Registration for Spring Course Abroad Programs may be possible on a space-available basis though February 1, 2010, the last day of the drop/add period for Spring 2010.  Contact the Center for International Education immediately if you are interested in registering for this Course Abroad Program.

Courses:                        Computer Science 290: Topics in Computer Science, 3 credits
                                         English 214: Studies in Literature, 3 credits

Prerequisite:                 For CS 290: CS 151  or equivalent, and permission of instructor
                                         For ENG 214: ENG 110

Faculty Sponsors:        Dr. Jason B. Jones,  English
                                         jonesjason1@ccsu.edu; (860) 832-2761

                                         Dr. Stan Kurkovsky, Computer Science
                                         kurkovskysta@ccsu.edu; (860) 832-2720

                                                                                    Full-time Students             Part-time Students
Program Costs:            Travel Component:                  $1,995.00                                $1,995.00
                                         Course Tuition (3 credits):       included in full-time tuition*     $1,105.00
                                         Total Approximate Cost:          $1,995.00                               $3,100.00

*Applies to students carrying no more than 18 credits, otherwise excess credit fees apply.

Travel Program Registration Form (PDF)

Scholarships:   Matriculated CCSU students with a GPA of at least 2.50 are eligible to apply for scholarship assistance for this program from the Center for International Education.  The scholarship application form is embedded within the Course Abroad Program Registration form.  A limited number of $200 scholarships will be awarded on a competitive basis. Students are also encouraged to seek external scholarships.  For more information about CIE and external scholarships, visit the CIE website at http://web.ccsu.edu/cie/Studyabroad/Scholarships.htm.

Registration Deadline: February 1, 2010

Secrecy: Science and Fiction

Ever since the advent of writing, there has been a need to preserve the secrecy of written messages from prying eyes.  Throughout history, brilliant men and women have used linguistics and mathematics, machines and computers, detective work, and gut instinct to encode and break secret messages. Decrypting some of these messages led to turns in the history of the world.  Ideas and the tools used to encrypt and decrypt them helped create many modern technologies ranging from mobile phones to electronic commerce.  Finally, the only reason why computers as we know them today exist, is because some of their early prototypes were rather successful at breaking Nazi secret communications, which was a tremendous help in the Allies' efforts to win World War II.

In this course, we will examine the evolution of secret communication and the effect it had on individuals, historical figures, entire countries and continents.  How did Mary Queen of Scots encipher her own death sentence?  Learn how Victorian secrets were preserved by the 'unbreakable' Vigenère code. How did a single encrypted telegram change the course of World War I?  What is the mystery of the Rosetta Stone?  We will visit many places in the UK where these historic events took place and see many related historical artifacts.  Most importantly, we will spend a day at Bletchley Park near London, where World War II code breakers decrypted and interpreted messages from a large number of Nazi cipher systems.  Today, Bletchley Park is a sprawling museum that hosts working recreations of the original machinery used for code breaking, including the Nazi's Enigma machines and Colossus, considered the first digital computer.

In addition to introducing scientific and mathematical approaches to codes and code breaking and reviewing their historical uses, we will also examine their literary representations.  Because there is an obvious analogy between deciphering a code and unpacking a literary text, writers and readers have always found codes fascinating.  Texts to be examined include Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon, Cory Doctorow's Little Brother, William Gibsons's Pattern Recognition, and others.

The cost of the travel program includes round-trip airport transfers, economy-class international airfare, double- or triple-occupancy accommodations, and ground transportation and entrance fees to all required site visits.  All students (full- and part-time) register for the travel component of the program  in the Center for International Education, Barnard Hall, Room 123.  Full-time students must register for the course when registering for their Spring classes, but do not need to pay additional tuition for this course provided they are registered for no more than 18 credits during the Spring semester, including this course.  Full-time students enrolled in greater than 18 credits are subject to over-enrollment fees.  Part-time students must register for this course in the Registrar's Office/Enrollment Center located in Willard Hall during the registration period for Spring classes and will be charged applicable course fees.