Maybe you've heard about Einstein's strange and beautiful theory of special relativity: the way that time warps, space contorts, and some of our most fundamental assumptions about reality break down at high velocities. Maybe you haven't. Either way, this class will discuss where all of these mind-bending ideas come from and why you should care about them. Our discussion will be centered on the concepts of relativity and light on the math, but expect to have your brain broken anyway.

Throughout history, humans have often had the need to communicate secretly. But how can you make a message clear to its intended recipient and indecipherable to everyone else? This is the purpose of the ancient art of cryptography, which we will be plunging into in this class. We will explore some of the countless mathematical tricks that can be used to keep information secret, from simple letter substitutions to the complex algorithms used to secure your email and social media accounts. Regardless of your background or level of experience, this class will be sure to leave you saying "Epeh az xpdcausitny!"