Codes, cyphers, and the National Cryptologic Museum

Outside the National Cryptologic Museum gift store is this replica of the Rosetta Stone. Created around 196 BC, it displays a decree from an Egyptian king, written in Egyptian hieroglyphs, Demotic script and ancient Greek. Discovered by a French soldier during France's invasion of Egypt in 1799, it provided the key to unlocking Egyptian hieroglyphs, much as modern code breakers look for keys in breaking coded texts. The real Rosetta Stone is on display at the British Museum in London.

Located at the edge of Fort Meade, Maryland, in an old, nondescript motel, is the National Cryptologic Museum. Admission is free, and with that admission you can explore how the worlds of communications, mathematics, and security intersect in cryptology. Photos Continue reading Codes, cyphers, and the National Cryptologic Museum

FOSE was gunning for business

FOSE is the largest computer conference and exhibition in the Washington, DC, metropolitan region. At one time, it had days of meetings, classes, speeches, and other educational events, plus miles and miles of aisles filled with the latest computer hardware Continue reading FOSE was gunning for business

When plumbing fails

What happens when a high-tech urinal crashes? It no longer flushes, but it does flash an indicator light and occasionally beeps. No, it was not made by Microsoft. The beep sound occurs only about once every ten seconds. This is Continue reading When plumbing fails

Poor memory management

For most of human history, people had only their own memories for storing information. Most people who have lived did not know how to read or write, and if they wanted to remember something, they had to memorize it. Stories Continue reading Poor memory management

Why Mac users should think about a Drobo

5386 It’s all about metadata There are three basic NAS type devices out there: * HP Media Server and clones: HP promoted their Media Server at Macworld as a “home file server.” This somewhat surprised me, given that it is Continue reading Why Mac users should think about a Drobo