In 1854, Sir Charles Wheatstone invented the cipher known as "Playfair," named for his friend Lyon Playfair, first Baron Playfair of St. Andrews, who popularized and promoted the cipher. Its ...

Hannah handed me a piece of paper with the following string of letters. “Each letter stands for another one,” said Hannah. “Ooh, a substitution cipher!” I thought. But I was stumped. “Is this just one ...