Quote from: Montane on October 23, 2021, 01:51:38 AM

I know Bitcoin is running on a proof of work consensus algorithm. Recently I discovered proof of stake by reading up a bit on Cardano and Ethereum's 2.0 plans.

What is the difference between these two, how does POS reduce the energy required to mine a block transaction and are either of these more secure than the other? Basically what are the pros and cons of each.

Also if POS consumes less energy, then wouldn't it be a good idea for Bitcoin to transition to a POS algorithm?

The key difference between Proof of Work and Proof of Stake consensus is that miners in PoW are to confirm transactions and add to blockchain this way they get rewards while validators in PoS are to lock up (stake) their coins and they get reward for this in coins that they stake. The more you stake, the more you earn. And in terms of PoW, who has solved the problem first gets rewards.