Speaker 1: Welcome back, everybody. We're diving deep today into the world
of codes and ciphers.
Speaker 2: Whooh, sounds intriguing.
Speaker 1: I've got this stack of stories here, all about some
pretty clever encryption methodism and the people who managed to
break them.
Speaker 2: I love that kind of stuff.
Speaker 1: It always amazes me how something can be considered unbreakable
one minute and then boom the next all the secrets
are out.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah. It really speaks to human ingenuity totally, and
persistence to just keep trying until something gives.
Speaker 1: So we're gonna look at some famous codes from all
across history, okay, and try to figure out how they
work and why they were made in the first place.
Speaker 2: Sounds good. Where should we start.
Speaker 1: Let's start with the Voyage Manuscript. Ooh, I mean this
book has puzzled people for centuries.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like the ultimate code breaking challenge.
Speaker 1: It's filled with these strange pictures and writing that no
one could understand.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and for the longest time, right, people thought it
was some mystical text exactly, maybe even written in an
alien language.
Speaker 1: But then in twenty seventeen, a researcher named Nicholas Gibbs
finally crack the code.
Speaker 2: Whoa, No way, what was it?
Speaker 1: I guess what? It's a guide to women's health. Wow,
can you believe it?
Speaker 2: So it wasn't a mystical text at all.
Speaker 1: Nope, seems like it was just a bunch of medical knowledge. Interesting,
probably copied from other sources and personalized for a specific person.
Speaker 2: That makes you wonder who that person was, Yeah, I know, right,
And why they needed a health guiden code.
Speaker 1: Maybe they wanted to keep their health issues private.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's possible.
Speaker 1: Or maybe they just thought it would make the information
seem more valuable.
Speaker 2: It's like a fifteenth century version of a luxury brand.
Speaker 1: We're really interesting glimpse into the culture of that time.
Speaker 2: It makes you wonder what else is out there?
Speaker 1: Yeah? What other secrets are just waiting to be discovered?
Speaker 2: Okay, so what's next on our list?
Speaker 1: Let's fast forward a few centuries to the court of
King Charles.
Speaker 2: The Fifth, a powerful ruler.
Speaker 1: Right, this guy was always worried about conspiracies that he
was always afraid someone was going to try to overthrow.
Speaker 2: So what did he do?
Speaker 1: He decided to use a secret code to communicate with
his ambassadors.
Speaker 2: Smart move.
Speaker 1: For centuries, no one could figure out what those messages.
Speaker 2: Said oh wow.
Speaker 1: But in twenty twenty two, a team of cryptographers led
by Cecil Pierrot. Okay, they finally cracked it.
Speaker 2: What did they find out?
Speaker 1: With letters hinted at a plot to assassinate the king?
Speaker 2: Whoa a real life conspiracy?
Speaker 1: It seems like even the most powerful people can't escape betrayal.
Speaker 2: That's true. So are there more of those letters out there?
Speaker 1: There are?
Speaker 2: Wow? Imagine what else we might find out about King
Charles's court?
Speaker 1: Right, it's like a historical thriller just waiting to be written.
Speaker 2: All Right, what else we got?
Speaker 1: Okay, let's move on to something a little different. Okay,
the Kochyl Cipher. What the Kochyl Cipher. It's this document
from the eighteenth century. Uh huh, filled with a mix
of regular letters and weird symbols.
Speaker 2: Sounds mysterious.
Speaker 1: Took a whole team of researchers to figure it out. Okay,
And it turns out it's the initiate ritual for a
secret society called the Oculist Order.
Speaker 2: The Oculist Order never heard of them.
Speaker 1: Huh me neither. They were fascinated by eyes.
Speaker 2: Like eye surgery and stuff.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and their ceremonies were pretty strange.
Speaker 2: Hmmm interesting.
Speaker 1: It's like they were obsessed with the idea of vision
and enlightenment.
Speaker 2: It's kind of a weird mix of science and rituals.
Speaker 1: It's pretty wild, you know.
Speaker 2: I think it just goes to show how ye codes
can preserve these little pieces of history in such unexpected ways.
Speaker 1: I totally agree.
Speaker 2: It's like opening a window into a hidden world.
Speaker 1: That's a great way to put it, a world.
Speaker 2: That we might never have known about if it wasn't
for the code.
Speaker 1: So all right, what's next.
Speaker 2: Let's talk about Edgar Allen.
Speaker 1: Poe Oh Po. He loved a good mystery, and.
Speaker 2: He was really into codes and ciphers.
Speaker 1: He would even challenge his readers with puzzles in his stories.
Speaker 2: Back in eighteen thirty nine, he published two ciphers. Okay
said they were sent to him by this guy named
mister W. B.
Speaker 1: Tyler, very mysterious.
Speaker 2: People decades trying to solve them.
Speaker 1: Seriously, did anyone succeed? Well?
Speaker 2: The first one was finally cracked in nineteen ninety two.
Speaker 1: Wow, that's a long time.
Speaker 2: By a professor named Terence Waylin.
Speaker 1: And get this, the key was hidden in a play
called Cato clever. Then in two thousand, a guy named
gil Brosa. Okay, he solved the second one.
Speaker 2: So both ciphers were solved. Yeah, so what did they say?
Speaker 1: Well, the decipher text wasn't that interesting. What a let down?
Doesn't really tell us much about who sent them or why.
Speaker 2: Huh. So the mystery continues.
Speaker 1: Yeah, some secrets just stay hidden.
Speaker 2: So what's next on our agenda?
Speaker 1: How about we shift gears a bit. Okay, let's talk
about a case that his fascinated and frustrated people for decades. Well,
i've said that, the Zodiac Killer.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, I've heard of that one.
Speaker 1: This guy terrorized California in the late nineteen sixties.
Speaker 2: I remember reading about it.
Speaker 1: He left a trail of victims and these cryptic messages
for the police.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it was like he wanted to taunt them.
Speaker 1: One of the messages a three hundred and forty character
cryptogram okay, sent to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Speaker 2: Right.
Speaker 1: It remained unsolved for over fifty years.
Speaker 2: Wow, that's crazy.
Speaker 1: But then in twenty twenty, Yeah, a team of code
breakers from all over the world they finally cracked it.
Speaker 2: Finally, So did they catch the killer?
Speaker 1: Well, the FBI confirmed that the message was authentic. Hum,
but the content was pretty bizarre really. It didn't reveal
the killer's identity or anything useful like that.
Speaker 2: Ah, that's disappointing, I know.
Speaker 1: Right, another mystery that refuses to be solved.
Speaker 2: It's like the Zodiac killer wins again.
Speaker 1: It's really frustrating. But it also kind of makes the
story even more intriguing, I guess.
Speaker 2: So it makes you wonder if those codes will ever
be fully understood.
Speaker 1: All right, let's move on to another code that was
considered unbreakable for a really long time.
Speaker 2: Okay, what is it?
Speaker 1: The Vijionier cipher.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, I've heard of that one. Wasn't supposed to
be impossible to crack.
Speaker 1: Well, for nearly three hundred years people thought it was unbreakable.
Speaker 2: So how did it work.
Speaker 1: It used not just one, but twenty six different cipher alphabets.
Speaker 2: Twenty six that's a lot.
Speaker 1: I know, right, And they would shift these alphabets based on.
Speaker 2: A keyword, so you'd need to know the keyword to
decode the message exactly.
Speaker 1: Without the keyword, you'd be totally lost.
Speaker 2: Sounds pretty complex it was.
Speaker 1: But in eighteen fifty four, a guy named Charles Babbage
figured out how to break it.
Speaker 2: Charles Babbage wasn't he the one who designed that early computer.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the analytical Engine. He was a super smart guy.
Speaker 2: So how did he crack the code?
Speaker 1: He realized that even with all those different alphabets, yeah,
there were still patterns in the ciphertext that he could exploit.
Speaker 2: So it wasn't completely right now. No.
Speaker 1: By finding these repeating sequences of letters, h huh, he
could figure out the link of the keyword and then
test different letter combinations until he found the right one.
Speaker 2: That's really impressive, it is, isn't it?
Speaker 1: But get this what Babbage never published his findings.
Speaker 2: What? Why not?
Speaker 1: No one knows for sure. Some people think the government
made him keep it secret.
Speaker 2: Hmmm. Maybe they wanted to use the self for themselves.
Speaker 1: It's possible. But whatever the reason, it meant that the
visioning cipher remained a mystery for another fifty years.
Speaker 2: So all that work and no one knew about.
Speaker 1: It until a Preussian officer named Friedrich Kasiski okay independently
discovered the same method for breaking the code.
Speaker 2: Talk about bad timing.
Speaker 1: It just goes to show that sometimes it's not enough
to have a great idea. Right, you have to share
it with the world if you want to make a
real impact.
Speaker 2: Absolutely, knowledge is meant to be shared. And speaking of
unsung heroes, oooh, I sense another story coming.
Speaker 1: Let's talk about Genevieve Grudgen.
Speaker 2: Genevieve Grotsche.
Speaker 1: She played a crucial role in breaking the Japanese Purple
Code during World War Two. I've never heard of her,
not many people have. She was a mathematician working for
the US government.
Speaker 2: So what did she do well?
Speaker 1: The Purple Code was this incredibly complex cipher machine the
Japanese used.
Speaker 2: Uh huh.
Speaker 1: Even the British couldn't crack it. Put Genevieve hi. She
had this incredible eye for detail, like what she was
pouring over these encrypted messages, and she noticed these tiny
repetitions and cycles in the code, stuff.
Speaker 2: That other people had missed exactly.
Speaker 1: And these patterns gave her a clue about how the
machine worked.
Speaker 2: So it was her observation that made the.
Speaker 1: Breakthrough it was, and because of her discovery, the team
was able to decipher the Purple Code and gain valuable
intelligence during the war.
Speaker 2: Wow, that's an amazing story, it is, isn't it.
Speaker 1: It just goes to show that sometimes the simplest observations
can lead to the biggest breakthroughs.
Speaker 2: And it's a reminder that there are so many unsung
heroes out there.
Speaker 1: Absolutely people who made incredible contributions but never got the
recognition they deserved.
Speaker 2: So what other code breaking adventures await us?
Speaker 1: Let's take a trip back in time.
Speaker 2: Ooh, where are we going?
Speaker 1: To ancient Greece? Remember that mysterious script we talked about earlier,
You mean linear B That's the one. For years scholars
were baffled by it.
Speaker 2: It's like they had found a message from a lost civilization.
Speaker 1: But they couldn't figure out how to read it. Then
along comes this guy named Michael Ventris. Okay, and guess
what he was an architect.
Speaker 2: An architect, what did he know about ancient scripts?
Speaker 1: Well, he had this hunch that linear Bee might actually
be in an early form of Greek. Really, he spent
years studying the tablets, comparing them to other ancient scripts,
using statistics and linguistics and a lot of guesswork. Wow,
and finally he cracked the code.
Speaker 2: What an amazing discovery it was.
Speaker 1: Ventres's work completely changed our understanding of ancient Greek history.
Speaker 2: So linear b was Greek after all, it.
Speaker 1: Was, and it pushed back the timeline of Greek literacy
by hundreds of years.
Speaker 2: Wow, that's a big.
Speaker 1: Deal, it is. It shows us that the Mycenian civilization
was much more advanced than we thought.
Speaker 2: Incredible. It's amazing how one person's passion can unlock so
much knowledge.
Speaker 1: It really is. Now, let's talk about another codebreaker who
changed the course of history.
Speaker 2: Okay, who's this?
Speaker 1: Alan Turing?
Speaker 2: Alan Turing the Enigma code breaker.
Speaker 1: That's right. Turing was a brilliant mathematician who played a
crucial role in the Allied victory in World War Two.
Speaker 2: The Enigma machine was supposed to be unbreakable.
Speaker 1: It was a real challenge.
Speaker 2: So how did Turing cracket.
Speaker 1: Well, he worked at a top secret code breaking center
called Bletchley Park, Okay, and realized that the Enigma machine,
even though it was super complex, had some mathematical weaknesses.
So he developed these machines called bombs bombs.
Speaker 2: What were those?
Speaker 1: They were basically early computers designed to test different Enigma
settings until they found a match for the German messages.
Speaker 2: So it was like a brute force attack.
Speaker 1: Kind of and it worked Turing and his team at
Bletchley Park. Yeah, they deciphered countless German messages. Wow, giving
the Allies a huge advantage during the war.
Speaker 2: His work must have saved so many lives.
Speaker 1: It's estimated that his contributions shortened the war by years.
Speaker 2: Shame how he was treated after.
Speaker 1: The war though, Yeah, it's dark chapter in history.
Speaker 2: His story highlights the importance of tolerance and acceptance.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, no one should be persecuted for who they are.
Speaker 2: So what else can we explore in the world of codes.
Speaker 1: Let's dive into some codes that weren't designed for war
or secret societies. Okay, let's talk about those created for
fun and entertainment.
Speaker 2: Like puzzles and games.
Speaker 1: Exactly.
Speaker 2: I love a good puzzle.
Speaker 1: Well, you mentioned Edgar Allan Poe earlier.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, po He was all about puzzles and hidden meanings.
Speaker 1: And he loved to use codes and ciphers in his writing.
Speaker 2: He would challenge his readers to figure them out.
Speaker 1: Remember those two ciphers he published back in eighteen thirty nine.
Speaker 2: The ones that took over one hundred years to solve.
Speaker 1: Those are a great example of how codes can be used.
Speaker 2: For entertainment, and they add this extra layer of intrigue
to Poe's work.
Speaker 1: It's like he's inviting us to play a game with him.
Speaker 2: I love that.
Speaker 1: It's a shame that the deciphered messages weren't more exciting.
Speaker 2: I know, right, I was hoping for some juicy secrets,
but hey, even without those, the process of cracking the
codes was still pretty cool. Yeah, it's the journey, not
just the destination.
Speaker 1: Okay, So we've talked about codes from the past.
Speaker 2: Yeah, lots of history.
Speaker 1: But what about the codes that are all around us today?
What do you mean the codes that protect our online information?
Are financial transactions, our privacy?
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, modern cryptography exactly.
Speaker 1: We use codes every day without even realizing it.
Speaker 2: It's like an invisible shield protecting our digital lives.
Speaker 1: And as technology advances, these codes become even more important.
Speaker 2: Because the threats become more sophisticated too.
Speaker 1: It's like a constant arms race between the code makers
and the code breakers.
Speaker 2: Always trying to stay one step ahead.
Speaker 1: But that's what makes it so exciting.
Speaker 2: It's a fascinating field that's constantly evolving.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we've just scratched the surface of this amazing world
of codes and ciphers.
Speaker 2: There's so much more to explore.
Speaker 1: But for now, we're going to take a quick break.
Speaker 2: All right, sounds good.
Speaker 1: We'll be back soon to wrap things up.
Speaker 2: I'm ready for more code breaking adventures me too, Stay tuned,
can't wait. You know, it's really amazing how code breaking
has changed over time in what way. Well you think
about those early code breakers like Charles Babbage.
Speaker 1: Yeah, they had to do everything by hand, right with
pen and paper.
Speaker 2: It was a slow and painstaking.
Speaker 1: Process, but they figured out some pretty amazing stuff they did.
Speaker 2: But as technology advanced, code breaking became more of a team.
Speaker 1: Effort, like during World War Two exactly.
Speaker 2: Think about Alan Turing and the Enigma code.
Speaker 1: Right. Breaking that code was a massive undertaking.
Speaker 2: It required mathematicians, linguists, engineers, all working together.
Speaker 1: And let's not forget those unsung heroes.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like Genevieve grotch On.
Speaker 1: Her story is just incredible, really is.
Speaker 2: She was a mathematician working on the Japanese Purple code.
Speaker 1: That code was supposed to be unbreakable.
Speaker 2: Even the best British code breakers couldn't crack it.
Speaker 1: It's amazing that Genevieve noted those patterns.
Speaker 2: The subtle repetitions and cycles in the code.
Speaker 1: Yeah, things that everyone else had missed.
Speaker 2: Her observation was the key allowed.
Speaker 1: Her team to figure out how the Purple machine worked.
Speaker 2: And to decipher those messages.
Speaker 1: It's a reminder that sometimes the smallest details can make
the biggest difference, and.
Speaker 2: That we need diverse perspectives to solve complex problems.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, we need people who can see things differently.
Speaker 2: Yeah, where do we go from here?
Speaker 1: How about we delve into the world of secret societies.
Speaker 2: Ooh, secret societies. That sounds intriguing.
Speaker 1: They've always had this aura of mystery around them.
Speaker 2: Yeah, all those rituals and secret codes.
Speaker 1: They're like a hidden world within our own.
Speaker 2: So which society are we going to explore?
Speaker 1: Let's start with the one connected to the Kochl cipher.
Speaker 2: Remind me what that one was about.
Speaker 1: It was that document from the eighteenth century with all
the weird symbols. Well, it turns out it was the
initiation ritual for a group called the Oculist Order.
Speaker 2: The Oculist Order never heard of them, me neither.
Speaker 1: Before I read about this. They're obsessed with eyes.
Speaker 2: Eyes like eyesight.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and eye surgery ceremonies involved glasses and blank pages.
Speaker 2: That's kind of creepy, I know.
Speaker 1: Right, It's like a mix of science and strange rituals.
Speaker 2: So what were they trying to achieve with all this.
Speaker 1: It's hard to say for sure, but their writings suggest
they were interested in the idea of vision and enlightenment.
Speaker 2: It's fascinating how these codes can give us these glimpses
into these secret worlds.
Speaker 1: It's like we're time travelers peeking into the past.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and it makes you wonder what other secret societies
existed throughout.
Speaker 1: History and what secrets they were trying to protect.
Speaker 2: So are all secret societies this weird?
Speaker 1: I don't know about all of them, but some of
them definitely had some strange beliefs and practices, like what
well somewhere into alchemy and astrology. Others were more focused
on political or religious goals.
Speaker 2: It's like a whole hidden network operating beneath the surface
of society.
Speaker 1: It's kind of fascinating a little bit scary at the
same time.
Speaker 2: I agree. It's like there's this whole other world out
there that we know nothing about.
Speaker 1: It makes you wonder what secrets are still hidden.
Speaker 2: And what impact they might have had on history.
Speaker 1: Speaking of secrets, ooh, another one we can't forget about
the Zodiac Killer.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, that case is still unsolved.
Speaker 1: This guy was a master of creating fear and confusion.
Speaker 2: He loved to taunt the police with his coded messages.
Speaker 1: And remember that three hundred and forty character cryptogram.
Speaker 2: The one that took over fifty years to solve.
Speaker 1: That one was a real head scratcher.
Speaker 2: What did it say when they finally decoded it.
Speaker 1: Well, it was kind of a letdown. It didn't reveal
his identity or anything.
Speaker 2: Useful like that, really, so what was the point?
Speaker 1: It was mostly just rambling and nonsensical stuff.
Speaker 2: Huh. So even in his coded messages, he managed to
stay one step ahead. It's both fascinating and frustrating, like
he's still out there somewhere laughing at us maybe.
Speaker 1: But you know what I find really interesting about this case?
What's that It shows how code can be used to
manipulate and control.
Speaker 2: To instill fear and create this sense of mystery.
Speaker 1: Exactly the Zodiac Killer used codes to create his own legend.
Speaker 2: Makes you think about the power of codes.
Speaker 1: It does. They're not just about protecting information. He can
also be used to influence and manipulate people.
Speaker 2: It's a reminder that codes can be used for good
or for evil.
Speaker 1: So yeah, let's shift gears again and talk about a
code that was famous for its ingenious design.
Speaker 2: Okay, which one?
Speaker 1: The Visioneer cipher?
Speaker 2: Ah, the one that was considered unbreakable for centuries.
Speaker 1: That's the one. Remember how he used twenty six different
cipher alphabets.
Speaker 2: Vaguely? Remind me how it worked again?
Speaker 1: Well, basically, you use a keyword to determine which alphabet
to use for each letter of your message.
Speaker 2: So the keyword was like a secret key exactly.
Speaker 1: Without it, you'd have no idea how to he code
the message.
Speaker 2: Sounds pretty secure it was, but like.
Speaker 1: All codes, yeah, it eventually met its match.
Speaker 2: Who figured it out?
Speaker 1: Charles Babbage, the computer guy. Yeah, he was a genius.
He realized that even with all those different alphabets, Yeah,
there were still patterns that could be exploited. Like what
he noticed that repeating sequences of letters in the ciphertext
often meant that the same part of the keyword had
been used to encrypt different parts of the message.
Speaker 2: So he was looking for those little hints of order
within the chaos exactly.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and by finding those patterns, Yeah, he could figure
out the length of the.
Speaker 2: Keyword and then crack the code.
Speaker 1: It's amazing how he was able to see those patterns
that everyone else had missed.
Speaker 2: It really is. But didn't you say he never published
his findings.
Speaker 1: I did. It's one of the strangest parts of the story.
Speaker 2: Why would he keep it a secret?
Speaker 1: We may never know for sure?
Speaker 2: Hmmm, frustrating.
Speaker 1: But what of the reason. It meant that the Vigionier
cipher remained a mystery for another.
Speaker 2: Fifty years until Friedrich Kosiski came.
Speaker 1: Along and independently discovered the same method.
Speaker 2: It's funny how that happens sometimes.
Speaker 1: It is. It makes you realize that scientific discoveries aren't
always linear.
Speaker 2: Sometimes multiple people are working on the same problem at
the same time.
Speaker 1: And sometimes those breakthroughs happen in the most unexpected places.
Speaker 2: Speaking of unexpected breakthroughs.
Speaker 1: Should we talk about Genevieve Gratschin.
Speaker 2: Oh, yeah, she's a great example of that.
Speaker 1: This woman was a code breaking superstar.
Speaker 2: And yet most people have never heard of her.
Speaker 1: I know, right. Her work on the Japanese Purple Code
was absolutely crucial during World War Two.
Speaker 2: Remind me again, what made that code so difficult to break.
Speaker 1: Well, it was this sophisticated cipher machine that the Japanese
used for their most sensitive communications. Okay, they thought it
was completely unbreakable.
Speaker 2: And for a while, it seems like it was.
Speaker 1: Even the best code breakers in the world.
Speaker 2: Were stumped until Genevieve came along.
Speaker 1: Exactly, she had this amazing ability to see patterns that
others missed.
Speaker 2: She was looking at these encrypted messages and noticed these
subtle repetitions, tiny cycles within the code, and that gave her.
Speaker 1: A clue about how the machine worked.
Speaker 2: It was a brilliant insight that.
Speaker 1: Led to the decipherment of countless Japanese messages.
Speaker 2: Giving the Allies a huge advantage in the war.
Speaker 1: It's incredible to think that one person's observation skills could
have such a profound impact on history.
Speaker 2: Genevieve Grauchen's story is a testament to the power of
human ingenuity.
Speaker 1: And the importance of having a fresh perspective.
Speaker 2: It's also a reminder that we should never underestimate the
contributions of women in stem fields.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, they've played a vital role in shaping our world.
Speaker 2: Okay, let's take another trip back in time. All right,
all right, this time, we're going to ancient Greece, to.
Speaker 1: The land of myths and legends.
Speaker 2: Remember that mysterious script we talked about earlier, You.
Speaker 1: Mean Linear B, the one that was found on those
play tablets.
Speaker 2: That's the one. It was like a message from a
lost civilization.
Speaker 1: For decades, no one could figure out what it said.
Speaker 2: They could see the symbols, but they couldn't understand their meaning.
Speaker 1: Right, it was like a puzzle with missing pieces, right, It.
Speaker 2: Was like a puzzle with missing pieces.
Speaker 1: But then along came this architect, an architect, Yeah, his
name was Michael Ventris, okay, and he had this hunch
that Lennier B might actually be an early form of Greek.
Speaker 2: Really that's a bold claim.
Speaker 1: It was, but he was determined to prove it.
Speaker 2: So what did he do.
Speaker 1: He spent years studying the tablets, comparing them to other
ancient scripts, using all sorts of techniques to try and
decipher them.
Speaker 2: And did it work.
Speaker 1: It did. He finally cracked the code.
Speaker 2: Amazing. So what did the tablets say?
Speaker 1: They revealed a wealth of information about the Mycenaean civilization.
Speaker 2: Who were they?
Speaker 1: They were a Bronze Age civilization that flourished in Greece
centuries before the classical period.
Speaker 2: So this was like a whole new chapter of Greek
history exactly.
Speaker 1: Venturece's work completely changed our understanding of ancient Greece.
Speaker 2: It's incredible how one person's dedication can unlock so much knowledge.
Speaker 1: It is and it shows us that there's still so
much we don't know about the past.
Speaker 2: It's like we're constantly rewriting history as we uncover new discoveries.
Speaker 1: Now, let's jump to another pivotal moment in history.
Speaker 2: Okay, where are we going?
Speaker 1: World War Two?
Speaker 2: Remember Alan Turing, the Enigma codebreaker, the.
Speaker 1: One and only. His work at Bletchley Park played a
crucial role in the Allied victory.
Speaker 2: It's hard to overstate the importance of his contributions.
Speaker 1: They were truly groundbreaking. He realized that the Enigma.
Speaker 2: Machine, the German cutting device.
Speaker 1: Right, had certain mathematical weaknesses. Okay, so he designed these
machines called bombs to exploit those weaknesses, and.
Speaker 2: They were able to decipher the German messages.
Speaker 1: They did, and that intelligence proved invaluable during the war.
Speaker 2: His work must have saved countless lives.
Speaker 1: It's estimated that it shortened the war by years.
Speaker 2: It's just tragic how he was treated after the war.
Speaker 1: It's a dark stain on history.
Speaker 2: His story highlights the importance of fighting for equality and justice.
Speaker 1: And of recognizing the contributions of all individuals.
Speaker 2: Regardless of their sexual orientation or any other characteristic.
Speaker 1: So we've talked about codes for war and secret societies.
Speaker 2: Yeah, lots of secrets.
Speaker 1: But codes can also be used for something much lighter, entertainment.
Remember Edgar Allen Poe.
Speaker 2: The Master of Mystery.
Speaker 1: He loved to embed codes and ciphers in his stories.
Speaker 2: It was like he was playing a game with his
readers exactly.
Speaker 1: He wanted to challenge to them to think outside the box.
Speaker 2: It's a shame though ciphers didn't reveal anything more exciting.
Speaker 1: I know, right, we were hoping for some juicy secrets.
Speaker 2: But hey, the process of cracking the codes was still
pretty cool.
Speaker 1: It is. It shows how codes can be used to
engage our minds and spark our imaginations.
Speaker 2: I love that. It's like a mental workout.
Speaker 1: And speaking of engaging our minds, okay, let's talk about
the codes that are all around us in the digital world.
Speaker 2: You mean the ones that protect our online information Exactly.
Speaker 1: We use codes every day without even realizing it.
Speaker 2: When we shop online, check our bank accounts, send email.
Speaker 1: It's all happening behind the scenes.
Speaker 2: It's like an invisible shield protecting our digital lives.
Speaker 1: And these codes are constantly evolving.
Speaker 2: As hackers and cyber criminals become more sophisticated.
Speaker 1: It's like a constant battle between good and evil.
Speaker 2: A digital arms race, but it's.
Speaker 1: A battle that's essential for our safety and security in
the digital age.
Speaker 2: It's amazing to think about how far cryptography has come.
Speaker 1: From simple substitution ciphers to complex Algeori rhythms.
Speaker 2: It's a testament to human ingenuity and to.
Speaker 1: Our constant desire to stay one step ahead.
Speaker 2: So what's the biggest takeaway from.
Speaker 1: All this, Well, I think it's important to remember that
codes are more than just about secrecy. Okay. They're a
reflection of human creativity and our desire to communicate.
Speaker 2: And to protect information.
Speaker 1: They can be used for good or for evil.
Speaker 2: And they're constantly evolving.
Speaker 1: It's a fascinating field that's full of surprises.
Speaker 2: Yeah, So where do we go from here?
Speaker 1: Well, we've covered a lot of ground today, we.
Speaker 2: Have from ancient scripts to modern cryptography.
Speaker 1: But there's still so much more to explore. I'm ready
for more me too, So stay tuned for the final
part of our deep dive into the world of codes
and ciphers.
Speaker 2: It's really fascinating to consider the human element in all
these stories about codes and ciphers, right.
Speaker 1: Like, beyond just the technical stuff, there's this whole layer
of drama and.
Speaker 2: Intrigue totally, like Charles Babbage cracking the Visionaire cipher but
then keeping it a secret.
Speaker 1: I still can't get over that.
Speaker 2: One, right, what was he thinking?
Speaker 1: And then you have those unsung heroes like Genevieve Grotchin.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, she's a great example.
Speaker 1: Her work on the Japanese Purple Code was so important.
Speaker 2: It makes you wonder how many other people made these
huge contributions to history, right, but.
Speaker 1: Their stories are hidden or forgotten.
Speaker 2: We need to do a better job of recognizing those
hidden figures.
Speaker 1: I agree. And it's not just about individual people either,
What do you mean, It's about understanding how codes reflect
the time and the society they were created in.
Speaker 2: Oh, I see what you're saying.
Speaker 1: Like those secret societies we talked about, Yeah, those were interesting.
Their codes and rituals tell us so much about their
beliefs and their goals.
Speaker 2: Some of them were pretty strange, though they were.
Speaker 1: But even the strange ones can teach us something about
the past.
Speaker 2: It's like a hidden world that we're only just beginning
to understand.
Speaker 1: But you know, codes aren't just a thing of the past.
They're all around us in the digital.
Speaker 2: World, protecting our information.
Speaker 1: Keeping us safe online.
Speaker 2: It's amazing how far cryptography has come.
Speaker 1: From Caesar ciphers to complex algorithms.
Speaker 2: It's a testament to human ingenuity.
Speaker 1: So as we wrap up our deep dive into the
world of codes and ciphers, Yeah, what's the one big
idea you want our listeners to take away?
Speaker 2: I think it's this. Codes and ciphers are more than
just about secrecy, okay. They're a reflection of who we
are as.
Speaker 1: Humans, our desire to communicate, to protect, to challenge ourselves
with puzzles.
Speaker 2: They're a thread that connects us to the past and
to the future.
Speaker 1: That's a great way to put it.
Speaker 2: And for anyone listening out there, Yeah, keep your eyes
open for the codes around you.
Speaker 1: There are secrets hidden everywhere.
Speaker 2: You never know what you might discover.
Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us on this journey into the world
of codes and ciphers.
Speaker 2: It's been a pleasure.
Speaker 1: Until next time, Happy code breaking.