Movies - Cryptonomicon

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Cryptonomicon is a 1999 novel by Neal Stephenson that concurrently follows the exploits of World War II-era cryptographers affiliated with Bletchley Park in their attempts to crack Axis codes and fight the Nazi submarine fleet, alongside the story of their descendants, who are attempting to use modern cryptography to build a data haven in the fictitious state of Kinakuta, a small nation with geographical and political parallels to Brunei. Cryptonomicon is closer to the genres of historical fiction and contemporary techno-thriller than to the science fiction settings of Stephenson's earlier works, and features fictionalized characterizations of such historical figures as Alan Turing, Douglas MacArthur, Winston Churchill, Isoroku Yamamoto, Karl Donitz, Albert Einstein, and Ronald Reagan, as well as some highly technical and detailed descriptions of modern cryptography and information security, and subjects ranging from prime numbers and modular arithmetic to van Eck phreaking.

Title

The title is a reference to the fictional Necronomicon, a reference of demonology translated as the "Book of Dead Names" and detailed in the works of the writer H. P. Lovecraft.

When Stephenson came up with his title, he was not aware of the word's origin, and was simply seeking a Greek-sounding word that also had 'crypto' in it. Cryptonomicon translates to 'Book of Hidden Names'. The Cryptonomicon referred to in the novel— described as a "cryptographer's bible" — is a fictional book summarizing mankind's knowledge of cryptography and cryptanalysis.

Themes and technical content

Portions of Cryptonomicon are notably complex and may be considered somewhat difficult by the non-technical reader. Several pages are spent explaining in detail some of the concepts behind cryptography and data storage security, including a description of van Eck phreaking, as an example.

Characters

Major characters in the book include, in the World War II storyline:

Robert “Bobby” Shaftoe, a United States Marine
Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse, an American mathematician serving in the United States Navy
Goto Dengo, a sailor in the Imperial Japanese Navy
Günter Bischoff, a Kapitänleutnant in the Kriegsmarine
Enoch Root, a mysterious priest serving in the ANZAC
Rudolf “Rudy” von Hacklheber, a German mathematician

In the modern-day storyline:

Randall Lawrence Waterhouse, Lawrence Waterhouse's grandson
Avi Halaby, his business partner
Douglas Macarthur Shaftoe, Robert Shaftoe's son
America "Amy" Shaftoe, Doug Shaftoe's daughter

Other characters include:

Hubert Kepler “The Dentist”
Eberhard Föhr
John Cantrell
Tom Howard
Beryl Hagen
Paul Comstock
Julieta Kivistik
“Uncle” Otto Kivistik
Mary cCmndhd (Smith)
Glory Altamira
Alan Turing
Douglas MacArthur
Karl Dönitz

Cipher text

Stephenson includes a precise description of (and indeed a Perl script for) the Solitaire cipher (called "Pontifex" in the book), a cryptographic algorithm developed by Bruce Schneier for use with a deck of playing cards, as part of the plot. He also describes computers using a fictional operating system, Finux.

Intentional typos?

The original hardcover edition of Cryptonomicon had numerous typos, and there has been widespread speculation that these typos were deliberate and constitute a steganographically hidden code . Hidden codes are not uncommon in modern novels on cryptography; for example, Dan Brown's Digital Fortress is confirmed to have a hidden code.

Relationship to other works

Stephenson's subsequent work, The Baroque Cycle, in part provides the backstory to the characters and events featured in Cryptonomicon.

The Baroque Cycle features characters who are ancestors of several characters in Cryptonomicon, predating the time and setting for Cryptonomicon. The subtext implies the existence of secret societies or conspiracies, and familial associations existing within those darker worlds.

Stephenson's works often reflect linkages between past and present, employing temporal discontinuity to illustrate these links.

Reviews

Despite the technical detail, the book drew praise from both Stephenson's science fiction fan base and literary critics and buyers.

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