Ethereum Blockchain Course: Learning Outline

This outline provides a structured path for learning about the Ethereum blockchain, from fundamental concepts to advanced topics and practical application.

Module 1: Introduction to Blockchain Technology

• 1.1 What is Blockchain?
• Definition and core principles (decentralization, immutability, transparency).
• Brief history of blockchain and its origins (Bitcoin).
• Key components: Blocks, chains, distributed ledger, cryptography (hashing, digital signatures).
• Consensus mechanisms (brief overview of PoW, PoS).
• 1.2 Types of Blockchains
• Public, private, and consortium blockchains.
• Permissionless vs. Permissioned.
• 1.3 Why Blockchain?
• Problems solved by blockchain (trust, intermediaries, single point of failure).
• Use cases beyond cryptocurrency.

Module 2: Introduction to Ethereum

• 2.1 What is Ethereum?
• Origin and vision.
• The "World Computer" concept.
• Distinction from Bitcoin (programmability).
• 2.2 Ethereum Core Components
• Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM): What it is, how it works.
• Accounts: Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) and Contract Accounts.
• Transactions: Structure, lifecycle, gas, nonce.
• Blocks: Structure and validation.
• Gas: Concept, purpose, gas limit, gas price, transaction fees.
• Ether (ETH): The native cryptocurrency.
• 2.3 Ethereum Network and Clients
• Mainnet, testnets (Sepolia, Holesky).
• Ethereum clients (e.g., Geth, Parity - brief mention).

Module 3: Deep Dive into Ethereum Concepts

• 3.1 Cryptography in Ethereum
• Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA).
• Keccak-256 hashing.
• Public and private keys, addresses.
• 3.2 Consensus on Ethereum
• Transition from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) - The Merge.
• Staking and validators.
• Epochs, slots, attestations.
• 3.3 Wallets and Key Management
• Hot vs. Cold wallets.
• Browser wallets (e.g., MetaMask).
• Seed phrases (mnemonics) and hierarchical deterministic (HD) wallets (BIP-39).
• 3.4 Ethereum Block Explorers
• Using Etherscan or similar tools to view transactions, blocks, and contract data.

Module 4: Smart Contracts and Solidity

• 4.1 What are Smart Contracts?
• Definition and purpose.
• "Code is Law" concept.
• Turing completeness.
• 4.2 Introduction to Solidity
• High-level overview of the language.
• Basic syntax: data types, variables, functions, modifiers, events.
• Visibility specifiers (public, private, internal, external).
• msg.sender, msg.value, block.timestamp.
• 4.3 Developing Smart Contracts
• Development Environment Setup: Remix IDE (for beginners), Hardhat/Truffle (for more advanced).
• Writing your first basic contract (e.g., "Hello World", simple counter).
• Compiling and deploying contracts to a local blockchain (e.g., Hardhat Network, Ganache).
• Interacting with deployed contracts.
• 4.4 Smart Contract Design Patterns (Basic)
• Ownable, Pausable.
• Reentrancy guard (brief introduction to common vulnerabilities).

Module 5: Decentralized Applications (DApps)

• 5.1 What are DApps?
• Definition and architecture (frontend, smart contract backend).
• Key characteristics (open source, decentralized, no central point of failure).
• 5.2 Interacting with Smart Contracts from Frontend
• Web3.js / Ethers.js: Introduction to these libraries.
• Connecting to an Ethereum provider (e.g., MetaMask).
• Calling contract functions (read and write).
• Sending transactions.
• Listening for events.
• 5.3 Building a Simple DApp
• Frontend setup (HTML, CSS, JavaScript/React/Vue).
• Integrating Web3.js/Ethers.js.
• Developing a basic DApp (e.g., a simple voting app, a token sender).

Module 6: Ethereum Ecosystem and Tools

• 6.1 Development Frameworks
• Hardhat: Features, testing, deployment scripts.
• Truffle: (Optional, as Hardhat is more common now).
• 6.2 Oracles
• The oracle problem.
• How oracles bring off-chain data on-chain (e.g., Chainlink).
• 6.3 Token Standards
• ERC-20: Fungible tokens (basic understanding).
• ERC-721: Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) (basic understanding).
• ERC-1155: Multi-token standard (brief mention).

Module 7: Advanced Topics & Future of Ethereum

• 7.1 Scalability Solutions
• Layer 2 Solutions: Rollups (Optimistic, ZK-Rollups) - high-level overview.
• Sharding (future Ethereum roadmap).
• Sidechains.
• 7.2 Security Considerations
• Common smart contract vulnerabilities (reentrancy, integer overflow/underflow, front-running).
• Auditing smart contracts.
• Importance of secure coding practices.
• 7.3 Decentralized Finance (DeFi)
• Overview of common DeFi protocols (DEXes, lending platforms, stablecoins).
• 7.4 Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
• Deep dive into NFTs, use cases, marketplaces.
• 7.5 Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)
• Concept and basic governance mechanisms.
• 7.6 Ethereum's Roadmap
• Future developments (Danksharding, account abstraction, Verkle trees).

Module 8: Practical Project Ideas

• 8.1 Simple Voting DApp: Create a DApp where users can vote on predefined options.
• 8.2 Basic ERC-20 Token: Deploy your own simple fungible token.
• 8.3 NFT Minting Page: Build a DApp to mint a simple NFT.
• 8.4 Decentralized To-Do List: A DApp where to-do items are stored on the blockchain.
• 8.5 Simple Crowdfunding DApp: Allow users to contribute ETH to a project, with funds released upon goal achievement.

Welcome to this learning session on Advanced Blockchain Course

In this course we shall address:

• Ethereum Basics and Platform Overview
• Ethereum Technical Foundations Explained
• Ethereum Foundation and Community
• Ethereum Accounts and Statistics
• Ethereum Standards and ElPs
• Ethereum Release Roadmap
• Ethereum 2.0 and Beacon Chain
• Shard Chains and Keccak-256
• Ethereum Transactions and Smart Contracts
• Smart Contract Vulnerabilities and EVM
• Solidity and Token Standards
• Blockchain Interoperability and Standards