The Code Book reveals
the history of cryptography's strengths and weaknesses. Simon Singh
brings codes to life by
taking us on a journey with Mary Queen of Scots, whom was exuceted by
Queen Elizabeth, for plotting the Queens murder in secret code found
in letters. A lost treasure is waiting to be discovered by decoding
the Beale Ciphers. The treasure includes silver and gold, which was
buried in Virginia during the nineteenth century and is waiting to be
discovered. Codes are more than weapons and tools
because they have altered the course of history especially during the
First and Second World Wars. Codes have been delivered and intercepted
in various ways throughout history. Although codes are challenging for
codebreakers they can be cracked! Simon Singh offers a $15,000 reward
for anyone whom can crack his cipher challenge located in the back of
his book. The cipher challenge was decoded by a Swedish team of
researchers. Deciphering codes can be time
consuming and mind boggling but are essential to national and
individual security. Outcomes of codes can result in life or death.
I would highly recommend this book to students nterested in codes and
the history of computers.