Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Math Teacher Solves Adobe Semaphore Puzzle (mercurynews.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the crack-the-code dept.

linuxwrangler writes: For over 4 years, lights atop Adobe's office building in San Jose have flashed out a secret message. This week, the puzzle was solved by Tennessee math teacher Jimmy Waters. As part of the winnings, Adobe is donating software and 3D printers to Waters' school in his name. "The semaphore had been transmitting the audio broadcast of Neil Armstrong's historic moon landing in 1969," reports The Mercury News. "That's right, not the text but the actual audio." The report provides some backstory: "Waters discovered the project, San Jose Semaphore, last summer while he was looking up something about Thomas Pynchon's 1966 novel, 'The Crying of Lot 49.' The text of that work was the code originally programmed by New York-based artist Ben Rubin in 2006. Seeing there was a new message, Waters began trying to decipher it while watching and writing down the sequences online from Tennessee. He discovered a pattern that led him to believe it could represent a space -- or a silence -- in an audio file, and when he graphed the results it looked like an audio wave. He dismissed that as being too difficult but came back to it and eventually ran his results into a program that would convert his numbers to audio. The first results came back sounding like chipmunks squeaking. So he tweaked things and found himself listening to the historic broadcast, which ends with Armstrong's famous line, 'That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.'" You can listen to the semaphore message here.

52 comments

  1. Tennessee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    They do math there?

    1. Re:Tennessee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Let me guess... You wonder why Donald Trump is the President of the United States now? Right? How'd I know?? Gee...

    2. Re: Tennessee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hahaha it feels so good to make fun of those economically disadvantaged subhumans! As long as they are white this is totally ok!

    3. Re:Tennessee by PPH · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Yes. As long as it doesn't involve counting back more than 6000 years.

      --
      Have gnu, will travel.
    4. Re: Tennessee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Poor whites. The most destitute and discriminated against group in all the world.

    5. Re:Tennessee by hcs_$reboot · · Score: 1

      Yes. As long as it doesn't involve counting back more than 6000 years.

      Actually 8017 now

      --
      Slashdot, fix the reply notifications... You won't get away with it...
  2. Can we solve a real problem please? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    All of the person-hours spent concocting and solving such silly puzzles could go to better use. Companies like Adobe should be incentivizing cancer and HIV research achievements, or finding clever solutions to combating problems like homelessness and hunger. But no, let's do some blinky-lights instead. God help us all.

    1. Re: Can we solve a real problem please? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Adobe could run the contest and give money prizes to medical research organizations like NARTH.

    2. Re: Can we solve a real problem please? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You are probably wondering why you were modded down with such a rational question. The answer is your argument is too much like the tired "why spend money on space when there are problems on earth?" The answer is your "waste" is important/fun to me and even if frivolous, why seek to start cutting here as apposed to say professional sports?

    3. Re:Can we solve a real problem please? by alexgieg · · Score: 1

      God help us all.

      So, why are you spending money on an Internet connection and on a computing device, when you could have donated them to charity? Also, why are you using your free time here, instead of going to a homeless shelter to teach them? And have you opened up your home for them so that they have a better place to live?

      Given your reference to God, let me point you to Luke 18:10-14 and Matthew 7:1-3. It's interesting how many Christians forget those verses and similar ones exist.

      --
      Conservatism: (n.) love of the existing evils. Liberalism: (n.) desire to substitute new evils for the existing ones.
    4. Re:Can we solve a real problem please? by Dishevel · · Score: 1, Insightful

      We will just have everyone defer to you to make sure that we are all spending our time doing with it, what you deem appropriate.
      Or ...

      You could fuck right off and keep your stupidity and self centered opinions contained with in your perpetual virgin shell of humanity.

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
    5. Re: Can we solve a real problem please? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes. Let homeless into your home. Let them empty your prescription shelf. Let them grab all visible money and jewelry. Let them spread desease. Let them rape your children while you watch from the closet masturbating.

      Or don't let them near you. You do not wake up homeless. It happens from a very long series of mistakes. Bad bad decisions. And its based from mental illness. That's why doing what they do is acceptable while a healthy mind would say fuck no and get any job at all or and help at all to prevent thier downfall. I'm talk the majority.

      Sure, one guy woke up homeless. He had a steak dinner he picked un at the local specialty store and drove home in his BMW. Cleaned up, went to sleep. The next morning he opened his eyes and holy shit. Some other homeless guy was kicking him shoe stealing his shoes. Or maybe not.

      Don't feel sorry for these people. Most are bad people. Not the abuse survivors and the like with children. Maybe different.

    6. Re: Can we solve a real problem please? by alexgieg · · Score: 1

      Don't feel sorry for these people.

      Check Luke 14:13-14. Done? Now, read Matthew 7:1-3 again. When you're done, let's merge both by referring to Proverbs 21:13. Harsh, eh?

      Americans have a very weird concept of what Christianity is all about. Assuming it's true, most will have a very... interesting... experience once Judgment Day arrives.

      --
      Conservatism: (n.) love of the existing evils. Liberalism: (n.) desire to substitute new evils for the existing ones.
  3. Bigots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    It's not bigotry if you're identify as politically progressive.

    1. Re:Bigots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Don't you have a sister you should be fucking behind the trailer?

    2. Re:Bigots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      I'd fuck my sister if she wasn't fat and addicted to Oxycontin.

    3. Re:Bigots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Why? Her teeth are rotted out and she gums a dick like a pro!

  4. Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    He said "one small step for a man". The transmission was messy.

    1. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Jaborandy · · Score: 3, Interesting

      He said "one small step for a man". The transmission was messy.

      Man, I'm glad I'm not the only one who wanted to post this correction.

      I've spoken to Neil. He insists he said that "a." It's certainly obvious that he meant to.

      --Jaborandy

    2. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Of course he said "a man". Otherwise it makes no sense. Without the "a" it's just a small step AND a giant leap for man/kind. That would be absurd.

    3. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Glad to see George Lucas isn't the only one in favor of retconning the past in favour of "what I actually meant was..."

    4. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      However, NASA has studied the audio recording over and over, and found no evidence that there's an 'a' ever uttered, and plenty of evidence that there simply isn't the time for him to have said what he claims he said.

      Humans have notoriously terrible memories, we remember more of what we want to, not what actually happened.

    5. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 1

      And humans always pronounce perfectly and exactly the things they intended to.

      --
      Ezekiel 23:20
    6. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by ChunderDownunder · · Score: 1
      Kubrick was such a perfectionist, I'm surprised he didn't just reshoot the scene.

      Although counter-conspiracists might point to such imperfections in the screenplay as evidence that the landing wasn't faked.

    7. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Then that would mean he intended to say it but didn't.

    8. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 1

      However, NASA has studied the audio recording over and over, and found no evidence that there's an 'a' ever uttered, and plenty of evidence that there simply isn't the time for him to have said what he claims he said.

      Humans have notoriously terrible memories, we remember more of what we want to, not what actually happened.

      Say it yourself. It's easy to get sloppy and think you are saying "for a man", yet it comes out sound like "for man". He probably spoke it in exactly that manner.

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    9. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So he said or missed an article while playing astronaut in that 1969 movie. BIG DEAL!!

      Signed
      Donald J Trump

    10. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by tinkerton · · Score: 1

      Oh, I always thought he just misspoke. It made me imagine how great it would have been if he had misstepped and fallen on his face right then. Well, as long as they would have had sufficient sense of humor which is not likely.

    11. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by tinkerton · · Score: 2

      I suppose counter-conspiracists would just point to the last line in the article.

    12. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      However, NASA has studied the audio recording over and over, and found no evidence that there's an 'a' ever uttered, and plenty of evidence that there simply isn't the time for him to have said what he claims he said.

      Humans have notoriously terrible memories, we remember more of what we want to, not what actually happened.

      Say it yourself. It's easy to get sloppy and think you are saying "for a man", yet it comes out sound like "for man". He probably spoke it in exactly that manner.

      Exactly.

      You also have to remember that Neil did NOT say this off the cuff. He did NOT make it up. It was actually decided on the ground what would be said when he first set foot on the moon. It's entirely possible that the card said "for a man" and everyone believes he said it and he flubbed it.

      The only thing was spontaneous was "The Eagle has landed" because the lander was NOT called Eagle.

    13. Re:Armstrong didn't say "one small step for man" by speedplane · · Score: 1

      And humans always pronounce perfectly and exactly the things they intended to.

      It doesn't make sense without the "a", it's a self-contradiction. Even if he didn't actually say "a", that's what he was saying.

      --
      Fast Federal Court and I.T.C. updates
  5. the Three-Dimensional Blackboard helped by turkeydance · · Score: 1

    from Tennessee Tuxedo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

  6. Congratulations by mykepredko · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Great job by Mr. Waters.

    I'm sure the printers donated by Adobe are secondary to the satisfaction of figuring out the message.

    --
    Mimetics Inc. Twitter
    1. Re:Congratulations by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Especially because they included no toner cartridges.

    2. Re: Congratulations by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Now that's HP but still funny as hell!

  7. tl;dr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    tl;dr: Guy solves a "problem" that nobody knew existed. If people had known about it, then it would have been solved 4 years ago when it was installed.

    1. Re: tl;dr by Jfetjunky · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Not having a blatant indication there was a puzzle to be solved was part of the puzzle. They were hoping for someone like him to be observant and curious enough to solve it.

      His students are probably lucky to have him.

      Attempting to down play it just sounds like petty jealousy.

    2. Re:tl;dr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Yeah - we all know intellectual feats do not count unless you're a female.

    3. Re: tl;dr by phantomfive · · Score: 1

      It's been clear for a long time that it was a puzzle (at least, to people who lived near the area). I stared at those things for a while trying to figure it out, but never could.

      A very cool puzzle.

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
    4. Re: tl;dr by Anubis+IV · · Score: 1

      Not having a blatant indication there was a puzzle to be solved was part of the puzzle.

      The artist's own video of the project from eight years ago seems to suggest otherwise, given that it says:

      San José Semaphore is a multi-sensory kinetic artwork that illuminates the San José skyline with the transmission of a coded message. Cracking the coded message is posed as a challenge for the public.

      It doesn't seem like it was a secret that there was a message, so I'm leaning towards agreeing with the OP that this simply wasn't something most people knew about. Plus, it's clear that it was far simpler than many of the puzzles you see solved as a matter of course in alternate reality games that are part of viral marketing campaigns for movies and AAA video game releases, so I'd imagine it'd have been solved in short order if it were more widely known.

  8. Be sure to drink your Ovaltine! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That's what was written on the Rosetta Stone!

  9. Semaphore? by AJWM · · Score: 1

    They were waving flags?

    --
    -- Alastair
    1. Re:Semaphore? by ripvlan · · Score: 1

      Sort of - yes. Not physical flags. But rotating disks "waving" out a message. Check out the article and the corresponding website that contains a live feed - it's pretty cool.

      It meets this definition of a semaphore: "system of conveying information by means of visual signals, using towers with pivoting shutters, also known as blades or paddles"

  10. Clever by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    But Adobe should spend their resources fixing their shitty code, not playing with secret messages. Flash is the worst piece of code to ever grace the planet. Totally insecure garbage, just like your VISA number.

  11. Adobe Software as a Reward by hcs_$reboot · · Score: 1

    Software as a reward? Seriously :-( Oh wait, almost forgot how over expensive Adobesoft is.

    --
    Slashdot, fix the reply notifications... You won't get away with it...
    1. Re:Adobe Software as a Reward by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      give the gift you can take away after the year has run out. absolutely genius!

  12. Short video by RuffMasterD · · Score: 4, Informative

    Here is a short video of the cipher in action, including decent audio: https://vimeo.com/1763615

    Adobe runs the full cipher on their site too, in case anyone wants to take a crack at it from home. To hear the audio you need a Flash plug-in, of course.

    --
    Human Rights, Article 12: Freedom from Interference with Privacy, Family, Home and Correspondence
  13. heh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    yeah, public sector workers and their free time...

  14. This is cool !!! by ripvlan · · Score: 1

    I hadn't heard of this "contest" prior to the publication of the article on Ars. But it is a really cool art installation. I also read the paper by the previous winners.

    This seems like my kind of puzzle. I don't have the skills to work for the NSA -- This artist wanted to create a puzzle that was hard while still allowing anyone a chance to crack it. Observing, building frequency tables, pattern matching, and lots and lots of figuring things out. Even though the current one has been solved I might give it a try before they take it down. It looks fun - a neat puzzle to solve in spare cycles.

    Read the article and follow the link to the Live "Video Feed" of the building. (I put video feed in quotes... kind of like "wiretapping" - meaning it isn't really a video feed but it is...isn't).

  15. Get it right by hackel · · Score: 1

    "One small step for A MAN."

  16. sigh can't see the Adobe building anymore by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    before a couple new large condo/apartment complexes were built, I could see the Adobe building from the office window here and pontificate the patterns.

    Now I can barely catch a glimpse while commuting home.

    Apparently CHP and San Jose PD take a dim view on Deciphering While Driving and don't want you stopping in the middle of hwy 87 to look for patterns...

    "but Officer, at least I wasn't *texting*!" :)

  17. Adobe site long out of date by Bill+Hayden · · Score: 1

    Not only do they not have an announcement on the Adobe semaphore site, it looks like it hasn't been updated in at least 2 years. The site proudly announces the "new" code, i.e. the one from 2012 that just got solved. The news page is even worse. It's all news from the original solving in 2007.

    --
    Protect your browser with the Force Safe Search add-on