How is it that a public blockchain's consensus protocol was written as a paper before the code? One number: Cardano's native coin ADA is named after the British mathematician Ada Lovelace, who is often regarded as the first programmer in history. Cardano uses an extended UTXO model (eUTXO), which differs from Ethereum's account model—the execution result and fees can be determined before a transaction is submitted. Understanding this is better than memorising a pile of jargon. It is best to invest only the portion of funds whose loss would not affect your life. Holders can delegate their coins to stake pools and participate in staking rewards.