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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Number Theory and Cryptography by University of California San Diego

4.5
stars
599 ratings

About the Course

A prominent expert in the number theory Godfrey Hardy described it in the beginning of 20th century as one of the most obviously useless branches of Pure Mathematics”. Just 30 years after his death, an algorithm for encryption of secret messages was developed using achievements of number theory. It was called RSA after the names of its authors, and its implementation is probably the most frequently used computer program in the world nowadays. Without it, nobody would be able to make secure payments over the internet, or even log in securely to e-mail and other personal services. In this course we will start with the basics of the number theory and get to cryptographic protocols based on it. By the end, you will be able to apply the basics of the number theory to encrypt and decrypt messages, and to break the code if one applies RSA carelessly. You will even pass a cryptographic quest! As prerequisites we assume only basic math (e.g., we expect you to know what is a square or how to add fractions), basic programming in python (functions, loops, recursion), common sense and curiosity. Our intended audience are all people that work or plan to work in IT, starting from motivated high school students....

Top reviews

SS

Aug 1, 2020

I loved this course! It is unlike any I have taken before. All courses in this specialization have always included fun activities to make the taught content fun and understandable.

PW

Nov 22, 2018

I was really impressed especially with the RSA portion of the course. It was really well explained, and the programming exercise was cleverly designed and implemented. Well done.

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126 - 133 of 133 Reviews for Number Theory and Cryptography

By Pratyush A

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Jul 15, 2020

The course is good, the topics covered are nice. The problem is that they don't teach examples very well. The last few quizzes will be tough and it will be hard to complete the course if you don't have good coding skills. The topics are interesting, that's what made me stick to the course. Also the professor's accent is a little difficult to understand.

By Matthew W

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Dec 2, 2017

The quiz from the RSA segment is a drag. The reason is that I don't see the implementation of the "given" functions and debugging via the text box provided is annoying. The first 3 segments are well prepared and have enough information for someone like me to pursuit this topic further.

By Ingrid Z E

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Jul 28, 2020

Last chapter was way too challenging compared to the previous ones. I had a really tough time with the assignments. Otherwise, a very nice course !

By Long C

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Dec 25, 2021

OJ system is not good and support should be better.

By Shubham U

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Apr 29, 2020

The instructor sometimes rushed through the content.

By Howoo J

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Jul 8, 2020

Tough course for non-math

By Ishrar C

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May 17, 2020

needs more examples for the theorems. they emphasize on the proofs more than making us understand the theorems. otherwise, okay.

By Chen H

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Jun 28, 2024

not good