Brothers, in the crypto world, we often hear various fancy terms: Layer 1 (L1), Layer 2 (L2), mainnet, sidechain... it makes our heads buzz.
In fact, the entire blockchain world is like building a house. And Layer 1 (the first layer of blockchain) is the foundation and load-bearing wall of this building.
If there is no Layer 1, the applications above (DeFi, NFT, GameFi) will all collapse. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana are all Layer 1, in fact.
Today, let's use plain language to clarify this "foundation."
1: What is Layer 1? (The King of Public Chains)
Layer 1, commonly known as **“public chain” or “mainnet.” It is an independent** blockchain network.
How to understand 'independence'? It means it has the final say. It doesn't need to ask others to help keep accounts, nor does it need to look at others' faces.
It has its own ledger: Records every transaction.
It has its own security (validators): Responsible for catching bad actors and ensuring safety.
It has its own money (native token):For example, BTC, ETH, SOL, used to pay tolls (Gas fees) and salaries.
The relationship between Layer 1 and Layer 2:
Layer 1 (L1): Just like the main roads of a city. All cars (transactions) ultimately have to run here.
Layer 2 (L2): Just like the elevated bridges built above the main roads. To avoid blocking the main road, everyone runs on the elevated road, and after finishing, they pay the toll to the main road.
2: What’s inside Layer 1? (Anatomy of a Sparrow)
No matter which public chain you look at, the core parts are roughly the same:
Nodes: Thousands of computers spread around the world, each storing a complete backup of the ledger. Even if half of them explode, the network won’t crash.
Consensus: Also known as the **“who makes the rules” rule**. Thousands of computers, who keeps the accounts? Who packages? There must be rules. (Details later)
Execution: If it is a 'smart' public chain like Ethereum, there also needs to be a place to run code (smart contracts) for the program to execute automatically.
Native Token: This is the lifeblood of a public chain. Who will work for you without money?
3: How do they reach consensus? (Consensus Mechanism)
This is the core difference of public chains. Just like every company has different management systems:
PoW (Proof of Work) — Bitcoin model
Plain explanation: The one with more power gets to decide. Miners desperately use their computers to solve math problems (consuming electricity), and whoever solves it first has the right to keep accounts and receive rewards.
Features: Unmatched security, but slow and power-consuming.
PoS (Proof of Stake) — Ethereum model
Plain explanation: The one with more money gets to decide. Validators stake their money (ETH) in the system, and the more they stake, the greater the chance of keeping accounts.
Features: Energy-efficient, slightly faster.
PoH (Proof of History) — Solana model
Plain explanation: Give each transaction a timestamp. This way, everyone doesn't need to repeatedly confirm 'who comes first', just queue by time, speed is super fast.
Features: Extremely fast, suitable for high-frequency trading.
4: The 'Five Major Sects' of Public Chains
The hottest Layer 1 on the market now, each with its own special skills:
Bitcoin (BTC):
Positioning: Digital gold.
Features: The oldest, slowest, but the most stable. Mainly used for saving money, not suitable for running complex programs.
Ethereum (ETH):
Positioning: World Computer.
Features: The strongest ecosystem, the most applications. Although it used to be very congested, after the upgrade (The Merge), it became more environmentally friendly, now mainly relying on Layer 2 to expand its capacity.
Solana (SOL):
Positioning: High-frequency trading venue on Wall Street.
Features: Among all martial arts, speed is unmatched. The transaction fees are negligible, and it is also the hottest place for recent meme coins.
Cardano (ADA):
Positioning: Academic faction.
Features: All code must go through mathematical proofs, emphasizing rigor (even though the development progress is slow enough to make people anxious).
Avalanche (AVAX):
Positioning: Lego blocks.
Features: It allows you to customize a chain (subnet), with high flexibility.
5: The famous 'Impossible Triangle'
Vitalik (Ethereum founder) once said that creating a blockchain is like finding a partner, it’s hard to have money, be handsome, and be family-oriented at the same time.
This is the **“Blockchain Trilemma”**:
Decentralization: No one can control it.
Security: No one can attack it.
Scalability:Fast speed, large capacity.
The current situation is: It’s hard to achieve all three at once.
Bitcoin: Chose the first two, sacrificed speed.
Solana: Chose speed, sacrificed a bit of decentralization (high node configuration requirements, ordinary people can't run it).
Ethereum: Striving to break this curse through Layer 2 and sharding technology.
To summarize:
What is Layer 1? It is the physical laws and land of the Web3 world.
All the prosperous applications we see are houses built on this land.
This piece of land for Bitcoin is as stable as a mountain, suitable for building a vault.
This piece of land for Ethereum is worth its weight in gold, suitable for building a CBD (commercial center).
This piece of land for Solana is spacious and flat, suitable for building amusement parks and casinos.
Whichever land you favor, just buy the 'land deed' (token) for that piece of land, the logic is that simple!
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Disclaimer: The content published in this article aims to share business economic models and disseminate knowledge, not to provide any specific advice. The author does not participate, invest, operate, advise, share, or privately analyze any projects. We strongly recommend that you conduct independent research and analysis and make informed decisions based on your personal situation before making any decisions.
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