PRISM: A Blockchain-Enabled Reputation-Based Consensus for Enhancing Scientific Workflow Provenance
Document Type
Conference Proceeding
Publication Date
2023
Abstract
Recent surveys and reports have shed a spotlight on the disconcerting prevalence of scientific fraud, prompting the call for robust systems to uphold integrity in scientific research. In this paper, we introduce PRISM, a novel blockchain-based solution designed to address the challenges of storing provenance records for scientific workflows on a decentralized ledger. PRISM aims to enhance the reputability of scientific findings by providing a flexible and dynamic framework that accommodates the evolving nature of scientific research. We introduce a reputation-based quorum consensus protocol (POER) that involves two pivotal actors: miners and quorum members. Reputation is a central aspect of the protocol, motivating miners to provide accurate and timely results. The quorum composition dynamically adjusts after each block addition to involve the most trustworthy and effective nodes in decision-making processes. We describe the process of selecting quorum members using reputation and task sharding to efficiently divide workflow tasks among miners. Additionally, we outline the capability of PRISM to support workflow modifications, allowing researchers to adapt workflows during experiments while maintaining complete transparency and immutability. Our experimental evaluation highlights the fairness and scalability of PRISM.
Publication Information
Miller, Matthew; Williams, Skarlet; Dagher, Gaby G.; and Long, Min. (2023). "PRISM: A Blockchain-Enabled Reputation-Based Consensus for Enhancing Scientific Workflow Provenance". In 2023 IEEE 9th International Conference on Collaboration and Internet Computing (CIC) (pp. 72-81). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/CIC58953.2023.00019