> Cryptographers often consider things like merkle trees or signatures not ZK proofs but to be categories on their own ... but they totally do prove a statement without revealing all the knowledge.

No, merkle trees are not zero-knowledge proofs.

Murch

what are the advantages of this approach over utreexo where you download (to verify) but don't save the transactions?

. You prove something (an item is a node/leaf of the tree) without revealing the whole knowledge (all leaves).

It's used in Bitcoin for transactions - a more zk-proof-esque usage is in web crypto. When you connect to a website, the exsistence of a certificate revocation can be proven without downloading all certificates - just a few nodes in the tree.

Cryptographers often consider things like merkle trees or signatures not ZK proofs but to be categories on their own ... but they totally do prove a statement without revealing all the knowledge.

bitcoin

i read the luke dashjr hit piece - @udiWertheimer

kepford

> how does the zk proof work?
> what are the advantages of this approach over utreexo where you download (to verify) but don't save the transactions?

A merkle tree **IS A ZK PROOF**. You prove something (an item is a node/leaf of the tree) without revealing the whole knowledge (all leaves).

It's used in Bitcoin for transactions - a more zk-proof-esque usage is in web crypto. When you connect to a website, the exsistence of a certificate revocation can be proven without downloading all certificates - just a few nodes in the tree.

Cryptographers often consider things like merkle trees or signatures not ZK proofs but to be categories on their own ... but they totally do prove a statement without revealing all the knowledge.