| CODE | DLT5140 | ||||||||
| TITLE | Smart Contract Coding Literacy | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Centre for Distributed Ledger Technologies | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit is intended to provide smart contract coding literacy for non-ICT / Engineering students. The study-unit introduces the concept of smart contracts on blockchain systems from a technical point of view. Using the Solidity programming language and the Ethereum blockchain system, the students are then taken step by step through smart contract design and foundational programming concepts (assignments, branching, loops, etc.). Given the critical nature of smart contracts, the study-unit will also cover techniques for testing contracts and an analysis of typical programming vulnerabilities. Study-Unit Aims: The aim of this study-unit is that of introducing the students to (i) the structure and design of smart contracts; (ii) basic concepts of programming using the Solidity programming language; and (iii) the risks related to malfunctions in smart contracts. It is important to note that the aim is to complement the knowledge-base and skills of the students (from law, finance and management) with technical understanding and know-how, enabling them to participate fully in smart contract design and development teams, rather than to produce stand-alone smart contract developers. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Demonstrate the ability to design, implement and test smart contracts in Solidity, choosing appropriate language constructs and algorithms; - Demonstrate practical application of structured design principles and the utilisation of appropriate abstraction mechanisms to support the development of large systems; - Analyse smart contracts and identify risks inherent in their design. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Describe how smart contracts are programmed and executed on the Ethereum blockchain; - Describe the structure and interface of a smart contract, the associated algorithms (as a sequence of steps) that solves the problem at hand. - Identify the appropriate programming language constructs for encoding it in a maintainable and reusable form; - Analyse smart contracts to determine whether they solve the problem at hand. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: Textbook: - Mastering Ethereum: Building Smart Contracts and DApps. Andreas M. Antonopoulos and Gavin Wood. O'Reilly, 2018. ISBN 1491971940. References: - Solidity Programming Essentials, Ritesh Modi. Packt Publishing, 2018. ISBN 9781788831383. - Introducing Ethereum and Solidity: Foundations of Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Programming for Beginners. Chris Dannen. Apress, 2017. ISBN 1484225341. |
||||||||
| ADDITIONAL NOTES | Co-Requisite Study-unit: DLT5000 or DLT5003 | ||||||||
| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Independent Study | ||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
|
||||||||
| LECTURER/S | |||||||||
|
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
|||||||||