National Institute of Technology (NIT) Andhra Pradesh started a short-term online course on February 7, 2022 to provide an overview on public and private blockchains to engineering students, IT professionals and researchers.

According to a press communique from the institute, the course is open for Computer Science engineers, research scientists with interest in blockchains, and IT professionals working as blockchain architects, blockchain developers, and blockchain network operators.

The course, which aims to provide in-depth information on blockchain and its history, is being offered under Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) initiative of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, NIT Andhra Pradesh.

The course, named ‘A Technical Overview of Public and Private Blockchains’, will conclude on February 11.

Nagesh Bhattu Sristy, Goutham Reddy Srilatha Chebrolu and Raghava Rao Manubrolu from the Department of Computer Science Engineering, NIT Andhra Pradesh are the organising committee members for this GIAN course.

The primary objectives of the course are:

• Exposing participants to the current state-of-the-art public and private blockchains
• Providing tools which would help the participants critically evaluate the problems that could be addressed through blockchain technology
• Providing exposure to architectural overview and drawing a contrast between public and private blockchains
• Presenting practical problems and offering solutions through case studies in blockchains
• Highlighting several research and development efforts that are underway and some challenges that lie ahead

Ramki Thurimella, professor emeritus, Department of Computer Science, University of Denver, US, spoke about the components of the course and extended his best wishes to the participants of this course.

The course components will take a critical look at the architectural elements of public and private blockchains and discuss various trade-offs. In a bid to demystify the technology behind blockchains, the course will demonstrate that not all pieces of the blockchain puzzle are created equal.

Special lectures, case study sessions and hands-on laboratory sessions will be organised for the participants during the six-day course.