Progress Milestones
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Self-paced pathways work best when learners can periodically check their understanding.
These milestones are not evaluations or requirements. They simply help you confirm that your understanding is progressing as expected.
If you can confidently explain the concepts below, you are likely on track with the pathway.
After completing Week 1, you should be able to explain:
The double-spend problem
Why Bitcoin uses a peer-to-peer network
The difference between Bitcoin as a protocol and bitcoin as a currency
How Bitcoin maintains a predictable monetary supply
You should now understand why Bitcoin was designed the way it was.
After completing Week 2, you should be able to explain:
The role of Bitcoin Core in the ecosystem
How public and private keys work
How Bitcoin addresses are derived
Why key management is fundamental to Bitcoin security
You should now understand how ownership of bitcoin is defined cryptographically.
After completing Week 3, you should be able to explain:
How Bitcoin transactions are structured
The purpose of inputs and outputs
How wallets track balances
How wallet recovery works
You should now understand how value actually moves across the Bitcoin network.
After completing Week 4, you should be able to explain:
How digital signatures prove ownership
The role of Bitcoin Script
How nodes verify that transactions are valid
Why signatures cannot be forged
You should now understand how Bitcoin ensures only the rightful owner can spend funds.
After completing Week 5, you should be able to explain:
How transactions propagate through the network
Why transaction fees exist
How nodes communicate and maintain the mempool
How miners choose which transactions to include in blocks
You should now understand how Bitcoin operates as a decentralized network.
After completing Week 6, you should be able to explain:
How blocks are created
How proof-of-work secures the network
How nodes reach consensus
Why forks and chain selection occur
You should now understand how Bitcoin maintains a shared global ledger.
After completing Week 7, you should be able to explain:
Bitcoin’s primary security assumptions
Major threat models to the network
Why scaling directly on-chain is difficult
How second-layer systems like Lightning extend Bitcoin
You should now understand how Bitcoin continues evolving while preserving its core properties.
If you can clearly explain how Bitcoin transactions are created, validated, propagated, and secured by the network, you have achieved the core objective of the Mastering Bitcoin pathway.
This foundational understanding prepares you to explore:
Bitcoin development environments
Bitcoin Core internals
Open-source contribution pathways
Advanced Bitcoin engineering topics
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