Math 470.200
Final Paper
November 7, 2011
Due: by Tuesday, December 6, in class (no exceptions).
Overview: Your project will be to research a chosen topic and provide an overview in 4–5 typed
pages (double-spaced with one-inch margins). The objective is to learn and write about either (1) a
topic that we will not cover in class, or (2) a topic that we have covered in class but in additional
depth. Each paper should include at least one fairly comprehensive mathematical example or
one detailed mathematical proof (or both!). You can learn much of the material you will need
from chapters in Trappe & Washington — however, good papers will synthesize additional source
material.
Paper Topic: Above all, pick a topic that you are enthusiastic about and your paper will be that
much easier to write! You may propose your own topic, but there are some suggestions below. If
you are unsure what to pick, please stop by to talk with me about it during office hours or after
class. You need to let me know before Thanksgiving break what topic you have chosen (by e-mail,
map@math.tamu.edu).
Suggested Topics: Some of the topics below are quite broad, so once you have chosen a topic,
you may need to narrow it down a bit. Please consult with me if you need some suggestions about
how to streamline your topic or about additional source material.
• Enigma and other Historical Cryptosystems (Chapter 2)
• The Data Encryption Standard (DES) / The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)
(Chapters 4–5)
• Additional Investigations into the Security of RSA (Chapter 6)
• Additional Investigations into the Quadratic Sieve (Section 6.4.1)
• Additional Investigations into the Discrete Logarithm Problem and Diffie-Hellman Problems
(Chapter 7)
• Security Protocols (Chapter 10)
• Secret Sharing Schemes (Chapter 12)
• Elliptic Curve Cryptography (Chapter 16)
• Elliptic Curve Factorization (Chapter 16)
• Quantum Techniques in Cryptography (Chapter 19)
Note: Your paper needs to be written in your own words. It is not permissible to cut and paste
or to minimally paraphrase text from web sites or other sources.