1.1-1.2 and 3.1, due on September 1

1. The part of this reading which was most difficult for me to understand was the proof of the theorem which states that if a and b are two integers with at least one of them nonzero, and d=gcd(a,b), then there exist integers x, y such that ax+by=d. I understood up until "Start with j=1."

2. The most interesting part of this material for me was section 1.1, where it talked about the history and importance of Cryptography. It really got me excited for this course, because I've been spending a lot of time doing research in pure math and will be fun to be doing something with apparent applications.

Introduction, due on September 1

1. I am a junior this year, and my major is Mathematics (possibly a double major with Economics).
2. 290, 313, 314, 334, 341. I am currently enrolled in 371, 362, and 485.
3. I am taking this course to determine my interest in this area of mathematics as a possible career option. I also plan on applying for an NSA summer program.
4. I have some experience in Maple.
5. I have little to no programming experience, but I feel semi-comfortable using Maple to complete homework assignments.
6. The most effective teacher I've had is Dr. Barrett. My favorite part of his teaching style is how reasonable he was; he was able to put himself in the position of the student and teach according to our needs. One thing he did was try to ensure that homework assignments didn't take over 3 hours. He also made study guides which gave us an idea of what would be on exams while still offering exam questions which required a solid understanding of the material.
3. Something unique about me: I am blonde and a mathematician.
4. Your scheduled office hours work for me.