Sunday, September 4, 2011
From the Reading [The Code Book].... Beale
The indecipherable Beale Papers, one has been deciphered while the other two remain unsolved. I believe that the key text for the other two papers was created by Beale himself or was an original work that was never duplicated. Therefore it would be virtually impossible to break the cipher. However, shouldn't there be a way to crack the code? I think that eventually the elusive message within those two remaining papers will one day be revealed. Is any code truly impossible without the key?
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Though I have not personally done enough digging to have a resolute opinion that is unaffected by doubts and other’s findings, I believe the so-called indecipherable Beale Papers are indeed a hoax, created by a brilliant mastermind. I am innately driven to question everything I am told, and the evidence presented in the Code Book that backs the validity of the Beale Papers is not sufficient enough to eradicate my skepticism. Is it a coincidence that, of the three ciphers, the second (which reveals the contents of the treasure, enough to whet one’s curiosity and greed) is the only one yet to be deciphered? Is it also a twist of fate that Beale’s writing style, under strict textual analysis, so closely matches that of the author of the Beale pamphlet? In addition, I cannot help but ponder why Beale would dictate his message for Morriss through three separate ciphers if it was, in fact, one message about one treasure for one person to decipher. Morriss was promised to receive a visit from Beale’s friend with the secrets to decipher the codes in July 1832. If the key to all the ciphers was to be delivered on the same day by one individual, what was the need of having three separate ciphers?
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, it is notable that the letter from Beale to Morriss reads, “You will find, in addition to the papers addressed to you, other papers which will be unintelligible without the aid of a key to assist you. Such a key I have…” The fact that the wording is singular implies that one key will solve all three ciphers. This further denotes that if the Declaration of Independence was used to solve one cipher, it can be used to solve the other two as well. It is my opinion that the author of the pamphlets, who is also the genius behind the ciphers themselves, kept this in mind and purposefully intertwined a pattern in the nonsense created when the first cipher is deciphered using the Declaration of Independence a key. This will not only lead people to believe they are on the right track, but also keep mystery of the Beale Papers alive for years to come.
As to the question about the possibility of breaking codes without keys, my first reaction is to say “No, a code cannot be broken without a key.” However, after reading a few chapters of the code book, I realize there are many different codes and many different strategies to break them. For example, frequency analysis, while incredibly time consuming to do without the aid of technology, is a technique I never would have thought of before and is very effective in breaking most monoalphabetic ciphers. In the war of cryptographers versus cryptanalysts, the advantage constantly sways from one side to another. New ciphers are constantly being created and broken, calling the need for another new cipher. With that being said, I believe that, yes, it is possible to break a code without a key (with the proper strategy and technology). That is why this war will never end; cryptanalysts will constantly be able to develop new technology and strategies to break new ciphers, causing the cryptographers to work up another cipher, which will be unbreakable, until cryptanalysts develop new technology and strategies.
Thanks, Cate and Amy, for being the first to blog and comment!
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