Codes: The Guide to Secrecy from Ancient to Modern Times

by Richard A. Mollin

Book Overview

From the Rosetta Stone to public-key cryptography, the art and science of cryptology has been used to unlock the vivid history of ancient cultures, to turn the tide of warfare, and to thwart potential hackers from attacking computer systems. Codes: The Guide to Secrecy from Ancient to Modern Times explores the depth and breadth of the field, remaining accessible to the uninitiated while retaining enough rigor for the seasoned cryptologist.

The...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1584884703
• ISBN13: 9781584884705
• Release Date: May 2005
• Publisher: CRC Press
• Length: 679 Pages
• Weight: 2.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.7" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

a historical survey

Mollin has already written several texts on various aspects of cryptography. This book of necessity overlaps with those, to various extents. Here Mollin offers more of a general introduction and guide. Pitched to those outside the field. Whereas his other books are directed to students in cryptography. Hence, this is not a maths book, per se. The historical perspective is nice. Gives you an appreciation of what people did before computers transformed this field. Caesar ciphers, substitutions etc. But in the post WW2 era, high speed electronic computers made a wide impact. Mollin explains how this enabled public key cryptography. Based on the asymmetric effort needed to factor a very large number, compared to generating that number by multiplying a set of primes together. Mollin also looks at the future. Specifically at quantum computing. While early results are intriguing, it is still unclear if this approach will ever prove practical.