render formulas in chat

[grumpyp]

As a scientific user I want math formulas to be rendered. E.g.

The formula provided is for calculating the probability of an attacker catching up from a given deficit in a blockchain system, based on the Gambler's Ruin problem. The attacker's potential progress is assumed to follow a Poisson distribution, with an expected value of \ue0c1=zq p, where q is the probability an honest node finds the next block, p is the probability the attacker finds the next block, and z is the number of blocks behind the honest chain the attacker currently is.

To calculate the probability that the attacker could catch up now, the Poisson density for each amount of progress the attacker could have made is multiplied by the probability he could catch up from that point. This is then rearranged to avoid summing the infinite tail of the distribution.

The provided C code converts this formula into code and can be used to calculate the probability for various values of q and z. The probability drops exponentially with z, and the formula assumes p > q.

Overall, this formula and code are used to assess the security of a blockchain system and evaluate the likelihood of an attacker catching up with the honest chain.