Dubbed the “silver to Bitcoin’s gold,” Litecoin (LTC). Lcoin aids antifragility in the Litecoin Network L. A higher level programming language.

Altcoin – a cryptocurrency which isn’t bitcoin. Includes Ethereum (see flippening), Litecoin, Ripple, Monero, Dash and about 800 others (see maximalist).

ASIC – Application Specific Integrated Circuit. These are the specialised silicon chips which process the SHA-256 algorithm to mine bitcoin and validate transactions. ASIC Miners – this is the hardware which houses the ASIC silicon chip.

Connected to the internet. Bitcoin – Digital money which is based upon cryptography, invented by Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitpay – Bitcoin processing company who allow merchants to accept bitcoin as a payment method. Blockchain – a distributed and peer to peer digital ledger. Block Reward – this is the cryptocurrency reward that miners receive for successfully hashing a transaction block. BTC – symbol for bitcoin Charlie Lee – creator of Litecoin. Charlie Shrem – flamboyant and early bitcoin entrepreneur.

Coinbase – world’s most popular and reliable cryptocurrency web wallet. Cold Storage – secure way of keeping cryptocurrencies off exchange. Cryptocurrency – generic term for digital and cryptography based money.

DAO – now de-listed, the distributed autonomous organisation set the record in May 2016 for the largest crowdfunding in history. Difficulty – the level of resistance encountered when trying to hash a new block in the bitcoin blockchain. ETH – symbol for Ether, token of the Ethereum blockchain. Ethereum – a decentralised platform that runs smart contracts. Exchange – where fiat money can be exchanged for bitcoin or altcoins. Faucet – a reward system on a website that dispenses bitcoin in the form of a Satoshi (a hundred millionth of a bitcoin) Fiat – the name for bank issued money, derived from the latin ‘let it be’. Flippening – the name given for the event where a cryptocurrency who surpasses bitcoin in market capitalisation (yet to happen at time of writing).

Forging – the name giving to the process in proof of stake blockchains where there is no block reward. Forgers keep transaction fees instead. Fork – what happens when a blockchain diverges into two potential paths forward. Genesis Block – the first block to be mined in a blockchain. Halving – the rate at which the block reward creates new bitcoin, halving every four years. Hard Fork – new blockchain software that is non-backwards compatible, causing a chain split. Hard Wallet – device which allows cold storage of coins, for increased security.

Hash – the name for an algorithm which takes an arbitrary sized data set and converts it to a fixed length and composition. Bitcoin uses the SHA-256 algorithm (converting to 256 bit data sets). Hash Rate – the amount of hashes a miner can perform in a period of time.

HODL – crypto slang for hold your coins. Initial Coin Offerings – cryptocurrency often (but not always) built on Ethereum which raise money on the basis of an idea. Lightening Network – builds on networks like bitcoin and litecoin to allow off-chain settlements. Litecoin – digital silver, created by Charlie Lee for high frequency transactions. Rent Electra ECA Mining.

Uses the scrypt hashing algorithm. LTC – symbol for Litecoin Market Capitalisation – the value of cryptocurrency as determined by price (x) circulating supply of coins. Maximalist – another crypto slang term for a bitcoin believer who is sceptical of altcoins. Mining – the process used to create coins or tokens and verify transactions on a proof of work blockchain Moon – optimistic price projection often used in the crypto coin communities. Nick Szabo – creator of bitgold, an unimplemented forerunner of bitcoin. Thought by some to be Satoshi Nakamoto, which he always denies. OCD – Obsessive Cryptocurrency Disorder.

Suffered by those who can’t stop monitoring the value of their coins. Paper Wallet – a form of cold storage. These are public and private keys held on a piece of paper.

A good designer can make them look like branded bank notes. Poloniex – popular cryptocurrency exchange.

Private Key – a secret number that allows bitcoins to be spent. Proof of Work – this is difficult and costly to produce, but easy to verify by others. The mechanism used in the bitcoin blockchain. Proof of Stake – a blockchain where there is no block reward or mining, as the creator is determined depending on stake (see forging). Less energy intensive than proof of work.

Public Key – usually represented as a bitcoin address, this is the information needed to receive bitcoin. Ripple – a pre-mined token used by banks for settlement, created and distributed by Ripple Labs. Satoshi Nakamoto – the pseudonymous creator of bitcoin. Scrypt – the hashing algorithm used by Litecoin. Segregated Witness – is a proposed scaling solution for bitcoin involving a soft fork. SHA-256 – the algorithm used for bitcoin hash creation (bitcoin’s proof of work). Silk Road – the first modern dark net market, achieved notoriety. Litecoin LTC Mining Hash Rate Calculator here.

Subsequently shut down by the FBI who then auctioned confiscated bitcoins. Smart contracts – applications that run as programmed, without external influence.

Soft Fork – new software that is backwards compatible, so the blockchain doesn’t split. Solidity – the programming language used by Ethereum. Vitalik Buterin – creator of Ethereum. Wallet – the software that allows the spending, receiving and storing of cryptocurrency. Winklevoss Twins – early proponents of bitcoin, tried to establish a bitcoin ETF (exchange traded fund) which was rejected in March 2017. XRP – symbol for Ripple.