Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Information and Entropy

6A32 Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
2A29 Department of Mechanical Engineering

Contents MISSION STATEMENT
Mission
People
Handouts
Lectures
Links
This new subject will present the quantitative theory of information. Applications will be made to computation, communications, thermodynamics, and biology. Participants in this seminar will play a critical role in the development of a new freshman elective subject. Members of the seminar will help evaluate the notes, lectures, laboratory experiments, and other materials that will be developed during Fall 1999. Those who take it will be able to recognize and quantify information in many domains, develop and use models that incorporate flow and conversion of information from one form to another, and recognize irreversibility when they see it. They will learn that the second law of thermodynamics, one of the most beautiful laws of physics, is actually more useful than is usually appreciated.

PEOPLE
Faculty
Paul Penfield, Jr. <penfield@mit.edu>, Room 38-344, 617-253-2506
Seth Lloyd <slloyd@mit.edu>, Room 3-160, 617-252-1803
Sherra E. Kerns <sherra.kerns@olin.edu>, Room 38-344, 617-452-2842

Teaching Assistant
Joseph Chow Huang <youli@mit.edu>, Room 38-344, 617-452-2845

Associate Advisors
Matthew Taylor <mmtaylor@mit.edu>
Eddie Chung <eddiec@mit.edu>

Secretary
Jean A. Danek <mrhanky@mit.edu>, Room 38-344, 617-253-9328, Fax 617-253-9386

HANDOUTS
Homework 1 (PS, PDF) distributed 9/14/99
Homework 2 (PS, PDF) distributed 9/21/99
Homework 3 (PS, PDF) distributed 9/28/99
Homework 4 not handed out
Homework 5 (PS, PDF) distributed 10/12/99
Homework 6 (PS, PDF) distributed 10/19/99
Homework 7 (PS, PDF) distributed 10/26/99
Homework 8 (PS, PDF) distribution 11/9/99
Homework 9 (PS, PDF) distirubtion 11/30/99

LECTURES
The first lecture has been transcribed. The rest are in RealMedia Format encoded at 220 kb/s (less than 100 megs each). Streaming video and download links are provided. Each lecture is an hour long.

Lecture 01: (HTML, TXT) The Bit - 9/14/99
Lecture 02: (Streaming Video or Download) Codes - 9/21/99
Lecture 03: (Streaming Video or Download) Compression - 9/28/99
Lecture 04: (Streaming Video or Download) Noise and Errors - 10/5/99
Lecture 05: (Streaming Video or Download) Probability - 10/12/99
Lecture 06: (Streaming Video or Download) Communication Systems - 10/19/99
Lecture 07: (Streaming Video or Download) Stochastic Processes - 10/26/99
Lecture 08: (Streaming Video or Download) Inference - 11/2/99
Lecture 09: (Streaming Video or Download) Estimating Probability - 11/9/99
Lecture 10: (Streaming Video or Download) Variational Principle 11/16/99
Lecture 11: (Streaming Video or Download) Energy - 11/23/99
Lecture 12: (Streaming Video or Download) Temperature - 11/30/99
Lecture 13: (Streaming Video or Download) Final Lecture - 12/7/99

LINKS

Last updated 10/5/99