Escape Rooms on Demand

  Teamwork. The word alone strikes fear in the heart of many a high school student, who, upon hearing it, allows anxiety and trepidation run rampart . On the field, teamwork is necessary, vital, even, but in class, it can only mean one thing: I am going to get stuck doing the entire project because I don't trust anyone else to do it. Those who like the idea of team projects are usually already scheming to see how they can get the smart kid, the diligent kid, heck, even the one who just -does-the-work kid on their project so they can kick back and wait for the work to be done . So if you're not on a sports team, where else can "teamwork" have a more positive connotation? How about escape rooms? Not everyone has the same strength and skill set -- and how boring would that be if they did? When putting together my rooms, I use all kinds of codes and ciphers, from the substitution to the fairly obvious once you know where to look. If staying in one spot isn't you...

A few posts ago, I wrote about how Escape Rooms on Demand got started. A friend and I made one for our daughters and their friends, and then at a planning meeting for Cub Scout Day Camp, it came up that I had done one. So , an idea here, a code there and I was on my way. But not really . I'm riffing off (riffing, not ripping!) an idea that others had made work one way, and here I am, trying a completely different method. Traditionally, escape rooms started on line as video games in about 2004 (so as traditional as 16 years goes back) and then moved to real life. In 2017 and 2018, over 2200 rooms were run by 800 companies in Paris, which is as many as the U.S. had in total in 2018. Being "locked" in a room with only your wits to escape has brought all kinds of people together, from families to groups of friends to coworkers using it as a team building exercise. The entire experience lasts about 75 minutes, including check in and either pictures with the clock, or the...

  Huh. You learn something new every day. I have a cipher wheel, or Jefferson disk, or Bazeries cylinder. I have always called it a Jefferson wheel, occasionally a Jefferson disk, but never a Bazeries cylinder, and rarely do I refer to it as a cipher wheel. I had no idea it went by these other monikers. With all these names, what is a cipher wheel? Similar to the cipher system invented by (the guy in my first blog) a cipher wheel has rotating disks, but in this case, they are all the same size and are on a central cylinder. The English alphabet, and I do want to be specific here, become semantics matter, are along the outside of each wheel. Jefferson ciphers have at least 12 wheels, with the English alphabet on the outside, but many also may have additional signs, symbols or Greek letters added. The more I read about the Jefferson wheel, by any other name, the more impressed I am with both Jefferson for inventing it, without knowing much about cryptology , and how it works ...

   Once upon a time, there was a man named Leon Battista Alberti who really was the definition of the a renaissance man. His curiosity and insatiable need to keep moving kept him writing plays, publishing multiple treatises (yeah, that doesn't look right, but I'm pretty sure it is), and designing buildings. In his spare time, he invented things and procured the moniker "Father of Western Cryptography". Pretty impressive, yes? So how did the Father of Western Cryptography advance the field of codes? First, he figured out how to break ciphers without the key, he invented the polyalphabetic cipher and he encrypted his codes. Now, when we say "code" most people think computer language, but obviously, those weren't around then. Let's switch out "codes" for cryptology, and go from there. Cryptology is the "practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of third parties". "(Thanks, Wiki!) At this point, ev...

  Kids and codes go together like peanut butter and jelly. Or bacon and eggs. Or Easter eggs and hunting. While a sandwich, or food in general, have nothing to do with hiding things, Easter can bring to mind something not seen immediately. Looking for Easter Eggs in movies is a great past time. What's the best way to hide information someone else when you're a kid? Codes. Ciphers. Encryption. While the semantics separate them out a bit, generally they mean the same thing. Twins have been known to create their own language, a code in and of itself. Friends can share a look that says everything. Which written codes draw kids to it? One of the most common is straight substitution -- the easiest is "A" equals "1" and write a note with numbers that, upon getting confiscated, means nothing. Another quick substitution has the numbers going up or down one. The message can become nearly indecipherable when using a polyalphabetic cipher! Substituting shapes or designs...