Detecting Errors in Identification Numbers
Identification numbers are used to identify individual items, specific products, people, accounts, and documents. Examples include driver license numbers, credit card numbers, ISBNs, UPCs, and bank account numbers. Each time an identification number is transmitted from one location to another, there is a chance that an error in the number will occur. To combat this problem, many identification number systems include a check digit and use a mathematical process to determine if the number has been transmitted correctly. This talk will present methods, ranging from simple modulo arithmetic to the use of group theory and dihedral groups, which employ a check digit to detect errors in identification numbers.
Refreshments will be served.
This talk is sponsored by the Marist College Mathematics Club. It should be accessible to most undergraduates with an interest in mathematics.
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