# cryptocurrency mining

> generation of new monetary units through computing cryptographic hashes of transaction data

**Wikidata**: [Q21769973](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q21769973)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining_(crypto-currency))  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/cryptocurrency-mining

## Summary
Cryptocurrency mining is the process of generating new monetary units by computing cryptographic hashes of transaction data. This activity is fundamental to the creation and verification of digital currency within a decentralized network.

## Key Facts
*   **Aliases**: cryptomining, mining, Cryptocurrency mining
*   **Definition**: Generation of new monetary units through computing cryptographic hashes of transaction data.
*   **Subclass of**: Cryptography, process, and computation.
*   **Practiced by**: Miners.
*   **Product**: Digital currency.
*   **Facet of**: Cryptocurrency.
*   **Wikipedia Title**: Mining (crypto-currency).
*   **Sitelink Count**: 10.
*   **Subreddit**: cryptomining.
*   **Zhihu Topic ID**: 19632214 (挖矿).

## FAQs
### Q: What is cryptocurrency mining?
A: Cryptocurrency mining is the generation of new monetary units through computing cryptographic hashes of transaction data. It is a core process for creating and verifying digital currency.

### Q: What does cryptocurrency mining produce?
A: Cryptocurrency mining produces digital currency, which includes new monetary units that are introduced into circulation.

### Q: Who practices cryptocurrency mining?
A: Cryptocurrency mining is practiced by individuals or entities referred to as "miners."

### Q: What are some related concepts to cryptocurrency mining?
A: Related concepts include bitcoin mining, cryptojacking, and Hard Drive Mining, all of which involve aspects of generating or acquiring cryptocurrencies.

## Why It Matters
Cryptocurrency mining is a critical process that underpins the functionality and security of many decentralized digital currencies. It serves several vital roles: it validates transactions, adds them to a public ledger (often a blockchain), and introduces new units of the cryptocurrency into circulation. This mechanism ensures the integrity of the network by making it computationally intensive and costly to tamper with transaction history, thereby preventing fraud and double-spending. Without mining, new digital currency units would not be created, and the decentralized verification of transactions would cease, undermining the fundamental principles of many cryptocurrencies. It represents a novel application of computational power to maintain a secure, distributed financial system, influencing discussions around energy consumption, technological innovation, and the future of finance.

## Notable For
*   **Generation of New Units**: It is the primary method for introducing new monetary units of many digital currencies into circulation.
*   **Transaction Verification**: It involves computing cryptographic hashes to validate and secure transaction data, ensuring network integrity.
*   **Decentralized Security**: It provides a decentralized mechanism for securing and maintaining the ledger of transactions without relying on a central authority.
*   **Computational Intensity**: It is characterized by its reliance on significant computational power to solve complex cryptographic puzzles.
*   **Foundation for Bitcoin**: It is the underlying process for "bitcoin mining," which creates new bitcoin blocks.

## Body

### Definition and Purpose
Cryptocurrency mining is defined as the generation of new monetary units. This process is achieved through computing cryptographic hashes of transaction data. It is a fundamental activity within the cryptocurrency ecosystem, essential for the creation of digital currency.

### Classification
Cryptocurrency mining is classified as:
*   A subclass of **cryptography**, which is the practice and study of secure communication techniques.
*   A subclass of **process**.
*   A subclass of **computation**.
*   A facet of **cryptocurrency**.

### Related Entities and Concepts
*   **Part of / Parent Concepts**:
    *   **cryptography**: The broader field of secure communication techniques.
    *   **computational mathematics**: An area of mathematics involving computation.
    *   **bitcoin mining**: A specific process of creating new bitcoin blocks, which is a form of cryptocurrency mining.
    *   **Hard Drive Mining**: Another specific method of mining.
    *   **cryptojacking**: The malicious act of hijacking a target's processing power to mine cryptocurrency for a hacker.
    *   **Mine survey**: (Note: This appears to be a distinct concept from the mining of cryptocurrencies, likely related to geological mining, but is listed in the provided source as a parent/part of).
*   **Related Entities**:
    *   **BTCC**: A cryptocurrency exchange founded in June 2011 in Hong Kong.
    *   **Petr Šnapka**: A Czech economist, university teacher, and programmer.
    *   **Carlos Valle Vidal**: A Chilean researcher and teacher.
    *   **Marcel Brejcha**: An entrepreneur, programmer, and mining engineer born in 1966.
    *   **SMEAG**: A Polish research institution established in 1976 in Katowice.

### Associated Terms and Identifiers
*   **Aliases**: cryptomining, mining, Cryptocurrency mining.
*   **Practiced by**: Miners.
*   **Product or Material Produced**: Digital currency.
*   **Subreddit**: cryptomining.
*   **Wikipedia Title**: Mining (crypto-currency).
*   **Commons Category**: Cryptocurrency mining.
*   **Wikipedia Languages**: commons, en, eu, fr, ja, ru, sah, uk, zh.
*   **Zhihu Topic ID**: 19632214 (with the qualifier '挖矿').
*   **Google Knowledge Graph IDs**: /g/11b7n_tmtk, /g/11f615420x.
*   **Sitelink Count**: 10.
*   **Image**: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Стойка_с_Ares256,_дата-центр.jpg

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  "@type": "Thing",
  "name": "cryptocurrency mining",
  "description": "Generation of new monetary units through computing cryptographic hashes of transaction data.",
  "sameAs": [
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    "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining_(crypto-currency)"
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    "https://schema.org/Cryptography"
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}

## References

1. [INCENTIVO AL DESARROLLO SUSTENTABLE DE LA INDUSTRIA DE LA CRIPTOMINERIA](https://www4.hcdn.gob.ar/dependencias/dsecretaria/Periodo2021/PDF2021/TP2021/4610-D-2021.pdf)