Developer Chris Belcher thinks he's found a way to fix bitcoin mining – and it notably takes its inspiration from the network's much-discussed Lightning Network proposal.
The idea is notable in that it showcases both the evolving nature of bitcoin as a technology, as well as how its developers are finding new ways to explore long-established issues. For example, while the Lightning Network was proposed for tackling bitcoin's infamous scaling hurdles, Belcher believes the concept could help decentralize mining, thereby strengthening the protocol's value proposition as an censorship-resistant money.
It's an idea not without precedent. At least one mining pool, P2Pool has already tried to decentralize mining, but less than one percent of miners use it, primarily because it doesn't pay out miners in a timely way compared to more centralized options.
But using the "hub-and-spoke" payment channel model behind Lightning Network could help the pool increase how often payments are made, in turn making the pool more attractive to miners, according to Belcher, who's also the developer behind bitcoin privacy mixer JoinMarket.
https://www.coindesk.com/hub-and-spoke-could-bitcoins-lightning-network-decentralize-mining/
