Abstract:
We will introduce modular arithmetic in the context of a freshman level discrete math class in computer science. In this teaching demonstration, results in number theory will be motivated by the application of encryption leading to an understanding of the RSA Cryptosystem. We will build on knowledge from the first few weeks of a discrete math class, practice writing proofs, and understand properties of modular arithmetic.
Biography:
Yael Gertner received her Bachelors and Masters degrees in computer science from MIT. She got her PhD in computer science from the University of Pennsylvania, working on the limits of cryptographic primitives. After that she was a postdoctoral fellow in the psychology department at Illinois and at the Beckman Institute, where she worked on how children acquire language. She has taught classes in computer science and psychology at MIT, UPenn, and Illinois.
Faculty Host: Tandy Warnow
