Title: SET and Linear Codes

Abstract: The card game SET has a natural interpretation in terms of isometry classes of linear codes. The 81 cards correspond to ternary codewords of length 4, and the "Sets" are codes with 3 words belonging to certain special isometry classes. EVENQUADS is another recently-published card game of this type, whose 4^3 cards correspond to quaternary codewords of length 3. I will explain general principles for designing and analyzing games of this type, utilizing known facts about isometry classes of linear codes.

The talk is accessible to a broad audience. No prior knowledge is assumed.