<p>I have found a video course which is almost exactly what I was looking for.
It's a course titled "Using Randomness in Computer Science"</p>

<p>It can be found here:
 <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/playlists/user/NicolasSchabanel/2" rel="nofollow">http://www.dailymotion.com/playlists/user/NicolasSchabanel/2</a></p>

<p>Each lecture is in a different playlist. Only the first lecture is missing, but I found it here: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/nicolas2222222222/videos" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/user/nicolas2222222222/videos</a></p>

<p>This note by Oded Goldreich is also very useful:
<a href="http://www.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il/~oded/PDF/rnd.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il/~oded/PDF/rnd.pdf</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-13T23:05:28.883Z
2014-03-16T23:19:32.197Z
2014-03-16T23:19:32.197Z
Obinna Okechukwu
<p>Well, there're these two courses I'm currently taking</p>

<p>half CS, half physics
<a href="https://www.coursera.org/course/randomness" rel="nofollow">https://www.coursera.org/course/randomness</a></p>

<p>Statistical Mechanics: Algorithms and Computations
<a href="https://www.coursera.org/course/smac" rel="nofollow">https://www.coursera.org/course/smac</a></p>

<p>I have really hight hopes for the latter!
Hope I've helped.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T21:40:01.477Z
2014-02-02T21:40:01.477Z
Mihalis
<p>leading expert on the topic Wigderson at IAS has recently been lecturing/researching/survey/overviewing this important/emerging/crosscutting area.</p>

<ul>
<li><p><a href="http://youtu.be/syUxHJFwwQQ">Avi Wigderson -- "Randomness"</a> youtube</p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://youtu.be/ZzsFb-6wvoE">Professor Avi Wigderson on a computational theory of randomness</a> youtube/ETH Zurich</p></li>
</ul>

<p>written notes similar to/overlapping these lectures:</p>

<ul>
<li><p><a href="http://terrytao.wordpress.com/2008/01/10/distinguished-lecture-series-i-avi-wigderson-the-power-and-weakness-of-randomness-in-computation/">Tao notes on Widgerson power/weakness of randomness in computation</a> Terence Tao blog</p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://www.math.ias.edu/~avi/BOOKS/Randomness_and_Pseudorandomness.pdf">COMPUTATIONAL INTRACTABILITY AND PSEUDORANDOMNESS</a> essay by Wigderson</p></li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-13T23:22:37.967Z
I have found a video course on what I was looking for. It's listed in my answer. Thanks anyways!
Obinna Okechukwu
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T17:41:38.290Z
I have actually watched most of Avi Wigderson's lectures online. Anyways, I am more interested in a full course and not various isolated lectures. Thanks anyways.
Obinna Okechukwu
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T17:49:21.850Z
afaik "randomness" is considered a highly significant paradigm in CS (as above) but not generally regarded/organized as an entirely separate course...
vzn
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T18:04:12.890Z
I have found a couple of courses (no videos) on randomized algorithms for example and other topics. The Russian video in my answer is also a course on this subject.
Obinna Okechukwu
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T18:07:58.233Z
ok of course it would be helpful to be more complete in citing all this bkg info in your original question so responses can be tailored. as the Wigderson perspective(s) highlights, randomized algorithms are just _one_ (major) element of the study of randomness in CS.
vzn
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T16:12:26.133Z
2014-02-02T16:12:26.133Z
vzn
<p>I have found some video courses like <a href="http://logic.pdmi.ras.ru/csclub/en/randomizedmethods" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this one</a> but they are all in russian or other languages I don't understand. I'll like to know if anyone has come across lectures (courses) of this kind which are in english.</p>

<p>I am also aware that there are questions which are similar to this one on stackexchange e.g.<a href="https://cstheory.stackexchange.com/questions/1198/what-videos-should-everybody-watch">this one</a>, but I couldn't find any course of this kind among the answers given.</p>

<p>P.S: I'm interested in anything involving randomness in TCS as long as it is a <em>full video course</em>. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T05:20:16.563Z
Have a look at these: [1](http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/mathematics/18-409-topics-in-theoretical-computer-science-an-algorithmists-toolkit-fall-2009/), [2](http://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/fall02/cs597D/), [3](http://www.cs.uchicago.edu/courses/description/CMSC/31150/9999-12-31%2000:00:00.00), [4](http://cstheory.stackexchange.com/a/4093/186). Also check  and Robert Sedgewick's coursera courses.
Kaveh
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T06:19:01.703Z
Thanks. But I'm specifically interested in video lectures.
Obinna Okechukwu
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T16:40:24.530Z
"randomness in TCS" is not specific enough. do you mean randomized algorithms? or derandomization and pseudorandomness? or the Kolmogorov complexity approach to randomness?
Sasho Nikolov
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T17:39:49.607Z
Anything involving randomness in TCS as long as it is a full video course. I have been trying to learn as much as I can about various tools from probability used in TCS, that's why I am interested in this.
Obinna Okechukwu
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-02T18:18:57.667Z
Lectures 6-9 from Tim's Algorithms p. 1 course on Corsera is about randomized algorithms: quicksort, selection, and Karger's mincut. It's an intro course, so it's all relatively basic. There are more advanced and more specialized courses, and you can find lecture notes for them. But there aren't many videos available for more advanced courses.
Sasho Nikolov
<soft-question><big-list><randomness>
Does anyone know of online video courses (in english) on randomness in theoretical computer science?
Obinna Okechukwu
# Does anyone know of online video courses (in english) on randomness in theoretical computer science?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-02-02)

I have found some video courses like [this one](http://logic.pdmi.ras.ru/csclub/en/randomizedmethods) but they are all in russian or other languages I don't understand. I'll like to know if anyone has come across lectures (courses) of this kind which are in english.

I am also aware that there are questions which are similar to this one on stackexchange e.g.[this one](https://cstheory.stackexchange.com/questions/1198/what-videos-should-everybody-watch), but I couldn't find any course of this kind among the answers given.

P.S: I'm interested in anything involving randomness in TCS as long as it is a *full video course*.

**Tags:** soft-question, big-list, randomness

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Have a look at these: [1](http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/mathematics/18-409-topics-in-theoretical-computer-science-an-algorithmists-toolkit-fall-2009/), [2](http://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/fall02/cs597D/), [3](http://www.cs.uchicago.edu/courses/description/CMSC/31150/9999-12-31%2000:00:00.00), [4](http://cstheory.stackexchange.com/a/4093/186). Also check  and Robert Sedgewick's coursera courses.  
> **username_0**: Thanks. But I'm specifically interested in video lectures.  
> **username_2**: "randomness in TCS" is not specific enough. do you mean randomized algorithms? or derandomization and pseudorandomness? or the Kolmogorov complexity approach to randomness?  
> **username_0**: Anything involving randomness in TCS as long as it is a full video course. I have been trying to learn as much as I can about various tools from probability used in TCS, that's why I am interested in this.  
> **username_2**: Lectures 6-9 from Tim's Algorithms p. 1 course on Corsera is about randomized algorithms: quicksort, selection, and Karger's mincut. It's an intro course, so it's all relatively basic. There are more advanced and more specialized courses, and you can find lecture notes for them. But there aren't many videos available for more advanced courses.  

---

## 3 answers

### Answer by username_0 on 2014-02-13. Score: 0 | Accepted answer

I have found a video course which is almost exactly what I was looking for.
It's a course titled "Using Randomness in Computer Science"

It can be found here:
<http://www.dailymotion.com/playlists/user/NicolasSchabanel/2>

Each lecture is in a different playlist. Only the first lecture is missing, but I found it here: <http://www.youtube.com/user/nicolas2222222222/videos>

This note by Oded Goldreich is also very useful:
<http://www.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il/~oded/PDF/rnd.pdf>


---

### Answer by username_3 on 2014-02-02. Score: 4

Well, there're these two courses I'm currently taking

half CS, half physics
<https://www.coursera.org/course/randomness>

Statistical Mechanics: Algorithms and Computations
<https://www.coursera.org/course/smac>

I have really hight hopes for the latter!
Hope I've helped.


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2014-02-02. Score: 4

leading expert on the topic Wigderson at IAS has recently been lecturing/researching/survey/overviewing this important/emerging/crosscutting area.

* [Avi Wigderson -- "Randomness"](http://youtu.be/syUxHJFwwQQ) youtube
* [Professor Avi Wigderson on a computational theory of randomness](http://youtu.be/ZzsFb-6wvoE) youtube/ETH Zurich

written notes similar to/overlapping these lectures:

* [Tao notes on Widgerson power/weakness of randomness in computation](http://terrytao.wordpress.com/2008/01/10/distinguished-lecture-series-i-avi-wigderson-the-power-and-weakness-of-randomness-in-computation/) Terence Tao blog
* [COMPUTATIONAL INTRACTABILITY AND PSEUDORANDOMNESS](http://www.math.ias.edu/~avi/BOOKS/Randomness_and_Pseudorandomness.pdf) essay by Wigderson

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I have actually watched most of Avi Wigderson's lectures online. Anyways, I am more interested in a full course and not various isolated lectures. Thanks anyways.  
> **username_4**: afaik "randomness" is considered a highly significant paradigm in CS (as above) but not generally regarded/organized as an entirely separate course...  
> **username_0**: I have found a couple of courses (no videos) on randomized algorithms for example and other topics. The Russian video in my answer is also a course on this subject.  
> **username_4**: ok of course it would be helpful to be more complete in citing all this bkg info in your original question so responses can be tailored. as the Wigderson perspective(s) highlights, randomized algorithms are just _one_ (major) element of the study of randomness in CS.  
> **username_0**: I have found a video course on what I was looking for. It's listed in my answer. Thanks anyways!  

---

