Introduction to Cryptology

This course gives an historical introduction to Cryptology, the science of making and breaking secret codes. It begins with the oldest recorded codes, taken from hieroglyphic engravings, and ends with the encryption schemes used to maintain privacy during Internet credit card transactions. Since secret codes are based on mathematical ideas, each new encryption method discussed in this course leads to the study of new mathematical ideas and results. Topics covered include basic modular arithmetic, primes and divisors, permutations and elementary statistics. This course will also cover the social and historical aspects associated to Cryptology.