In this video I’ll show you how to use a actual cipher machine called a scytale. This was first used in ancient Greek and Roman times, most notably by the Spartans. To make a scytale, use a cylinder with a piece of paper wrapped around it. Then simply print your message in rows that run along the length of the cylinder. When the paper is unwrapped, the message is scrambled! Watch the video and I’ll show you the trick to proper message decoding.
Download Student Worksheet & Exercises
Isn’t this cool? It’s very important to make sure that the message’s intended recipient has a cylinder of the exact same size so that they can easily decode the message.
Exercises
- What is the name of the cryptographic machine that was first used by the ancient Greeks and in Roman times to send secret messages?
- What is the shape of the machine named above?
- Where is the message written when using this machine?
- Apart from the machine, what else is required to be able to encode the message?
- Who were the people who most notably used the type of cryptography named?
- What is the major problem that the recipient must figure out to easily decode the message?
- Is it true that first letter in the original message would be the first letter on the encoded message? Explain.