To cite this page | Internet Policy Review

APA

De Filippi, P., Wray, C., & Sileno, G. (2021). Smart contracts. Internet Policy Review, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.14763/2021.2.1549

American Psychological Association. For more info, see https://www.apastyle.org

Chicago

De Filippi, Primavera, Wray, Chris and Sileno, Giovanni. 2021. "Smart contracts". Internet Policy Review 10 (2). DOI: 10.14763/2021.2.1549. https://policyreview.info/glossary/smart-contracts.

Chicago Referencing Style. For more info, see https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org

Harvard

De Filippi, Primavera, Wray, C. & Sileno, G. (2021). Smart contracts. Internet Policy Review,[online] 10(2). Available at: https://policyreview.info/glossary/smart-contracts [Accessed: 28 Aug. 2026].

Harvard Referencing Style

MLA

De Filippi, Primavera, Wray, Chris, and Sileno, Giovanni. "Smart contracts". Internet Policy Review 10.2 (2021). Web. 28 Aug. 2026.

Modern Language Association, 7th Ed. For more info, see https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/index.html

Vancouver

De Filippi P, Wray C, Sileno G. Smart contracts. Internet Policy Review [Internet]. 2021 [28 August 2026];10(2). Available from: https://policyreview.info/glossary/smart-contracts

Vancouver Style. For more info, see https://library.vcc.ca/media/vcc-library/content-assets/documents/VancouverStyleGuide.pdf

Volume 15, Issue 1

Science-on-chain: How can we trust science again?

Benjamin Heurich, Institute for Applied Blockchain (IABC)
Bence Lukács, Institute for Applied Blockchain (IABC)
Lukas Weidener, UMIT Tirol - Private University for Health Sciences and Health Technology
PUBLISHED ON: 26 Jan 2026 DOI: 10.14763/2026.1.2070

A sociological analysis of the term ‘trust’ in the context of blockchain technology and science.

KEYWORDS: Trust, Open science, Decentralisation, Systems theory, Blockchain

This op-ed explores how blockchain could catalyse a global, open alternative to the current scientific system.

This paper focuses on the dynamics of accountability in blockchain governance. Drawing on a case study of the Lido protocol on Ethereum, it explores the rule of code, on-chain accountability, accountability trade-offs, and the complexities of determining when accountability can be better instantiated via on-chain or off-chain mechanisms.

KEYWORDS: Blockchain, Accountability, Governance, Rule of code, Design

This paper investigates decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) as a potential policy response to the issue of declining trust online and argues that while DAOs have privileged displacing the need for trust, they can also be designed to nourish trust thereby fostering participation and prosocial use cases.

KEYWORDS: Blockchain, Trust, Decentralised Autonomous Organisations (DAOs), Ethnography, Governance

The idea of decentralising social media is driven by historical concerns over centralised power structures and the more contemporary issue of content moderation policies.

KEYWORDS: Decentralisation, Fediverse, Blockchain, Peer-to-peer (P2P), Social media platforms

Internet Policy Review is an open access and peer-reviewed journal on internet regulation.

Scholars, regulators, journalists, activists, and other stakeholders publish in the journal in a variety of formats

Research articles: In-depth scholarly research papers and essays
Concepts: Critical reflections on emerging core concepts of the digital society
Editorials: Contextual or thematic introductions to special issues
Essays: Free-form yet in-depth contentions with issues of academic or social relevance
News: Journalistic reports on events of interest to the Internet Policy Review community
Opinions: Opinion pieces commenting on developments in the realm of internet policy
Open Abstract: Extended abstracts for works in progress that receive public peer review

Published by

Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society Center for Advanced Internet Studies in cooperation with additional partners

Special issue on the topic of
Inclusive by design? Participatory governance and the future of digital public spaces

Full call here

Additional indexing