Pseudo Random

TV Crypto

shrichris — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:51:53 +0000

TV Crypto is always funny if you are a cryptographer. But this crypto conversation from the NCIS episode – Judgement Day was the best ever

McGee: I’ve tried letter substitution. I’ve tried frequency analysis, Affine shift ciphers.
Leon: Affine shift ciphers?
McGee: It’s kinda hard to explain. No offense.
Leon: You mean it’s hard to explain why you’d waste your time on an Affine shift without even knowing the multiplicative inverse?
McGee: Why I thought…
Leon: Have you tried a transposition cipher?
McGee: Not yet!
Leon: Visionary encryption? [This was the best - perhaps he meant Vigenere?]
McGee: Well, I was going to.
Leon: So, you haven’t done anything. (hands McGee a toothpick) You call me when you have.

Enjoy!

Proof

shrichris — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 21:01:03 +0000

Let x equal the quantity of all quantities of x.
Let x equal the cold.
It is cold in December.
The months of cold equal November through February.
There are 4 months of cold and 4 of heat,
leaving 4 months of indeterminate temperature.
In February it snows.
In March the lake is a lake of ice.
In September the students come back
and the book stores are full.
Let x equal the month of full book stores.
The number of books approaches infinity,
as the number of months of cold Approaches 4
I will never be as cold now,
as I will in the future.
The future of cold is infinite.
The future of heat is the future of cold.
The bookstores are infinite and so are number 4′s
Except in September

From the film
Proof[2005]

Procrastination

shrichris — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 19:54:42 +0000

Cold slap! The last minute really hits hard…

The Notting Hill Carnival

shrichris — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 17:34:53 +0000

It felt a little strange taking black and white pictures at a carnival but in the end I am very happy with the results while doing my bit to keep the art of black and white film photography alive. These pictures were shot on Ilford Black and White XP2 film so that they could be processed using the standard C41 and printed at a regular lab. I plan to take the negatives into the darkroom and make my own prints later and I am sure they will look a lot nicer

You can view the entire collection here

Talented Donald

shrichris — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 11:18:29 +0000

IMHO, a case of undiscovered comic potential. Donald deserves his own show. His “timing” and expressions are spot on!

Cryptographer at work!

shrichris — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 21:01:50 +0000

Foot and Mouth

shrichris — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 16:43:51 +0000

A memorable moment from The House of Crypto’s visit to Saville Gardens.

Random walks – Bertinoro

shrichris — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 23:44:29 +0000

Saw this small tower in the town square at Bertinoro while attending the SWING and FOSAD workshops. My initial reaction was that this might have been some ancient torture post but the real story is a lot rosier. The ancient familes of Bertinoro erected the post with a ring for each family to settle disputes as to who should host travellers – the traveller would tie his horse to a ring and the family that “owned” the ring automatically had the privilege of entertaining him.

More pictures here and here.

India .. or Italy ?

shrichris — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 13:34:05 +0000

This is NOT the external of an Indian temple. This is the external wall of the San Michele Church in Pavia near Milan!!

More pictures here

The Last Supper(s)

shrichris — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 13:56:41 +0000

In Italy one is never too far away from various depictions of “The Last Supper”. Here are a few I was lucky to see.

This is The Last Supper or “Il Cenacolo” by Da Vinci, undoubtedly the most famous.

I called to book a ticket to see this fantastic piece of work and I was told that all slots were booked for the next three months. Instead, I went over to see the main church, Santa Maria de la Grazie ( The last Supper is in the refectory and entry is separate). After spending a couple of hours at the church I had an urge and I walked into the ticket counter, just as a couple was walking away with disappointed nods after being told that no tickets were available for both of them.

I was then given a ticket for the single no show that day.

This second version of the Last Supper is from the Certosa di Pavia.

And finally, this is Veronese’s ” The Last Supper of Christ”, which for its unusual depiction of the event led to the painter being called to trial..the piece was retitled “Feast At The House of Levi” and now hangs the the Brera in Milan. You can have a virtual tour of this fantastic picture gallery here, though it cannot match a real visit, which will leave you breathless.