The Science of Secrecy: The Secret History of Codes and Codebreaking"The Science of Secrecy", which accompanies the major Channel 4 series, brings to life the hidden history of codes and codebreaking. Since the birth of writing, there has been the need for secrecy. The story of codes is the story of the brilliant men and women who used mathematics, linguistics, machines, computers, gut instinct, logic and detective work to make and break secret codes. The dramatic effects of their work has shaped the lives of individuals, determined the outcome of battles and decided the fate of nations. In each chapter, Simon Singh tells a fascinating story from the history of codes: the plot that led to the execution of Mary Queen of Scots by her cousin, Elizabeth I; the cracking of the 'uncrackable' Vigenère cipher by Charles Babbage, the inventor of the difference machine; how Jean-François Champollion revealed the mysteries encoded within the Rosetta Stone; how the decipherment of the Zimmermann telegram changed the course of World War One; and how secret codes will determine security on the internet. Through these stories, Simon Singh presents an insight into the hidden world of codes and codebreaking and presents the personal stories of the indivuals whose brilliance changed the course of history. |
