Coding Theory (Monsoon 2025)

(Detailed updates about the course will be posted in the “Google classroom” for the course. Drop me an email if you want to be added there.)

Course Material

References

  • Essential Coding Theory
    • by Venkat Guruswami, Atri Rudra and Madhu Sudan
    • Online draft (from October 2023)
  • Introduction to Coding Theory
    • 3rd edition, by J. H. Lint (ISBN: 978-3-642-58575-3)

Course Plan

Contents

The course contents will largely resemble other coding theory courses offered in CS departments (e.g. courses taught by Prahladh Harsha and Mrinal Kumar, or by Mary Wooters). So along with the other necessary background, we will be covering the commonly used algebraic codes in detail.

Prerequisites

(Concepts from maths not listed below will be covered as part of the course.)

  • Basics about algorithms (conceptual definition, estimating time and space used by algorithms)
  • Elementary linear algebra, and comfort with operations on matrices
  • Basics about univariate and multivariate polynomials

Administrative Details

Evaluation

  • Assignments: 2 (20% + 20%)
  • Exams: Midterm (20%) and Endterm (40%)

Submission Policy

  • Solutions to be submitted online through the Google Classroom page.
  • Late days: Each student is allowed a maximum of 5 late days, cumulatively across the two assignments. Beyond that, there will be a 25% penalty per day on the score in any assignment that is late.
  • Collaborations: If you discuss the solutions with your peers, make sure to cite and/or credit them, and please write the final answers in your own words. This also applies to using search engines, online forums or any other automated tools.

Note: The goal of the assignments is to improve your understanding of the concepts, not just the solutions. Many times, any mistakes or gaps in the answers are more instructive for this purpose. Also, you will never be marked down for incorrect grammar, etc., unless it significantly affects the meaning of what is written. So you will only hurt yourself by not writing the answers on your own.