SHARK wrote:

I am a Mathematic student at Bosphorus University in Turkey. I am interested in both computer applications and mathematical base of encryption.Where can I find this kind of staff on internet. Is it necessary to have high level of mathematical background in order to deal with encryption??

By the way Is there any member of this list from Turkey?

There are a lot of NSA people here on cypherpunks, and they try very hard to control encryption, to make everyone think it is difficult, to discourage independent inquiry. That is the main reason they accuse people of being snakeoil vendors, to discourage people from inquiring about really new ideas, like some of my ideas for example. Just so you know....

Shark <otaner@boun.edu.tr> wrote:

I am a Mathematic student at Bosphorus University in Turkey. I am interested in both computer applications and mathematical base of encryption.Where can I find this kind of staff on internet.

Is it necessary to have high level of mathematical background in order to deal with encryption??

No, you do not need a phd or the like to deal with the fundamental issues of access and implementation in cryptography, nor to appreciate the elegant logical structures of cryptographic protocols and designs. Yes, you do need sophisticated math skills to, say, evaluate the relative strength of cryptographic algorithms and protocols -- but few have those skills... and many more of us, nonetheless, have to make decisions. So we rely on the opinions of those we come to trust in these esoteric matters. I highly recommend two Finnish websites: <http://www.modeemi.cs.tut.fi/~avs/eu-crypto.html> and <http://www.cs.hut.fi/ssh/crypto> (AVS, at the first, has a great selection of pre-set web-searches which can refocus your query into categories which are particularly relevant to Europeans and non-Americans.) There are also treasure-laden FTP sites in Holland <ftp://utopia.hacktic.nl/pub/replay/pub/> and the UK: <ftp://ftp.ox.ac.uk/pub/crypto/> among many valuable international sites. If your bent is toward applied crypto, see the COAST archive at: <http://www.cs.purdue.edu/coast/coast.html> You might also want to visit the SDTI/RSA website <http://www.rsa.com> for their FAQ and archive, and the Quadralay site <http://www.austinlinks.com/crypto/) where, among the C'punk references, you'll find the sci.crypto FAQ. A websearch (e.g. <http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Security_and_Encryption/Cryptography/>) will retrieve, among other treasures, a number of "introductions to cryptography" for beginners and others. When you narrow your interests, look for FAQs (frequently asked queston) files on a specific topic: for example, SSL, or SMIME, or S-HTTP) As you've doubtless noticed, the Internet as a whole is painfully US-centric (and some inhabitants of little virtual villages like C'punks are often so enamored with their own self-image that they refuse to be distracted by anything else;-) C'punks desperately needs someone with the wit of Nasser Hodin Hodja -- but I also think you caught a couple of guys on a "bad hair day" or something. Folks here are generally more responsive to people jumping the language and cross-cultural barriers. The Net as a whole is very open. There is a great willingness to share, help, and respond; even with "newbie" inquiries. Experts in the field regularly step in to nudge a discussion and, sometimes, even restate the basics. You'll do better if you do a little work one your own, and _then_ reach out and ask for further clarification or additional pointers. Görü sürüz, _Vin -- Vin McLellan +The Privacy Guild+ <vin@shore.net> 53 Nichols St., Chelsea, Ma. 02150 USA Tel: (617) 884-5548 <*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*>