The Elemental Network: Concept and Implementation

Introduction

The Elemental Network was planned as a standard blockchain. The idea for its implementation arose during a decline in activity in TON, when there was a drop in volumes and a rise in the number of rug-pull projects. This idea was nurtured for a long time while simultaneously studying the blockchain technology and its principles.

Key Principles

Consensus

The foundation was built on the Ethereum client called Geth. It operates on the principle of Proof Of Stake consensus, which implies the "freezing" of assets. The more assets are frozen, the more often a validator gets the opportunity to create a block and write transactions into it.

Fees

The fees we pay for each transaction are rewards for validators (in the era of Proof Of Work, these were miners who found the nonce value) for processing these transactions into the blockchain. These variables are adjustable, and many blockchains have moved them into smart contracts, allowing fees that start at $0.05 to skyrocket to hundreds in the blink of an eye.

Transition to Proof Of Stake

Blockchain developers seemingly thought, "Why should we pay miners when they can pay us?" Thus, the Proof Of Stake consensus was born. To earn money, you can pay upfront. The amounts you need to pay for a validator to fully create blocks are simply astronomical. In TON, this amount can reach 1.5 million TON, which, at the time of writing, is just over $4 million.

Yes, you might argue: "The documentation says 600,000 TON."

And I would respond: 600,000 TON is needed to be staked to get into the validator pool, but you won't be allowed to create blocks. You will need to add another 800,000 TON to ensure your validator is active and earns the claimed 150 TON per day (for the staking account, of course). This will work like Pandora's box. You seem to have this money, and summer is here, and you need to take your wife to the sea, but you won't be able to withdraw it just like that because staking is for a certain period. Isn't that fun?

And even more amusing (this information may be false, based on data from tonstat) is that in TON, only the validator with the highest staking balance operates. When I saw this, I was shocked. Who knows how fast and uncrashable the blockchain would be if at least 9 validators were working in the circle? The question remains open.

The SocialFI Idea

As I said, The Elemental Network was planned as an ordinary blockchain with blackjack and NFTs. But just recently, while sitting in contemplation, smoking a cigarette, and sipping coffee, I thought: "How do we attract people if the blockchain is just like all the others?" A speed of 23.7k TPS won't impress anyone, and relying solely on dApps is not an option. Then the thought struck me: what if we bring the blockchain closer to SocialFI? dApps will be developed anyway, people will want to earn, and hardly anyone is dealing with SocialFI as a category. And here comes a story right out of the box. I liked this idea.

What The Elemental Network Will Look Like at Release

At release, The Elemental Network will be an application (Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, released in that order—not simultaneously, no matter how much anyone wishes it). This application will be installed. After wallet registration (I don't recommend entering seed phrases for the first time; it will require a password that most wallets do not provide), the user will land on an interface resembling their mobile desktop, where they can choose either a wallet, a social network, or any other dApps installed from the internal app marketplace. Cool? I agree. I liked this idea too. And it will be released soon.

Functionality of The Elemental Network

• Elemental Wallet: the wallet itself.
• Elemental Minter: a minter for tokens and NFTs.
• Elemental Swap: used for exchanging coins in Elemental Wallet and for providing liquidity.
• Elemental Store: an app marketplace (there will be no paid dApps; I just don't have any ideas on how to name the app yet).
• Elemental Validator: the ability to purchase a spot in the validator pool (more details later).
• ElementalSocial: the social network of The Elemental Network.

Technical Characteristics

• Client: Geth (a lot has been rewritten and added).
• Consensus: Proof Of Authority.
• Fixed operating speed: 23.7k Transactions Per Second.
• Network fee: 0.05 TEN for regular transactions, a maximum of 0.25 TEN for smart contracts (the fee is fixed and will not change).
• Explorer: currently managed by blockscout with compatibility enhancements.

Additional Layer

The additional layer will be responsible for the social network and will not have access to the public network. Access will be through the root blockchain with a high level of data validation. This layer will include support for various data formats (txt, zip, png, jpg, gif).

Conclusion

The Elemental Network represents an ambitious project that aims to combine blockchain technology with elements of social networking, creating a unique platform for users. And, of course, don't forget that in the world of cryptocurrencies, everything can change in an instant, and tomorrow all these ideas may seem outdated.