Class Syllabus

Course Web Page

Contact Info for Instructor, office hours, assignments, tests, and general information is all on the course web page.

Course Description

This course is an introduction to the foundations of Economics of Distributed Systems, including Cryptocurrencies and Blockchains

Text:

One text is Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies by Narayanan et al.

Prereqs

CS362, CS561 or Equivalents

Assignments:

Assignment deadlines are strict: late homeworks will automatically receive a grade of zero, without prior approval. Prior approval is generally given only in the case of a medical problem or family emergency.
Group collaboration is encouraged on the homeworks in this glass, and each group can turn in a single assignment. Remember Copying solutions from the Internet, including an AI source, or another student is cheating. In case a student presents a solution that is essentially identical in whole or in part to solutions from another source, that student will receive a 0 on the assignment, will be reported to the University Administration and may not be permitted to continue in the class.
Homeworks will be submitted and graded online. Stay tuned for instructions. Put pages of hw in order.
Regrades: if you feel a mistake was made grading your hw, please request a regrade. You must request a regrade within one week of receiving the graded assignment.
I will not be handing out solutions to problems. I am happy to help you if you are stuck on a problem via Piazza, or lecture.
The point of homework is not to solve that particular homework problem, but to practice solving a type of problem and get honest feedback on your progress. I've found that when solutions are available, my own students are much more likely to rely on them, rather than trying to figure out the problems themselves, which means they get both less practice and less honest feedback, which means they do worse on exams and in the course overall. And while I firmly believe that each student is ultimately responsible for their own learning, I also believe that it's my responsibility as an instructor to help them. Putting dessert on the table does not help anyone eat their vegetables - Jeff Erickson.

Notes on Grading Hws

Your hws will be graded on the following criteria.

Clarity: Make sure all of your work and answers are clearly legible and well separated from other problems. If we can't read it, then we can't grade it. Likewise, if we can't immediately find all of the relevant work for a problem, then we will be more likely to grade only what we see at first.
Completeness: Full credit for all problems is based on both sufficient intermediate work (the lack of which often produces a 'justify' comment) and the final answer. There are many ways of doing most problems, and we need to understand exactly how YOU chose to solve each problem. Here is a good rule of thumb for deciding how much detail is sufficient: if you were to present your solution to the class and everyone understood the steps, then you can assume it is sufficient.
Succinctness: The work and solutions which you hand-in should be long enough to convey exactly why the answer you get is correct, yet short enough to be easily digestible by someone with a basic knowledge of this material. If you find yourself doing more than half a page of dense algebra, generating more than a dozen numeric values or using more than a page or two of paper per problem for your solution, you're probably doing too much work. Don't turn in pages with scratch work or multiple answers - if you need to do scratch work, do it on separate scratch paper. Clearly indicate your final answer (circle, box, underline, etc.). Note: It's usually best to rewrite your solution to a problem before you hand it in. If you do this, you'll find you can usually make the solution much more succinct.

Topics

Please read the material in the textbook before we cover it in class. The class material will be challenging and the class pace will be fast - you will get lost very quickly if you come into the classes unprepared. Topics will likely include :

Cryptographic primitives and Centralized Blockchains
Achieving decentralization: Consensus and Byzantine Agreement
Anonymity and Sybil attacks
Smart contracts and Secure Multiparty Computation

Course Assessment

Approximate weighting:

30%: Class Participation
- 10%: Questions on Papers: Post 3 discussion questions (on Piazza) for each paper covered in class
- 10%: Responses: Answer or respond to at least one question (in class or on Piazza) for each paper
- 10%: Presentation: Present and Lead discussion for at least one paper
50%: Final Project
- 10%: Project Proposal
- 10%: Project Checkpoint (7 minute presentation + 2 page report)
- 30%: Final Project (15 minute presentation + 10 page paper)
20%: Homeworks

Grading Policies

Grades assigned at the end of the semester are final. You will not be able to do any additional projects, papers, etc. to change your grade.

Credit Hour Statement

This is a three credit-hour course. Please plan for a minimum of six hours of out-of-class work (or homework, study, assignment completion, and class preparation) each week.

Accommodations

UNM is committed to providing equitable access to learning opportunities for students with documented disabilities. As your instructor, it is my objective to facilitate an inclusive classroom setting, in which students have full access and opportunity to participate. To engage in a confidential conversation about the process for requesting reasonable accommodations for this class and/or program, please contact Accessibility Resource Center at arcsrvs@unm.edu or by phone at 505- 277-3506.

Title IX

Our classroom and our university should always be spaces of mutual respect, kindness, and support, without fear of discrimination, harassment, or violence. Should you ever need assistance or have concerns about incidents that violate this principle, please access the resources available to you on campus. Please note that, because UNM faculty, TAs, and GAs are considered "responsible employees" any disclosure of gender discrimination (including sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, and sexual violence) made to a faculty member, TA, or GA must be reported by that faculty member, TA, or GA to the university’s Title IX coordinator. Information on the campus policy regarding sexual misconduct and reporting.

Connecting to Campus and Finding Support

UNM has many resources and center= s to help you thrive, including opportunities to get involved, mental health resources, academic support such as tutoring, resource centers, free food at Lobo Food Pantry, and jobs on campus. Your advisor, staff at the resource centers and Dean of Students, and I can help you find the right opportunities for you.

UNM Administrative Mandate on Required Vaccinations

COVID-19 Health and Awareness: UNM is a mask friendly, but not a mask required, community. If you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, please do not come to class. If you do need to stay home, please communicate with me; I can work with you to provide alternatives for course participation and completion. Let me, an advisor, or another UNM staff member know that you need support so that we can connect you to the right resources. Please be aware that UNM will publish information on websites and email about any changes to our public health status and community response.

Student Health and Counseling (SHAC) is reachable at (505) 277-3136. If you are having active respiratory symptoms (e.g., fever, cough, sore throat, etc.) and need testing for COVID-19. Or, If you recently tested positive and may need oral treatment, call SHAC.