Fall 2010 CS 2x9 Course Descriptions


COM SCI 239 Current Topics in Programming Languages and Systems
LEC 1 REIHER, P.L.
ID Number	Type	Sec	Days	Start	Stop	Bldg	Rm
587232201	LEC	1	TR	2:00P	3:50P	BOELTER	5252
Title: Advanced Topics in Computer Security This class will discuss advanced topics in computer and network security. Topics to be covered include network security (distributed denial of service attacks, BGP and DNS security, botnets, wireless network security issues), systems security (taint tracking, insider threat detection, malware analysis, trusted computing platforms), general security issues (trust, security vs. usability, security education), and privacy (data mining issues, network privacy issues, social networking and privacy). The class will be in a seminar form, with students presenting material and participating in discussions. Grading will be on the basis of a midterm exam, a group project, and class participation. Recommended Prerequisites: Students should either have taken CS 136 or equivalent or have independently mastered most of the material from that class.


COM SCI 259 Current Topics in System Design/Architecture
LEC 1 POTKONJAK, M.
ID Number	Type	Sec	Days	Start	Stop	Bldg	Rm
587357201	LEC	1	MW	2:00P	3:50P	BOELTER	9436
Title: Nanosystems This advanced research, seminar and project-based course that covers a variety of emerging nanosystem technologies, components, and systems. At the technology and component level the emphasis is on computing, communication, storage, sensing. and actuating devices. For example, we study photonic, plasmonics, RF, 3D, nanowires, and wireless technologies for on-chip communication. At the system and application levels we focus on security, privacy, and trust primitives and protocols. The classes are centered around paper readings, presentation, and discussion. The grading is project and class participation based. The project may be realized either survey or research project. Recommended Prerequisites: None specified.


COM SCI 269 Current Topics in Artificial Intelligence
SEM 1 VAUGHAN, J.W.
ID Number	Type	Sec	Days	Start	Stop	Bldg	Rm
587410201	SEM	1	MW	2:00P	3:50P	DODD	154
Title: Machine Learning Theory This course will provide a taste of the theoretical foundations underlying common machine learning algorithms. Topics covered will include an introduction to the PAC learning model, uniform convergence theory, online learning and the Perceptron algorithm, no-regret learning and the Weighted Majority algorithm, online convex optimization, ensemble methods and boosting, support vector machines, and connections between learning and game theory. Recommended Prerequisites: This course has no official prerequisites, but basic knowledge of probability and some level of comfort reading and writing mathematical proofs will be very useful.


COM SCI 289CO Current Topics in Computer Theory
LEC 1 SAHAI, A.
ID Number	Type	Sec	Days	Start	Stop	Bldg	Rm
587410201	LEC	1	F	2:00P	5:50P	BOELTER	4413
Title: Complexity Theory This advanced graduate course will cover selected recent research papers on the topic of cryptography "beyond the black box": In particular, we will cover questions of: (1) protecting cryptographic protocols and primitives from compromise due to "side-channel" attacks that allow an adversary to learn some "leakage" function of the secret information used by the protocol/primitives; and (2) protecting cryptographic protocols and primitives from compromise due to the ability of the adversary to "tamper" with the inner workings of the computation or memory during a cryptographic protocol. Attacking these problems will require a number of complexity-theoretic and cryptographic techniques. Recommended Prerequisites: This course is intended only for Ph.D. students actively pursuing research in cryptography or complexity theory. A strong mathematical background will be assumed.