[Alta-Logic] Alan Turing Centenary: Alan Turing and Enigma (John Ferris, March 27)

[Richard Zach]

*** Please distribute! ***

2012 marks the centenary of Alan Turing, mathematical genius, WWII
codebreaker, pioneer of computing, and gay icon. The Departments of
Computer Science and Philosophy with support from the Faculties of Arts
and Science as well as the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical
Sciences are hosting a series of events honoring Turing's life and work
throughout 2012.

http://ucalgary.ca/turing
http://facebook.com/TuringYYC

Listen to part one of CJSW Presents on Alan Turing:
http://cjsw.com/program/cjsw-presents/alan-turing-episode-1/

Next event:

*** Alan Turing and Enigma ***

John R. Ferris, Professor of History

Tuesday, March 27, 4-5:30 pm, Engineering A 201
http://ucalgary.ca/turing/node/15


Central to Alan Turing's posthumous reputation is his work with British
codebreaking during the Second World War. This relationship is not well
understood, largely because it stands on the intersection of two
technical fields, mathematics and cryptology, the second of which also
has been shrouded by secrecy. This lecture will assess this relationship
from an historical cryptological perspective. It treats the
mathematization and mechanization of cryptology between 1920-50 as
international phenomena. It assesses Turing's  role in one important
phase of this process, British work at Bletchley Park in developing
cryptanalytical machines for use against Enigma in 1940-41. It focuses
on also his interest in and work with cryptographic machines between
1942-46, and concludes that work with them served as a seed bed for the
development of his thinking about computers.

Poster:
http://ucalgary.ca/turing/node/27