Group items tagged

A brief look at the science of cryptology and the simple encryptions found in the Old Testament. Has a couple of examples and explains the three main transformations used.

Interesting article that shows how even though we think we're very advanced at cryptography, sometimes an old and outdated technique slips through the cracks in our defenses.

A little progress on the mysterious Voynich manuscript...

I'm just going to resubmit the bookmark directly to this page so I'll be sure it ends up publicly in the group. This wasn't mentioned in Singh chapter 2, but it was created around the time period discussed in the chapter. (Plus, it's one of my favorite articles I've read in Wired so I really wanted to use it as a bookmark.) The article discusses the strategies used to break this cipher, some of which, such as frequency analysis, we have talked about in class. It's also just fascinating to read about the Oculists and their history.

Just to clarify: I'm not surprised that you've seen or used 3.5-inch floppy disks. But I'm guessing you haven't laid eyes on the older 5.25-inch floppy disks. Those were the ones that were truly floppy--more flexible than a vinyl record. Even I'm not old enough to have seen the 8-inch floppy disks!