Rubik, Escher, Bank$

The idea of geometric symmetry in architecture goes back to ancient times, but there is a rich mathematical theory of symmetry with many applications in the modern world. The mathematics of symmetry provides answers to natural questions that arise in topics as diverse as Rubik's Cube, the art of M.C. Escher, and the security of financial transactions on the Internet. Moreover, these three topics are not as unrelated as they may initially seem to be. The mathematical ideas will be developed from scratch, and illustrated with pictures and numerical examples. 

You can learn more about Professor Brian Conrad at http://math.stanford.edu/~conrad/