The Cryptographic Transformation of Money
Dept. of Elec. Eng. & Computer Science
Case Western Reserve University
Fall 2015 * Online Broadcast * External Registrants Welcome
The Third Wave of the Informational Transformation of Money has just kicked off. Some 500 years ago money lost its utility per-se, and became data, albeit impressed upon a parchment or a sheet of paper. This was The First Wave. In the 2nd part of the last century money transformed into bitty data nesting in ever faster, inter-communicating computers. This was the 2nd wave. It has brought about dramatic new efficiencies but with it emerged a daunting vulnerability: the bits carried value only, unlike the paper money that was marked with an identifying serial number. This shortcoming invited crowds of criminals and fraudsters that cast a dark shadow on the otherwise shiny vista of online banking, and frictionless payment. In the early years of this century the money bits have been re-invented into per-se digital sequences where value and identity are cryptographically fused together. The 'serial number' feature of the First Wave was re-established. This very step is the onset of the Third Wave, roaring towards us, as we speak. Money, identity-marked, may be paid without the payer and the payee having to mutually identify themselves -- what a relief for our sense of privacy, and what an opening for money launderers . Money where every digital bill is different from all others, may be tethered to its intended purpose: issued for grocery -- you cant gamble with it, Tethered to Alice -- Bob cannot spend it; issued per contract -- can only be spent per contract. This is our chance to build robust financial security, super-efficient globe-spanning payment protocols, ultra tech banking, personal freedom, well-balanced anonymity, and wide-spread prosperity.
This course, now offered by The Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Case Western Reserve University, brings to light the technology and the applications of this Third Wave of the Informational Transformation of Money. Following a brief historic review, we shall discuss the ground reasons for today's ramping financial cyber thefts, and digital heists -- how the 'patching' strategy falls short, as evidenced by our daily headlines: J.P. Morgan, Home Depot, Target, Heartland. But the main focus of this course will be the technology and the functionality of crypto digital money. We shall analyze the various categories, versions, nuances, claims as to what this money can do, and how the underlying cryptography makes it happen. We shall present bold visions for the future of money (e.g. The InterMint).
From Bitcoin, through Ripple, DigiCash, M-pesa, and BitMint -- what is out there, how it operates, what does it do. And how does the future look like, staring ahead.
This course is designed for two categories of students and participants: computer science students will dive into the mathematical foundation of the technology, and the rest would study the functionality, the novelty, the implementation routes, and the appraisal of the various concepts, about to be sorted out by the marketplace.
When this course ends, early December 2015, you will be in the know and ready to surf the rumbling third wave of the informational transformation of money.
The 3 credits course is open for graduates and undergraduate students in the university, and to external registrants, against a Certificate of Participation. The course will be broadcast online, allowing registered participants to catch class anywhere on cyberspace.
Contact the instructor
Gideon Samid: gideon.samid@case.edu
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