{
 "@context": "https://schema.org",
 "@type": "DefinedTerm",
 "@id": "https://wulfkaal.github.io/entities/cap-theorem",
 "identifier": "kaal:entity:cap-theorem",
 "name": "Cap theorem",
 "termCode": "cap-theorem",
 "inDefinedTermSet": {
  "@id": "https://wulfkaal.github.io/entities/index.json"
 },
 "author": {
  "@type": "Person",
  "name": "Wulf A. Kaal",
  "identifier": "https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0757-275X"
 },
 "dateModified": "2026-07-29",
 "canonicalForm": "https://wulfkaal.github.io/entities/cap-theorem.md",
 "sha256": "9ec862457686ce1554232594b502678a3fe47e7287ce1576456b9ddd42fcbbcc",
 "additionalProperty": [
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   "@type": "PropertyValue",
   "name": "status",
   "value": "derived"
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   "name": "claim_count",
   "value": 2
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   "value": 1
  },
  {
   "@type": "PropertyValue",
   "name": "year_span",
   "value": [
    "2018",
    "2018"
   ]
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  }
 ],
 "subjectOf": [
  {
   "@type": "Claim",
   "@id": "https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3125827-008",
   "identifier": "kaal:claim:3125827-008",
   "text": "Given that Byzantine faults are inevitable in a distributed system, the known impossibility results force any consensus protocol to hedge: it can promise only a probability of finality and security, and that probability is inversely proportional to liveness and speed.",
   "abstract": "Given the inevitable possibility of Byzantine faults in a distributed system, such results require any protocol to hedge, promising only a probability of finality and security inversely proportional to liveness and speed.",
   "citation": "Craig Calcaterra, Wulf A. Kaal, Secure Proof of Stake Protocol (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3125827",
   "datePublished": "2018",
   "claim_type": "condition",
   "confidence": "evidenced",
   "is_failure_mode": false,
   "scope_conditions": [
    "asynchronous distributed networks",
    "presence of Byzantine faults"
   ],
   "source_pdf_sha256": "598d9bd95e4af7a0a35328677c6bfc069f69f2e32c30c720b3a0be98a23a40cb",
   "status": "current"
  },
  {
   "@type": "Claim",
   "@id": "https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3125827-030",
   "identifier": "kaal:claim:3125827-030",
   "text": "A 67% active validator requirement would improve finality but is excluded from the initial SPoS implementation because, by the CAP theorem, it limits the availability of the system and arbitrarily punishes randomly selected producers when the network is partitioned.",
   "abstract": "More importantly, due to the CAP theorem33, it limits the availability of the system, which is why it is not included in the initial implementation.",
   "citation": "Craig Calcaterra, Wulf A. Kaal, Secure Proof of Stake Protocol (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3125827",
   "datePublished": "2018",
   "claim_type": "failure",
   "confidence": "argued",
   "is_failure_mode": true,
   "scope_conditions": [
    "network partitions occur",
    "consensus recognizes only blocks validated by a supermajority of active validators"
   ],
   "source_pdf_sha256": "598d9bd95e4af7a0a35328677c6bfc069f69f2e32c30c720b3a0be98a23a40cb",
   "status": "current"
  }
 ],
 "description": "2 claims in the published works of Wulf A. Kaal carry the concept tag 'cap-theorem'. Derived node: a roster, not an adjudicated definition."
}