Blockchain has become increasingly important in the cyber world. The job market and industry constantly look for skills in blockchain. The fundamental knowledge of blockchain arguably becomes the core knowledge in cybersecurity. At Monash, this topic has not been touched upon any unit. The proposal of this new unit is to address this situation and to offer an introductory blockchain unit to students, bridging the important knowledge and skill gap in this fast growing area.

20/9/2019: Admin - updating exam duration to include additional 10 minutes as per University requirement.

28/09/2020 - Admin: Update to include new assessment and teaching approach fields as per Handbook requirements.

This unit will be an elective in C6001 Master of Information Technology and C6002 Master of Networks and Security.

Upon successful completion of this unit students should be able to:

1. Evaluate the basic structure of a blockchain system, what is involved in designing such systems and strategy to maintain them.
2. Assess what consensus protocol is, what makes consensus work, and the limitation of each consensus protocol.
3. Investigate methods to preserve privacy for user and data in a blockchain system.
4. Demonstrate how blockchain systems can be applied into different disciplines such as healthcare, supply-chain.

029901

Blockchain is regarded as the next revolution of Internet. Applications are not just limited to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, but also extended to different interdisciplinary sectors. This unit is for students to develop basic knowledge of blockchain technology and how they can be used in real-world scenarios such as payment systems or supply-chain management. Learning activities will focus on understanding different blockchain systems, a broad landscape of supervised and unsupervised learning methods with a focus on the state-of-the-art knowledge for blockchain technologies including consensus, privacy-preserving protocols and smart contract which are rapidly used in different industries.

On-campus

Peer assisted learning

Examination (2 hours and 10 minutes): 50%; In-semester assessment: 50%

1. Class Test - 20% - ULO: 1, 2
2. Mini Research Project (group assignment) - 30% - ULO: 1, 2, 3, 4
3. End of semester exam - 50% - ULO: 1, 2, 3, 4

Minimum total expected workload equals 12 hours per week comprising:

• Two hours/week lectures
• Two hours/week laboratories

A minimum of 8 hours per week of personal study for completing lab/tutorial activities, assignments, private study and revision

FIT

FIT5163

Joseph Liu, JiangShan Yu