Blockhead

BTC Block Rotation GUI - A mystical visualization of Bitcoin's SHA-256 mining algorithm.

Features

3D Rotating Block

• Real-time 3D cube visualization of Bitcoin blocks
• Colors derived from block hash
• Rotation speeds influenced by block data (nonce, timestamp)
• Hash segments displayed on cube faces

Tree of Life

• Kabbalistic Tree of Life (10 Sephirot) visualization
• Algorithm flow mapped to sacred geometry paths
• Animated data flow between nodes
• Each node represents a step in the SHA-256 process:
  • Kether (Crown) - Block Header
  • Chokmah/Binah - Initial hash rounds
  • Chesed/Geburah - Message scheduling and compression
  • Tiphareth - Working variables
  • Netzach/Hod - Hash updates and nonce iteration
  • Yesod - Double hash
  • Malkuth - Final block hash

Wheels Within Wheels

• Inspired by Ezekiel's vision
• 8 nested spinning wheels
• SHA-256 round constants (K values) displayed on wheel segments
• Speeds derived from block properties
• "Eyes" around the outer wheel watching the process
• Central hub displays current hash

Algorithm Panel

• Step-by-step SHA-256 visualization
• Mining simulation with progress tracking
• Real-time hash and nonce display
• Adjustable difficulty settings
• Visual indication of current algorithm step

Installation

Requirements

• Python 3.8+
• tkinter (usually included with Python)

Optional Dependencies

pip install pillow numpy

Running the Application

python main.py

Project Structure

Blockhead/
├── main.py              # Entry point
├── requirements.txt     # Dependencies
├── btc/                 # Bitcoin module
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── block.py         # BTCBlock data structure
│   └── algorithm.py     # SHA-256 algorithm representation
└── gui/                 # GUI components
    ├── __init__.py
    ├── main_window.py   # Main application window
    ├── btc_block_view.py    # 3D rotating block
    ├── tree_of_life.py      # Sacred geometry view
    ├── spinning_wheels.py   # Wheels within wheels
    └── algorithm_panel.py   # Algorithm display

Usage

Menu Options

• File > New Block - Generate a random block
• File > Load Genesis - Load Bitcoin's genesis block
• View > Toggle Animations - Start/stop all animations
• View > Reset View - Reset to default state
• Mining > Start/Stop Mining - Run mining simulation
• Mining > Set Difficulty - Adjust required leading zeros

Controls

• Speed Slider - Adjust wheel rotation speed
• Start Mining Button - Begin mining simulation
• Reset Button - Reset mining state

The Algorithm Visualization

The application visualizes Bitcoin's double SHA-256 mining process:

1. Block Header Assembly (80 bytes)

   • Version (4 bytes)
   • Previous block hash (32 bytes)
   • Merkle root (32 bytes)
   • Timestamp (4 bytes)
   • Difficulty bits (4 bytes)
   • Nonce (4 bytes)

2. SHA-256 Process

   • Message padding to 512-bit blocks
   • Initialize hash values (H0-H7)
   • Message schedule expansion (16 to 64 words)
   • 64 compression rounds with constants K0-K63
   • Add compressed values to hash
   • Apply SHA-256 again (double hash)

3. Mining

   • Compare hash to target difficulty
   • Increment nonce and repeat until valid

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file.

Author

Zero2oneZ - 2026