Finding patterns in sha256 hashes

[mikkokotila]

It seems that sha256 encryption strength and solving the PoW puzzle in blockchain are not the same problem in terms of difficulty. Any pattern can be immediately useful for solving PoW puzzle, but not necessarily helpful for cracking sha256. What do you think?

[nikonyrh]

Well, PoW setup is looking for a hash which mathches a given pattern, but in the traditional cryptography you are looking for exact matches. Or at least matches from reduced rounds, or very near misses which can be studied further to build up a full hash collision-