Codes: An Introduction to Information Communication and Cryptography (Springer Undergraduate Mathematics Series) Book

This book is an integrated introduction to the mathematics of coding, that is, replacing information expressed in symbols, such as a natural language or a sequence of bits, by another message using (possibly) different symbols. There are three main reasons for doing this: economy, reliability, and security, and each is covered in detail. Only a modest mathematical background is assumed, the mathematical theory being introduced at a level that enables the basic problems to be stated carefully, but without unnecessary abstraction. Other features include: clear and careful exposition of fundamental concepts, including optimal coding, data compression, and public-key cryptography; concise but complete proofs of results; coverage of recent advances of practical interest, for example in encryption standards, authentication schemes, and elliptic curve cryptography; numerous examples and exercises, and a full solutions manual available to lecturers from www.springer.com.