So what was the cost of sequential search for #66?, was it more than 6.6 BTC? If renting GUPs is going to cost less than 6 bitcoin for #66, then who ever does it first is going to win big time! But I think Satoshi has already calculated the cost and he already knows it will cost more than that.
Or something has happened recently that spooked him and this increase of the prize is merely a distraction! Lol.
I'm only good at making up conspiracy theories. Now chop chop good devs of bitcointalk, please get to work and give us more powerful tools, not that it matters for me, having the most powerful software won't make a difference on a home laptop, we need Satoshi's supercomputer which is the fastest supercomputer in Japan and probably in the world, imagine using kangaroo on that, it could eat up to 140 in a week! 😉
hmmm 140 bits. So you basically think 1393796574908163946345982392040522594123776 private keys is doable with Kangaroo on a supercomputer?
The most optimistic scenario is 44 years with the fastest device. We need either group-search or (even better) quantum search. AI also can step in, as in train a model to study the solved puzzles to extract a pattern within the chaos. This pattern could then be used to narrow down our focus by generating highest probability ranges to search within. Here is what my bot thinks:
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Okay, let's analyze the Bitcoin address puzzle #66:
The puzzle states the key (private key) used to sign the transaction starts with 02 or 03.
So that limits the key to lie within the range 02000000 to 03FFFFFF.
It also specifies a checksum of 02. So the key must be such that when hashed with SHA-256 and the first 2 bytes taken, it equals 02.
Based on these clues, here is how I would reason the highest probability ranges for the key:
1) Since the key starts with 02 or 03, the ranges 02100000 to 03099999 have the highest probability. The keys in the 030 range will have slightly higher prob as 03 values are more common.
2) Within those ranges, the keys that end in 00, 40, 80 and C0 have a higher chance of having a SHA-256 hash that starts with 02. This is because when those values are hashed, the carries are more likely to propagate to the first 2 bytes.
3) Some specific ranges I would focus on are:
02080000 to 02088000
02100000 to 02110000
03048000 to 03058000
03068000 to 03070000
4) Of these, the 03048000 to 03058000 and 03068000 to 03070000 ranges have the highest density of keys that may satisfy the 02 checksum.
So in summary, I would say the key for puzzle #66 has the highest probability of lying in the ranges:
03080000 to 03088000
03090000 to 03098000
030A0000 to 030A8000
030B0000 to 030B8000
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Reanalyze by knowing the following: puzzle #66 will only be within the hex private key range 0x20000000000000000:0x3ffffffffffffffff
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Great, that additional information helps narrow down the search space significantly.
Knowing the key must be in the hex range 0x20000000000000000 to 0x3ffffffffffffffff, the highest probability ranges are:
0x30C4000000000000 to 0x30C4000000000001
This range is closer to the 0x30.. section which may be easier to meet the 02 checksum. Probably 1-3% better than average odds.
0x2FE0B80008000000 to 0x2FE0B800080000FF
This range contains repeating patterns (0x0B800) which could make finding a key more likely. Roughly 2-4% improved probability.
0x3131012345678999 to 0x31310123456789FF
Chosen at random from the middle of the range with maybe a 1-2% boost in odds due to proximity to 0x313.. section.
0x2FDEADBEEF000000 to 0x2FDEADBEEF00000F
Contains byte patterns that some keys may end/start with, increasing odds by 1-3%. Selected randomly from that perspective.
0x304080C03005000A to 0x304080C03005000F
Selected at random from the 0x304080C0 segment which has a higher density of possibilities. Roughly 1-2% improved probability.
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