Blockchain for Engineers: Understand, Measure, and Analyze without Smoke
A technical course for those who have always distrusted blockchain and want to understand what really happens beneath the marketing.
⚠️ Entrance Filter: Is this for you?
It is NOT for you if:
- You are looking for trading signals or “get rich quick”.
- You want to speculate with cryptocurrencies.
- You have no interest in measuring, reading logs, or auditing code.
It IS for you if:
- You are an engineer or have a technical mindset.
- You are uncomfortable with empty marketing (“Web3”, “Crypto”).
- You want to understand the distributed database before forming an opinion.
Course Map
Module 0 – Learning Blockchain as an EngineerModule 1 – The REAL Transaction (Not the Marketing One)Module 2 – Mempool and Transaction OrderingModule 3 – DEXs as Distributed SystemsModule 4 – What is MEV and Why it ExistsModule 5 – Real Risks and Responsible DesignModule 6 – Conclusion: Technical JudgmentModule 7 – Decentralized Governance (DAOs)Module 8 – Oracles and Real World DataModule 9 – Scalability: L2s and Rollups
Essential Kit
How to follow this course
- Read theory carefully, but validate everything with links and numbers.
- In every LAB: log data, calculate, explain, and write verifiable conclusions.
- Avoid narratives: don't say 'X surely happened'. Say 'X is observed because log Y shows Z'.
45-70 min
Module 0 – Learning Blockchain as an Engineer
Mindset, sources of truth, minimal metrics, and a reproducible method.
Objectives
- Distinguish data vs. narrative in blockchain.
- Know what to measure in a transaction and why.
- Write verifiable conclusions with links.
Key Concepts
- Explorer as an interface, not truth
- State, receipts, and logs
- Reproducibility and variable control
Lab (Checklist)
Identify timestamp, block number, and producer (if applicable).
Avoid complex swaps first; look for a simple transfer or interaction.
Hash, state, from/to, gas used, total fee, block, timestamp, logs.
10 lines with numbers and links; no adjectives.
70-110 min
Module 1 – The REAL Transaction (Not the Marketing One)
Transaction anatomy, receipts; gas, fees, and real cost with numbers.
Objectives
- Understand what is signed vs. what is executed.
- Calculate real cost using gas_used and effective gas_price.
- Read logs as execution evidence.
Key Concepts
- Gas limit vs. gas used
- EIP-1559: base fee and tip
- Receipt, logs, and revert
Lab (Checklist)
Find a tx with decodable input and logs.
Validate it matches the explorer (rounding tolerance).
Link events to the observed outcome.
Separate: execution complexity vs. network congestion.
60-90 min
Module 2 – Mempool and Transaction Ordering
What happens between send and confirm: pending, propagation, replacement, and intermediate risks.
Objectives
- Understand pending and why it's not final state.
- Explain replacement by fee and the role of nonce.
- Detect when state changed before your inclusion.
Key Concepts
- Mempool as a local view per node
- Nonce and replacements
- Latency and state changes
Lab (Checklist)
Use an explorer or viewer that shows pending txs.
Observation time, inclusion time, final block, and fee.
Find a speed-up case (same nonce) and explain.
What was predictable vs. what depended on network/ordering.
90-130 min
Module 3 – DEXs as Distributed Systems
A swap as a measurable process: pool, liquidity, slippage, fees, and real outcome.
Objectives
- Identify pool(s), routes, and internal transfers.
- Quantify slippage and price impact with data.
- Separate pool fee vs. network fee.
Key Concepts
- AMM and liquidity
- Slippage vs. price impact
- Multi-hop and events
Lab (Checklist)
Preferably Uniswap/Curve; ensure explorer decodes it.
Input/output, Swap events, and transfers.
Compare against reference (before swap) vs. execution.
Pool fee + gas fee, and which one dominates.
75-120 min
Module 4 – What is MEV and Why it Exists
MEV as a technical consequence of ordering; identify a historical case with evidence.
Objectives
- Define MEV without moralizing or exploiting it.
- Identify order and related transactions in a block.
- Justify a pattern with logs and balances.
Key Concepts
- Transaction ordering as a value surface
- Sandwich (conceptual) and evidence
- Why it's not a game for amateurs
Lab (Checklist)
Locate a historical sandwich (already occurred).
Before / Victim / After with numbers.
Inputs/outputs and fees; reasonable approximation.
System conditions that allowed it.
70-110 min
Module 5 – Real Risks and Responsible Design
Losses via parameters, UI, and decisions: slippage, approvals, and invisible fees.
Objectives
- Detect typical user errors based on data.
- Evaluate UI: what it hides and what it induces.
- Compare equivalent swaps and explain differences.
Key Concepts
- Slippage tolerance as risk control
- Approvals and permissions
- Total cost vs. visible cost
Lab (Checklist)
Same pair and similar size; analyze execution and cost.
Detect excessive permissions and how to revoke them.
What info was missing to avoid surprises.
Loss as a design/decision failure, not a 'hack' by default.
45-80 min
Module 6 – Conclusion: Technical Judgment
When blockchain makes sense and when it doesn't; close with optional end-to-end analysis.
Objectives
- Build a technical decision checklist.
- Identify smoke signals and assert with evidence.
- Execute a reproducible end-to-end analysis.
Key Concepts
- Useful properties vs. costs
- Judgment and evidence
- Decision matrix
Lab (Checklist)
A multi-hop swap or basic DeFi interaction.
When would you use it vs. when not, with technical arguments.
90-130 min
Module 7 – Decentralized Governance (DAOs)
When code is not law: voting, timelocks, delegation, and governance attacks.
Objectives
- Explain the proposal lifecycle: Propose, Vote, Execute.
- Understand Timelocks as defense against attacks.
- Analyze centralization risks in DAOs (plutocracy).
Key Concepts
- DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization)
- Timelock and Delay
- Delegated Voting
Lab (Checklist)
Find a controversial proposal (e.g., Uniswap Fee Switch) and see voting patterns.
80-120 min
Module 8 – Oracles and Real World Data
Blockchain is "autistic": bringing external data (prices, weather) without breaking security.
Objectives
- Understand the 'Oracle Problem': determinism vs external data.
- Analyze Chainlink architecture (DONs) and aggregation.
- Differentiate Spot price vs TWAP and risks.
Key Concepts
- The Oracle Problem
- Decentralized Oracle Networks (DONs)
- TWAP (Time-Weighted Average Price)
Lab (Checklist)
Identify what happens if the oracle freezes.
90-130 min
Module 9 – Scalability: L2s and Rollups
The Scalability Trilemma: how to make Ethereum fast and cheap without losing decentralization.
Objectives
- Understand the Trilemma: Decentralization, Security, Scalability.
- Analyze L2 architecture: Off-chain execution, On-chain data.
- Differentiate Optimistic vs ZK Rollups and trade-offs.
Key Concepts
- Scalability Trilemma
- Optimistic vs ZK Rollups
- EIP-4844 (Blobs) & Data Availability
Lab (Checklist)
Use Arbitrum/Optimism and see 'L1 Calldata Fee' on explorer.
Understand risks of multisig bridge vs trustless bridge.
Difference between 'Soft confirmation' (sequencer) and 'Hard confirmation' (L1 batch posted).