Includes bibliographical references (pages 255-259) and index.
Machine generated contents note: 1 THE CIPHER OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS 5 -- The birth of cryptography, the substitution cipher and -- the invention of codebreaking by frequency analysis --2 THE ANONYMOUS CODEBREAKER 51 -- The Vigenere cipher, why cryptographers seldom get credit -- for their breakthroughs and a tale of buried treasure --3 THE MECHANIZATION OF SECRECY 95 -- The Zimmermann telegram, the Enigma machine -- and how cryptography changed the courses of -- World Wars I and II --4 THE LANGUAGE BARRIER 152 -- The impenetrability of unknown languages, -- the Navajo code talkers of World War II -- and the decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphs --5 ALICE AND BOB Go PUBLIC 180 -- Modern cryptography, the solution to the so-called -- key-distribution problem and the secret history -- of nonsecret encryption --6 PRETTY GOOD PRIVACY 221 -- The politics of privacy, the future of cryptography -- and the quest for an uncrackable code.
THE CIPHER OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS -- The birth of cryptography, the substitution cipher and the invention of codebreaking by frequency analysis -- THE ANONYMOUS CODEBREAKER -- The Vigenere cipher, why cryptographers seldom get credit for their breakthroughs and a tale of buried treasure -- THE MECHANIZATION OF SECRECY -- The Zimmermann telegram, the Enigma machine and how cryptography changed the courses of World Wars I and II -- THE LANGUAGE BARRIER -- The impenetrability of unknown languages, the Navajo code talkers of World War II and the decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphs -- ALICE AND BOB Go PUBLIC -- Modern cryptography, the solution to the so-called key-distribution problem and the secret history of nonsecret encryption -- PRETTY GOOD PRIVACY -- The politics of privacy, the future of cryptography and the quest for an uncrackable code.
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A history of codes and the methodologies for forming and breaking them, from ancient times to modern computers. It's known as the science of secrecy. Cryptography: the encoding and decoding of private information. And it is history's most fascinating story of intrigue and cunning. From Julius Caesar and his Caesar Cipher to the code used by Mary Queen of Scots and her conspiracy to the use of the Engima machine during the Second World War, Simon Singh follows the evolution of secret writing. Accessible, compelling, and timely, this international bestseller, now adapted for young people, is sure to make readers see the past-and the future-in a whole new way.