| Termcontext |
Globally meaningful terms are capitalized, and usually include subscripts. Term specifies the broader type, such as Stake, and the subscript context is used to specify the particular purpose and/or usage of this value. Terms are formatted as CamelCasesnake_case. |
| Tcontext |
Shorthand symbol for commonly used terms. The meaning can be memorized or looked up from the shorthand symbol table, as a specific letter always corresponds to a specific term. |
| TermGLOBAL_CONSTANT |
Hardcoded global constants have their subscript in capitals following the common programming convention. |
| C |
A particularly significant global constant can be expressed as a single capital letter. Where this letter corresponds to a shorthand symbol, the constant C is of the same type as terms Ccontext, and could alternatively be expressed as CIMPORTANT_CONSTANT. |
| Functioncontext(input) |
The value depends on input. Function can be (and usually is) a term that is normally used as a plain value: eg. Rsubmitter(T) means that the submitter reward varies depending on time |
| variablecontext |
A local value that is only used briefly, or may even be altogether unknown to uninvolved participants. |
Some meanings are used so often that it is useful to have single-letter terms for them. Each shorthand symbol maps to a specific longhand term.
TODO: Shorthands and terms have been matched to ensure each term maps to its initial wherever possible. The exception is Penalty and D (with disciplinary action as a mnemonic); alternatives or abolishing this shorthand should be considered.
| Vi |
Valuei The i-th output of the random beacon |
| Nctx |
Numberctx A number of operators or group members |
| Mctx |
Maliciousctx A number of malicious operators or group members |
| Gctx |
Groupctx Some specific group |
| Sctx |
Stakerctx Some specific staker |
| Pctx |
Participantctx A participant in some group |
| Tctx |
Timectx A block number used as an unambiguous measure of time |
| Rctx |
Rewardctx A reward for correct operation; tokens or currency |
| Dctx |
Penaltyctx A punishment for misbehavior (mnemonic: disciplinary action); always tokens |
Longhand terms should be self-explanatory wherever possible, and are explained locally where they are used. The meanings of some term types that are used regularly but don’t have a specific shorthand are listed below.
| Stakectx |
Some amount of tokens used for staking |
| Probctx |
The probability of some event |
| N |
H + M = 2M + 1 = 4Mnofail + 1 Number of participants in a group |
| H |
M + 1 = (N - 1)/2 + 1 Minimum number of honest participants in a group |
| M |
H - 1 = (N - 1)/2 Maximum number of malicious participants in a group beyond which security guarantees don’t hold |
| Mnofail |
M/2 = (N - 1)/4 Maximum number of disqualified participants in a group beyond which DKG will abort to preserve security |