Viswanathan K's Thoughts

In The Code Book , Simon Singh explains the gist of the un-decryptable algorithm: certain mathematical functions are one-way, i.e., easy to apply but almost impossible to reverse. Such functions are called Humpty Dumpty functions! A Humpty Dumpty function can be used to encrypt data in a way that is impossible to decrypt. Well, technically, Humpty Dumpty functions would be decryptable when/if quantum computers are a reality but let’s ignore that for now… Maths. Micah Lee puts it nicely: “Our universe is built out of mathematics. Humans have been learning, discovering, and using mathematics for thousands of years because it’s the only thing that can accurately describe what happens around us. The laws of physics are written in mathematics.” Edward Snowden urged people to apply maths to make their online content un-decryptable by Big Brother: “People and companies all over the world (should) come together to implement the technological solutions that can put an end to the

The existing QWERTY keyboard was designed in the typewriter era to slow down typing. To prevent the typist from hitting keys too fast; because then they would get jammed. Ok, pretty much everyone knows that. But now the typewriter is dead. And we have moved to the electronic keyboards on our touchscreens. Keys jamming is no longer a problem; and yet we stick to the QWERTY. Because everyone is familiar with it already, we don’t want to rock the boat and switch to a more efficient layout. So are we doomed to stick with the QWERTY because of legacy reasons? There is hope in the horizon. After all, we now live in the brave new world of apps for (smart)phones. Where developers write apps for free. Where users are willing to try something new; and drop it if it isn’t good. No money changes hands; so both developers and users are willing to experiment. Including experimenting with the (touchscreen) keyboard. Notice how many smartphone users use only their (two) thumbs to type?