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Sculptor Gives a Hint For CIA's Kryptos

Posted by timothy on from the c'mon-fellas dept.

omega_cubed writes "The New York Times reports that Jim Sanborn, the sculptor who created the wavy metal pane called Kryptos that sits in front of the CIA in Langley, VA, has gotten tired of waiting for code-breakers to decode the last of the four messages. 'I assumed the code would be cracked in a fairly short time,' [Sanborn] said, adding that the intrusions on his life from people who think they have solved his fourth puzzle are more than he expected. So now, after 20 years, Mr. Sanborn is nudging the process along. He has provided The New York Times with the answers to six letters in the sculpture's final passage. The characters that are the 64th through 69th in the final series on the sculpture read NYPVTT. When deciphered, they read BERLIN."

4 of 151 comments (clear)

  1. No! Don't solve the puzzle! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    If you do, the[NO CARRIER]

  2. OK, so now we know that.... by dohzer · · Score: 5, Funny

    N = B
    Y = E
    P = R
    V = L
    T = I
    T = N (if it's preceded by another 'T'),

    It shouldn't take too long to solve now.

  3. Re:Intrusions? by pthisis · · Score: 5, Funny

    It was part of their plan to decode it. They know that social engineering is often a much more effective way of getting at encrypted data than an attack on the algorithm; by pestering the author with a bunch of claptrap, they've already gotten him to reveal part of the plaintext.

    Next phase: Stand outside of his apartment with a stereo held overhead Say Anything-style, blasting Achy Breaky Heart. The remainder of the message will fall in days.

    --
    rage, rage against the dying of the light
  4. Re:i just fucked a girl by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ironically, this is actually the message encoded in Kryptos.