In addition to stories of intrigue and warfare, Simon Singh also investigates other codes, the unravelling of genes and the rediscovery of ancient languages and most tantalisingly, the Beale ciphers, an unbroken code that could hold the key to a $20 million treasure. Amongst many extraordinary examples, Simon Singh relates in detail the story of Mary Queen of Scots, trapped by her own code and put to death by Elizabeth I.

As in Fermats Last Theorem, Simon Singh brings life to an anstonishing story of puzzles. The Code Book describes some illustrative highlights in the history of cryptography, drawn from both of its principal branches, codes and ciphers. The secret history of codes and code-breaking. The betrayal of Mary Queen of Scots and the cracking of the enigma code that helped the Allies in World War II are major episodes in a continuing history of cryptography. The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography is a book by Simon Singh, published in 1999 by Fourth Estate and Doubleday. Codes have influenced events throughout history, both in the stories of those who make them and those who break them. The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography From the best-selling author of Fermat's Last Theorem, The Code Book is a history of man's urge to uncover the secrets of codes, from Egyptian puzzles to modern day computer encryptions.Īs in Fermat's Last Theorem, Simon Singh brings life to an anstonishing story of puzzles, codes, languages and riddles that reveals man's continual pursuit to disguise and uncover, and to work out the secret languages of others.

The code simon singh