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victorsbookshelf's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
c_hayman's review against another edition
5.0
The book excellently tells the history of codes & ciphers from the most basic ones till the most advanced. It also includes excercises for the adventurous cryptanalysts.
It is interesting and captures the readers attention.
It is interesting and captures the readers attention.
kitkat962's review against another edition
4.0
The history entangling with these codes are interesting: How the Enigma helped to end the WW, how Bob and Alice send messages without being intervened, how scholars read the hieroglyphs, etc. The contribution made by code makers and breakers shaped history, but little is known because of secrecy, so I think the author did them justice.
It is no doubt a delightful book for non-math people, even though you may have to re-read it as the algorithms/reasoning could be hard to follow at certain points. You may want to write down the steps. The book also offered sets of problems for readers to apply the knowledge and solve it themselves. T
It is no doubt a delightful book for non-math people, even though you may have to re-read it as the algorithms/reasoning could be hard to follow at certain points. You may want to write down the steps. The book also offered sets of problems for readers to apply the knowledge and solve it themselves. T
gracefullypunk's review against another edition
5.0
Intriguing and yet accessible, even to a mind not schooled in mathematics and physics. A balance between science and the personalities involved in cryptography, and Mr. Singh does a great job of constructing helpful analogies to assist the novice in figuring out how the various elements of this science work.
marieeve1978's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely fascinating. Simon Singh has a great faculty to explain in a simple way very complex concepts. I highly recommend this book.
cinchona's review against another edition
4.0
Quite a solid read! I went through this book with a class of gifted students learning cryptography as a math course: it was a great jumping-off point for discussion and for learning! The presentation is both historical and detailed on the technical side, which draws in a wide range of readers and gives them a hook into the material. I agree with my students' reviews that the chapters about Babbage (Ch3) leading up to Enigma (Ch4) were the most gripping -- and readable completely on their own if desired.
The only place the book fell down, in my students' estimation, was Chapter 8 on quantum cryptography -- note the publication date. 30 years ago quantum computers were still a hypothetical, and it would be too much to expect, perhaps, a pop-sci type book to explain them in any detail. Either due to the difficulty or novelty of the topic, that chapter is rough and dull and worth skipping.
Beyond that one weakness, this book is top-notch. It is accessible and fun and fascinating. It tells a coherent historical narrative while skillfully unfurling mathematical developments and giving credit to some of history's forgotten geniuses. It gets very detailed into classical and digital cryptography with great technical success, such that it's a great intro to a more mathematical treatment later. I'm surprised how good it was!
The only place the book fell down, in my students' estimation, was Chapter 8 on quantum cryptography -- note the publication date. 30 years ago quantum computers were still a hypothetical, and it would be too much to expect, perhaps, a pop-sci type book to explain them in any detail. Either due to the difficulty or novelty of the topic, that chapter is rough and dull and worth skipping.
Beyond that one weakness, this book is top-notch. It is accessible and fun and fascinating. It tells a coherent historical narrative while skillfully unfurling mathematical developments and giving credit to some of history's forgotten geniuses. It gets very detailed into classical and digital cryptography with great technical success, such that it's a great intro to a more mathematical treatment later. I'm surprised how good it was!