Pringles Can Enigma

Pringles Can Enigma

Make your own Enigma Machine, the famous encryption device used during World War II. This activity puts encryption/decryption methods in a historical context and also can lead to discussions about how modern day encryption technology works.

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Enigma
Grade Levels
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Duration (hours)
1
Overview
The Enigma was an encryption machine famously used by the German military during World War 2. The power of the Enigma came from being simple for the operator to use but difficult to determine the encrypted letter for any input letter. The number of possible ways to jumble a message through an Enigma was nearly 159 quintillion. Thanks to incredible mathematicians in Poland and tenacious work by the British at Bletchley Park, the Allies broke the Enigma code. This gave the Allies the ability to read top secret communications during the war and greatly disrupt the Nazi German war machine.

The Enigma was an electro-mechanical machine similar to a typewriter. The most simple models had three wheels on top of the case that allowed the operator to set internal rotors into a certain position. The operator would press a key on the keyboard which would activate an electric circuit and light up a different letter. For example, a T might be pressed but the letter G would light up.

Soldiers in the field and sailors at sea would set their Enigma machines’ rotors to the same as the person sending a message. They would copy seemingly random letters via Morse Code from the radio. The Enigma operator would then key in each “random” letter and write down the resulting letter that was lit up on the machine. Each key press on the keyboard would turn a rotor one step and provide a new, different path for the electricity to flow inside the machine.

Thanks to the work of British mathematician Alan Turing, the Allies developed The Bombe, a top-secret electronic computer used to quickly try every possible combination of letters in order to crack the Enigma code. The Bombe was an incredible feat of engineering and the first electronic computer. However, because The Bombe was classified, the University of Pennsylvania’s ENIAC was publicly given the crown of “first computer.”

The Enigma remains perhaps the most popular encryption device in history. There are countless stories of other encryption techniques, but none has intrigue and impact that the German Enigma had during World War 2. What follows will guide you through the creation of your very own Enigma machine.

Cyber Connections
Cryptography
Image
Cryptomuseum Engima
The Enigma was an encryption machine famously used by the German military during World War 2. The power of the Enigma came from being simple for the operator to use but difficult to determine the encrypted letter for any input letter.
WYSIWYG

The Enigma was an electro-mechanical machine similar to a typewriter. The most simple models had three wheels on top of the case that allowed the operator to set internal rotors into a certain position. The operator would press a key on the keyboard which would activate an electric circuit and light up a different letter. For example, a T might be pressed but the letter G would light up.

Soldiers in the field and sailors at sea would set their Enigma machines’ rotors to the same as the person sending a message. They would copy seemingly random letters via Morse Code from the radio. The Enigma operator would then key in each “random” letter and write down the resulting letter that was lit up on the machine. Each key press on the keyboard would turn a rotor one step and provide a new, different path for the electricity to flow inside the machine.

Thanks to the work of British mathematician Alan Turing, the Allies developed The Bombe, a top-secret electronic computer used to quickly try every possible combination of letters in order to crack the Enigma code. The Bombe was an incredible feat of engineering and the first electronic computer. However, because The Bombe was classified, the University of Pennsylvania’s ENIAC was publicly given the crown of “first computer.”

The Enigma remains perhaps the most popular encryption device in history. There are countless stories of other encryption techniques, but none has intrigue and impact that the German Enigma had during World War 2. What follows will guide you through the creation of your very own Enigma machine.

Section Title
Assembly
Accordion Items
Section Title
How to Use
Accordion Items
Section Title
Practice
Cards
Text

Rotor settings:  A A A A A

Encrypted:  IVWYQDV

Decrypted (hover to reveal):  DECODED

Text

Rotor settings:  A A A A A

Encrypted:  PVWZARCYHRRCKW

Decrypted (hover to reveal):  SECRETxMESSAGE

Text

Rotor settings:  C Y B E R

Encrypted:  YPELONUPTOZS

Decrypted (hover to reveal):  CYBERxISxFUN

Text

Rotor settings:  C O D E S

Encrypted:  hufvegz

Decrypted (hover to reveal):  AMERICA

Text

Rotor settings:  T U B E S

Encrypted:  actrqinxrnqlmvg

Decrypted (hover to reveal):  ExPLURIBUSxUNUM

Text

Rotor settings:  R A D I O

Encrypted:  yedwpqbubrjhwsetlhden

Decrypted (hover to reveal):  WHATxHATHxGODxWROUGHT

*This phrase was the first official first Morse code message transmitted in the US on May 24, 1844.

Pringles Can Enigma Explanation