Btrust Builders on Nostr: And that's a wrap for the Q1 2026 Mastering Bitcoin live cohort! 🎉 Over the last 7 ...

And that's a wrap for the Q1 2026 Mastering Bitcoin live cohort! 🎉

Over the last 7 weeks, we’ve worked through key chapters of Mastering Bitcoin and built a deeper understanding of how the Bitcoin protocol functions under the hood.

This week we wrapped things up with chapter 13: Bitcoin security and chapter 14: second‑layer applications.

Chapter 13 focused on how users can safely protect their bitcoin. Unlike traditional financial systems where banks secure accounts on behalf of users, bitcoin gives individuals full control over their funds through private keys. Because of this, security becomes the user’s responsibility. The chapter covered important practices such as protecting private keys, creating reliable backups, and reducing reliance on third parties. It also introduced approaches like hardware wallets and multisignature setups that can help improve the security of stored funds.

In chapter 14, we explored how systems can be built on top of Bitcoin to make transactions faster and more scalable. The chapter introduced several building blocks within bitcoin transactions, such as timelocks, multisignature scripts, and programmable spending conditions, which enable more advanced applications. It then explained payment channels, which allow users to transact many times off‑chain while only recording the opening and closing transactions on the blockchain. This concept forms the foundation of networks like the lightning network ⚡, where payments can be routed through multiple channels to enable fast and low‑cost transactions.

Throughout the week, participants reviewed the assigned materials, collaborated with their partners, and worked through discussion questions to deepen their understanding.

During the live session, participants shared insights with the group, and the faculty guided discussions around key ideas from the readings.