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Vitalik Buterin has laid out new steps for Ethereum's 'Purge' to improve the blockchain's efficiency.
In a blog post written by Buterin, the Ethereum co-founder detailed how upcoming initiatives, known as The Purge, will refine the protocol.
The Purge removes excess and obsolete network history to simplify its process while introducing new Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) to streamline operations and security.
A quick note on next steps in Ethereum protocol simplification and node resource load decreases (aka "the Purge"):https://t.co/BAebCGrisB
— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) April 1, 2024
EIP-6780 is central to the Purge and aims to reduce " the functionality of the 'selfdestruct' opcode, which destroys the contract that calls it and empties its code and storage, so that it only works if the contract was created during the same transaction. "
Eliminating the selfdestruct code will enable each Ethereum block to have more storage slots.
Building upon Ethereum's recent update, Dencun, the blockchain will see Ethereum blocks being removed from Ethereum nodes through EIP-4444.
“Potentially, if each node stores small percentages of the history by default, we could even have roughly as many copies of each specific piece of history stored across the network as we do today,” Buterin said, attaching a meme to his blog post:
By reducing the amount of storage needed to run an Ethereum node will in turn reduce the amount of people required to do it. EIP-4444 simplifies the workflow of node operators and increases Ethereum node decentralization.
A LOG reform is proposed by Buterin to address inefficiencies in decentralized applications.
“Our current mechanism is too slow, pushing dApps towards centralized solutions. By simplifying the LOG opcode and leveraging ZK-SNARKs, we can create a more efficient and decentralized framework for accessing logs,” Buterin says.
He also announced that Ethereum consensus layer is moving to SimpleSerialize (SSZ).
SSZ offers simplicity, efficiency, and compatibility with various applications. It offers shorter and more efficient Merkle proofs, ensuring better performance and reducing computational load.
"These efforts are about more than simplification; they’re about ensuring Ethereum’s resilience and adaptability in the face of future challenges,” Buterin concludes.
As Ethereum improves its technical capabilities, institutions are highly anticipating the SEC's approval of ETH ETFs.
A few days ago, Bitwise filed for a Spot Ethereum ETF with the SEC but expressed hope for the regulator to delay their decision until the end of the year.
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