Evidence Blockchain: Building Trust in Research

🔷 Why Use the Evidence Blockchain?

Traditional research faces significant challenges in maintaining trust across institutions and documenting methodological decisions. Evidence Blockchain addresses these problems by:

• Immutably recording every hypothesis and piece of supporting evidence
• Validating findings through team-based Proof of Authority consensus
• Creating trust in research findings through transparent validation
• Accelerating adoption of validated research across institutions
• Saving time by streamlining the peer review and validation process

🔷 Module Components

The Evidence Blockchain module consists of four main components:

1. Blockchain Control Panel

Provides overall blockchain management capabilities:

• Monitor blockchain status
• Create new blocks
• Manage validation operations
• Save and verify blockchain state

2. Hypothesis Evidence Widget

Interface for managing hypotheses and their associated evidence:

• View all hypotheses ready for blockchain submission
• Submit hypotheses to the blockchain
• Add statistical evidence to hypotheses
• Add literature evidence to hypotheses

3. Blockchain Explorer

Visual interface for exploring the entire evidence chain:

• View the complete blockchain
• Examine individual blocks and transactions
• Verify block validity
• Track evidence validation history

4. Validator Management

Tools for configuring the validation process:

• Define validator teams
• Assign validation permissions
• Set validation requirements
• Review and approve pending validations

🔷 Basic Workflow

Step 1: Submit a Hypothesis

1. Navigate to the Evidence section
2. From the hypotheses list, select the one you want to submit
3. Click Push to Blockchain
4. Wait for confirmation that your hypothesis has been submitted
5. Note the blockchain ID assigned to your hypothesis

Step 2: Add Statistical Evidence

1. Select your hypothesis from the list
2. Click Push Model Evidence
3. Select the statistical test results to include
4. Add any notes or context
5. Submit the evidence
6. Verify the evidence appears in the hypothesis details

Step 3: Add Literature Evidence

1. Select your hypothesis from the list
2. Click Push Literature Evidence
3. Select the literature references to include
4. Specify relevance and strength ratings
5. Submit the evidence
6. Verify the evidence appears in the hypothesis details

Step 4: View in Blockchain Explorer

1. Navigate to the Explorer tab
2. Locate your hypothesis block
3. Click to expand and view details
4. Verify all evidence appears correctly

🔷 Advanced Features

Validator Team Configuration

Establish teams of trusted experts to validate research evidence:

1. Navigate to Validator Management
2. Select a research team
3. Check the "Validator" box for qualified team members
4. Set validation requirements:
   • Number of required validations
   • Validation threshold time
5. Click Save Validator Changes

Evidence Validation Process

For team members designated as validators:

1. Navigate to Validator Management
2. Review pending blocks in the validation table
3. Examine the evidence and methodology
4. Select the block to validate
5. Click Validate Selected
6. Add any validation notes

Block Management

For administrators and advanced users:

1. Navigate to Control Panel
2. Click Create Block to package pending transactions
3. Monitor block status in the pending blocks list
4. Use Verify Operations to check blockchain integrity
5. Regularly Save Blockchain to preserve state

Force Validation (Admin Only)

For time-sensitive situations where immediate validation is required:

1. Navigate to Validator Management
2. Use Admin Controls at the bottom
3. Click Force Validate All Pending Blocks
4. Confirm the action
5. Blocks will be immediately confirmed

🔷 Integration with Other Modules

The Evidence Blockchain connects seamlessly with other CareFrame modules:

Research Planning

Hypotheses created in the Planning module are automatically available for blockchain submission.

Data Analysis

Statistical test results can be pushed directly to the blockchain from the Analysis module:

1. In Analysis, run your statistical test
2. Click Save to Evidence Chain
3. Select the associated hypothesis
4. The evidence is automatically formatted and submitted

Literature Search

Evidence extracted from publications can be linked to blockchain entries:

1. In Literature Search, extract claims from papers
2. Click Add to Evidence
3. Select the associated hypothesis
4. The literature evidence is automatically formatted and submitted

Network Sharing

Validated evidence can be shared across institutions:

1. Navigate to Network
2. Select "evidence" as the topic
3. Reference blockchain evidence IDs in messages
4. Subscribing instances receive verified evidence

🔷 Example Use Case: Multi-Center Validation

🔷 Troubleshooting

Common Issues and Solutions

Issue	Solution
"No validators available" error	Add validators in Validator Management or use admin force validation
Transaction not appearing in block	Create a new block to package pending transactions
Slow validation process	Increase number of validators or set up notification reminders
Block verification failure	Check for chain integrity issues with Verify Operations
Missing evidence	Ensure evidence was properly submitted and block was created

🔷 Best Practices

For Research Quality

• Submit hypotheses to blockchain before collecting data to prevent bias
• Include detailed methodology information with all evidence
• Add both supporting and contradicting evidence to maintain objectivity
• Assign validators with diverse expertise to ensure thorough review
• Document validation decisions and reasoning

For Time Efficiency

• Configure validation email alerts to speed up review process
• Use batch evidence submission for multiple related findings
• Set up regular blockchain verification and saving schedule
• Consider time-zone distribution when assigning validators
• Create standardized evidence templates for common test types

🔷 Next Steps

After mastering the Evidence Blockchain module:

• Explore the Network Module to share validated evidence
• Review the Protocol Module to develop implementation guidelines
• Learn about Advanced Validation for cross-institutional research