcoin grows exponentially.

An increase in price attracts more mining resources, which in turn raises the hash rate.

3. Hash Rate as a Function of Price

Hash Rate=Price2=(t6)2=t12\text{Hash Rate} = \text{Price}^2 = (t^6)^2 = t^{12}Hash Rate=Price2=(t6)2=t12

The Hash Rate\text{Hash Rate}Hash Rate, representing the total computational power used for mining, scales with the square of the price (Price2)(\text{Price}^2)(Price2).

This relationship highlights how increased Bitcoin valuation leads to significant growth in network security and processing power.

Elevated hash rate enhances network security, fostering greater user trust and attracting more users.

Iterative Process in Bitcoin's Dynamics

Just as fractals are generated through iterative rules, Bitcoin undergoes an iterative process where each phase influences the next.

This cyclical feedback loop mirrors the iterative generation of fractal patterns, where each iteration builds upon the previous, maintaining structural consistency at every scale.

This iterative process (aka Santostasi's iteration) underpins the scale invariance observed in Bitcoin's metrics, where the same mathematical relationships hold true regardless of the scale of observation.

A critical component of this iterative process is the difficulty adjustment, which acts as a curbing mechanism.

Role of Difficulty Adjustment as a Curbing Mechanism

This mechanism ensures that blocks are produced at a relatively stable rate, regardless of fluctuations in the network's total hash rate:

  • As the price of Bitcoin rises, mining becomes more profitable, attracting additional computational power to the network.

  • Increase in hash rate could lead to faster block creation, but the difficulty adjustment counteracts this by making it harder to mine new blocks.

  • Conversely, if the price drops or miners leave the network, the difficulty decreases, making mining easier and maintaining block production time.

This adjustment process serves as a curbing mechanism by regulating the rate at which blocks are mined and maintaining the stability of the Bitcoin network.

It prevents runaway scenarios where an unregulated increase in hash rate could lead to excessively rapid block production, thereby distorting the economic incentives within the system.

In this way, the difficulty adjustment functions similarly to the curbing mechanisms observed in other natural systems governed by power laws.

It ensures that the growth of the Bitcoin network, measured by metrics like hash rate, price, and the number of addresses, follows a controlled and sustainable path.

This regulation is vital for maintaining the integrity and security of the network, making the iterative process of Bitcoin's market dynamics both predictable and resilient across various scales.

Conclusion

The Bitcoin Power Law theory, as proposed by Giovanni Santostasi, offers a compelling framework for understanding the intricate and iterative dynamics of the Bitcoin market.

By highlighting the power law relationships between key metrics like price, hash rate, and the number of active addresses, this theory demonstrates the inherent scalability and self-similar nature of Bitcoin's growth.

The iterative feedback loop, bolstered by mechanisms such as the difficulty adjustment, ensures a balanced and sustainable network evolution.

As Bitcoin continues to evolve, this theory provides valuable insights into its potential trajectory, underlining the importance of mathematical principles in deciphering complex market behaviors.

As we have seen in the , fractals are characterized by self-similar patterns that emerge through iterative processes.

The is a built-in feature of Bitcoin's protocol that recalibrates the computational difficulty required to mine a new block approximately every two weeks.

difficulty adjustment
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concept of scale invariance
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Santostasi's iteration.
Graph showing all the interacting powers laws.
Visualisation of all relations between power laws.
Santostasi's iteration flowchart.
Difficulty adjustment process flowchart.
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