• Ethereum News
• World News
• Highlights of Ethereum Devs Call
• Tech Articles
• Podcasts
• Tech Explainers
• ELI5 Explainers
• Client Upgrades
• Events
• Jobs

Ethereum News

• Electra Upgrade: EIPs Under Consideration

  • What is Electra? Why Electra? & the Potential EIPs for inclusion

• Ethereum developers planning for an Enhanced Consensus, Trustless Staking Pools, and L2 Data Availability

  • Developers discussed key EIPs for the Electra upgrade, tackling validator deposits, consensus efficiency, and trustless staking pools. The urgency reflects a balanced focus on prompt enhancements without compromising feasibility, ensuring security and efficiency for Ethereum.

• Ethereum’s Dencun Upgrade Successfully Deployed

  • Dencun upgrade on Ethereum faced a brief delay but triumphed on Goerli testnet, promising improved efficiency, lower transaction costs, and new features for decentralized finance.

• Nethermind hotfix pushed soon after client caused invalid blocks on Ethereum

  • Nethermind fixed a critical bug in its Ethereum execution client (versions 1.23.0-1.25.0), causing block processing issues. Discussion arose on the importance of diversifying away from the majority client, Geth.

• Sepolia & Holesky Dencun Announcement

  • The Dencun upgrade, successfully activated on the Goerli testnet, is scheduled for Sepolia and Holesky. It includes EIPs for Ethereum's consensus and execution layers, introducing features like ephemeral data blobs. Validators are advised to update their clients.

World News

• LayerZero Expands Omnichain Reach with LandX, Lyve, and Ordiswap Integrations

  • LayerZero Labs has recently announced several partnerships and integrations with decentralized protocols in the blockchain space.

• Polygon Labs Unveils AggLayer: Unifying Blockchain Liquidity with ZK Proofs

  • Polygon Labs introduces AggLayer, a novel blockchain scaling paradigm combining monolithic and modular designs through ZK proofs. AggLayer unifies liquidity, enhancing capital efficiency and cross-chain assets. Mainnet launch in February.

• Wrapping up the KZG Ceremony

  • KZG Ceremony, a 208-day multi-party computation for EIP-4844, involved 141,416 contributors. Verifiable transcript, audits, and media coverage ensured security. Ethereum community's significant role acknowledged.

• EigenLabs: New LSTs, Decentralized Restaking, and Unpause Schedule Update

  • EigenLabs announces updates for the mainnet launch, introducing three new LSTs and removing individual caps on LSTs for organic demand. A new restaking points allocation approach ensures decentralization. Restaking window unpause shifted to February 5.

• OP Labs Proposes Superchain Upgrade for Enhanced Incident Response Capabilities

  • OP Labs proposes a protocol upgrade for Superchain incident response, introducing a SuperchainConfig contract for unified pause functionality. The upgrade focuses on L1 smart contracts, enhancing security across OP Chains.

Highlights of Ethereum Devs Call

During the ACDC call #126 on January 23, 2024, Ethereum developers, led by Danny Ryan, discussed priorities for the upcoming Electra upgrade. Confirmed EIPs for inclusion in Electra included EIP 6110, EIP 7002, and EIP 7549, focusing on validator deposits, execution layer triggerable exits, and improving consensus vote aggregation efficiency. The team opted not to prioritize EIPs 6914 and 7547 to keep the upgrade narrow. Updates on the Deneb upgrade were shared, with test networks Sepolia and Holesky scheduled for activation.

Discussions on complex EIPs, such as increasing the maximum effective balance and forced transaction inclusion, revealed differing opinions on prioritization. Further discussions on Peer Data Availability Sampling (PeerDAS) were deferred. Additionally, SSZ-related EIPs and proposed changes to the staking reward curve were introduced for consideration in future calls.

• Read More: Ethereum developers planning for an Enhanced Consensus, Trustless Staking Pools, and L2 Data Availability
• Watch Here: Consesnsus Layer Call 126

Tech Articles

• EIP - 7045 Increase Max Attestation Inclusion Slot
  EIP-7045 introduces a crucial Ethereum upgrade, extending attestation inclusion slots for improved security and efficiency. The article delves into its motivation, technical changes, implications, and impact on consensus and security.

• EIP-1153 and Transient storage
  EIP-1153 introduces transient storage, revolutionizing Ethereum's data handling. It addresses gas inefficiencies, enhancing smart contract performance. Explore its impact on inter-frame communication and gas cost efficiency.

• Eip - 7516 : BLOBBASEFEE opcode
  EIP proposes BLOBBASEFEE opcode for smart contracts to manage blob data costs efficiently. It enables trustless accounting and blob gas futures with a gas cost of 2, aligning with conventions, ensuring seamless integration and minimal impact on backward compatibility.

• EIP-7044- "Perpetually Valid Signed Voluntary Exits on Capella.
  EIP-7044 revolutionizes Ethereum's staking by introducing perpetual validity for signed voluntary exits on Capella. This streamlines operations, ensures Consensus Layer compatibility, and mandates transitioning pre-signed exits to the Capella fork domain. The proposal simplifies staking.

• EIP-4844 Explored: The Future of Shard Blob Transactions in Ethereum
  What are blobs? Working of Blobs to support Layer 2 projects. EIP4844 deep dive, key features and other use case.

Podcasts

• The Black Swan Event That Could Cause a Fork in Ethereum (Again) - Ep. 600:

  • Show highlights:
    🔹 What a consensus issue is in Ethereum and what happened with Nethermind last weekend
    🔹 Why it would be a big problem if a supermajority client had a bug
    🔹 The potential impact on staking services such as Lido

• OG Olaf Carlson-Wee on Why His Crypto Thesis Is Stronger Than Ever - Ep. 598:

  • Show highlights:
    🔹Why Olaf sees the current market as the cusp of another bull run and how his thesis has remained consistent since 2011​​
    🔹How the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs marks a significant milestone
    🔹Why criticisms of the crypto space are really criticisms of money in general
    🔹The fundamental differences between Web3 and Web2 apps and why they matter
    🔹The importance of fair token distribution in enhancing the value of Web3 projects
    🔹When Olaf expects Bitcoin to replace legacy financial systems

• The Ethereum L2 Token Thesis:

  • Are L2 tokens worthless governance coins? Will they accrue value? Are L2 tokens bullish? Ryan and David dive into the details in this week’s episode of Bankless Takes.

• 206 - Decentralized Science | Brian Armstrong & Patrick Joyce:

  • In this episode, we explore the history of science, the pitfalls of TradFi, and how we can use crypto technology to build better incentive mechanisms for a more enlightened future.

• PEEPanEIP#125: ERC-6982: Efficient Default Lockable Tokens with Francesco Sullo #erc #gas #ethereum:

  • Discussion - https://ethereum-magicians.org/t/erc-6982-default-lockable-proposal/13366

Tech Explainers

ETH Withdrawals: Everything You Need to Know
Validators, Ethereum's Validator Lifecycle, Types of Withdrawals, EIP-4895, How to make your Validator ready for Withdrawal?, EIP-4736 & Shapella Mainnet

The Future of Ethereum Goerli Testnet
What is Goerli Testnet?, Why Developers like Goerli?, Goerl Shapella, Future of Goerli Testnet & Holesky Testnet

How to Become Validator for Ethereum Blockchain?
Staking, Setup Node, Roles & Responsibilities

Client Diversity
Execution Layer, Consensus Layer, Why there is a need for multiple clients?, Advantages & Risks

Reth: Ethereum Execution Layer Client Written in Rust
Why new client?, Goals, Reth Book, Launch Date & Akula

ELI5 Explainers

We have tried to explain common ethereum blockchain concepts in under 60 seconds.

1. What is an Ethereum Account?
2. Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) Vs Contract Accounts
3. What is an Ethereum Transaction?
4. Ethereum Transaction Lifecycle
5. What is Ethereum Validator?

Readers can follow more short videos here.

Client Updates

• Execution Layer:

  • Nethermind 1.25.3
  • Geth 1.13.11
  • Erigon 2.57.1
  • Besu 234.1.1

• Consensus Layer:

  • Teku 24.1.1
  • Nimbus 24.1.2
  • Prysm 4.2.0
  • Lodestar 1.14.0
  • Lighthouse 4.6.0

Events

• Feb 28: ETHGlobal Pragma
• Mar 16-17: ETHVietnam
• M19-24: Ethereum Brasil
• March 19-24: Ethereum Rio
• Apr 19-21: ETHDubai

Jobs

• Content Manager at Coinshift
• Smart Contract Engineer at Across
• Blockchain Research Enginee at ChainSafe Systems
• Sales Representative at Chainafe Systems
• Senior BlockOps Engineer (Golang) - Sygma at ChainSafe Systems