In cryptography and computer science, a hash tree or Merkle tree is a tree in which every leaf node is labelled with the hash of a data block, and every non-leaf node is labelled with the cryptographic hash of the labels of its child nodes. Hash trees allow efficient and secure verification of the contents of large data structures. Hash trees are a generalization of hash lists and hash chains.
Demonstrating that a leaf node is a part of a given binary hash tree requires computing a number of hashes proportional to the logarithm of the number of leaf nodes of the tree;
The concept of hash trees is named after Ralph Merkle who patented it in 1979.[2][3]
Leaf Node
Branch Node
what if the object changes? what if the postal address changes?
merkle trees mean forgoing benefits of sequential arrangement.
The main advantage of using a Merkle tree is that several important pieces of information can be verified regarding a particular data element or the data set as a whole without the need to have access to the full data set.
Demonstrating that a leaf node is a part of a given binary hash tree requires computing a number of hashes proportional to the logarithm of the number of leaf nodes of the tree;
The concept of hash trees is named after Ralph Merkle who patented it in 1979.[2][3]
Leaf Node Branch Node
what if the object changes? what if the postal address changes? merkle trees mean forgoing benefits of sequential arrangement.