What Is Ethereum’s “Difficulty Bomb”?

Ethereum’s “Difficulty Bomb” refers to the increasing difficulty level of puzzles in the mining algorithm used to reward miners with ether on its blockchain. As the puzzles become more complex (and miners find it more difficult to earn ether), there will be a substantial lag between production of blocks on ethereum’s blockchain. This will slow it down in exponential terms and its economics will become less attractive to miners. The onset of this scenario is referred to as “Ethereum’s Ice Age”. During this time, ethereum will transition from Proof of Work (PoW), which requires miners to earn ether by competing against each other to solve puzzles and earn rewards, to Proof of Stake (PoS), where rewards are distributed on the basis of staking or coin ownership. The switch between protocols will occur later this year as part of the Casper update on ethereum. The difficulty bomb will prevent forking of ethereum’s blockchain during that time.  

Why Was The…