~~:...;.;.

~
...

UNCLASSIFIED

Communication_with Extraterrestrial Intelligence'

BY LAMBROS D. cALi:.IMAHOS
U~ified
. ......
.. ···
; -
We are not alone in the universe. A few years ago, this notion -
seemed farfetched; today, the .existence of nttaterrestrial intelligence
is taken for granted by most scientists. Sir Bernard Lovell, one of
the world's leading radio astronomers, has calculated that, even al-
lowing for a margin of error of 5000%, there must be in our own galaxy
about 100 million stars which have planetsofthe right .chemistry,
dimensions, and temperature to support organic evolution. If we
consider that our own galaXy, the Milky Way, is but one of at least a
billion other galaxies similar to ours in the observable universe, the
number of stars that could support some form of life is, to reach for
a word, astronomical. As to advanced (by miserable earth standards>
forms of life, Dr. Frank D. Drake of the National Radio Astronomy
Observatory at Green Bank, West Virginia, has stated that, putting
all our knowledge together, the number of civilizations which could
have arisen by now is about one billion. The next question is, "Where
is everybody?"
The nearest neighbor to our solar system is Alpha Centauri, only 4.3
light years away; but, according to Dr. Su-Shu Huang of the National
- Aeronautics and Space Administration, its planetary system is
probably too young for the emergence of life. Two other heavenly
friends, Epsilon Eridani and Tau Ceti, about 11 light years away, are
stronger contenders for harboring life. ~~vertheless, if superior
civilizations are abundant, the nearest would probably be at least 100
light years away; therefore, it would take 200 years for a reply to be
forthcoming, a small matter of seven generations. This should, how-
ever, make little differenceto us, in view of the enonnous potential gain
from our contact with a superior civilization.' Unless we're terribly
conceited (a very unscientific demeanor), we must assume that the
"others" are far more advanced than we are: Even a.50-year gap
would be tremendous; a 500=year gap.staggers the imagination, and as _

I The substance oC this article was p~nted at a panel discussion of the same tide

during the 1205 IEEE Conference on ~h1itary Electronics held in Washington, D. C., on
23 ~te::lber 1965. :&!sides the ~uthor as cryptologist, the other memb!rs of the panel
were Dr. Paul Garvin, linlUist; Dr. John C. Lilly. delpbinolocWt; Dr. Wilaam O. na.. -is:
• . ph)"Sic:ist; aDd Fr. FrancisJ. Heyden, S. J., astronomer, .. The mo9t:rat9r...-as Dr. Harold
Wooster. Director of Information
. - Servicesof
. the Air Force Offic:e of Scientific Research.
.

". 0:' ".•. ....... - '. '" .: .. ".-.- .

.~ .
..'
.. ,

. . ,

UNCL~SSJFIED .. EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE' ' .. . L. D. CAl ~

-"for ~ ~~~o-;~·~ap'. .. • '~~'~e'

way, ~'~e;' ~"~ ,~~~.:~:~ y~".'~ ..
. between; when these signals are a' ,
behmd us, forget it!) .:It is quite possible that '.'others'.' have satellite' '.
•. ' prC??es in space, retransmi~ to .. theIn'~;, anything that sounds non- '~: .. . .'..~,!ould·~~w a circle, the Pythagor :
design. These attention-getting ~ -
:random to the probe. ' But they have probably' called us several ~ .
. "language lessons," interspersed wi .
thou~d years ago, and are waiting for an answer; or worse yet. they .
- :k~p bring us up to the level of our s
have given up; or, more probably, ·they have reached such impressive
technological advances that they have destroyed themseives.! It may be assumed that the sr
possessed by all higher forms of Ii
Epsilon ~ridani and Tau Ceti were the targets OD which Dr. Drake
j could thus be greatly simplified 1
focussed. hIS attention in ~qe sp'ririg_of'1960 in Project Oima an
attempt to detect possible intelligent signals from outer space, :a.The _. _. - representation such as that of a te~
held at Green Bank in 1961 to disci.
frequency selected for listening was 1420.405752 megacycles per with other planets, one of the pan
second, or a wave length of ~l em. This particular frequency, pas-
up a hypothetical message on ti
tul~ted .indep~dently by two professors on the faculty of Cornell
consisting of 1271 binary digits OT
Um.ve:S1ty, GIuseppe Cocconi and Philip Morrison, happens to be the 1271 has but two prime factors, 3:
~adlatlon frequency of atomic or free hydrogen which permeates space
to write out the message in raster
In great clouds; moreover, this frequency is within the ranee of
in 31 lines of 41 bits each; the latte
radio frequencies able to pass through the earth's atmosphere...Pre-
ness in the patterns disclosed, in
~uma?ly, the. significance of this frequency would be known to other
dimensions. In Fig. 2 is the writ
l~~ellige~t beings in th~ universe who understand radio theory. We're
binary l's have been replaced by a
s~111 .talking ~bo~t radio waves as the communication medium; other
Now for its interpretation.
possible media might be masers; lasers, or the as·yet undiscovered and There are dots at the four COl
unnamed "rasers," A .technology superior to ours might even have points, marking the outlines of th
lea~ed how to modulate a beam of neutrinos (weightless, uncharged
representation of the sun;. directl;
pa~les that physicists on earth find it difficult even to detect)· if so
representing 8 planets, identified }
"they" may have to wait a century or two before we learn how ~ build their left, preceded by a binary r
a neutrino receiver. legged beings illustrated are obvk
If another civilization were tl)ing to establish communication with hand of the male figure points to
us, it would first embark on attention-getting signals of such a nature parently reside. At the top of tho
that we could distinguish them from random cosmic noise' once we tions of hydrogen, carbon, and
receive a recognizable signal, we have a good chance of und~tanding chemical structure of life on their
the message. For example, they could start with trains of simals third planet there emerges a wavy
ccrresponding to the natural numbers I, 2, 3, ••• , followed perhaps water; the representation of a fish:
b.y prune numbers. They might continue with equal-length extended _ iPd the~(o.re have space travel.
. - - -signalsconsisting of start and ~op'i:mpulses,"With occasional pulses in .... to a six (preceded by the usual b
% In this eenaeetien, Professor 1000f Shklo\'sky, Russia·s cratest radio astronomer there' afe six fingers on each har
bas the ioIlov.'ing to say in the September 1965issue of Sornet Liic " their number system is probably !
• "Profo~nd crises lie in wait (or a developin: chilization aad CIIle oCthem may well prove female figure may be seen a bracke
ral3l. We are a1reaciy famiJiar with several such critical (situatiaas): . binary form (preceded by a binar-
(a) ~~-destNctiol1"an ~t oC a thennoDuclear catastropbeor _ od.r discxn'el1
.. wruchIDa}' have UDpredictahlemd uncontrollable ~ are 11 units high. A reasonable
~: g=:=oC·~~~·:·~.".: ·.. . . . ,".:':. : .:..<.::~~--.~:~ . -:.~.'.-: . ~~."~ :i:~~~~:~~~e~::t~:;:
• (d.> capacity oCthe indivi4\la1's brain which caD lad to ee-i~ ....-
· cted.
Restri. ~ar';' " :.:.....
"" .'.-,., ",_-, . I n' 1952
.. the Bn·tish· ma th'
emat;.
tion. WI th comequent daDc.as of depneration. . . . '
_. (e) A crisis precipitated by the creation of artificial intellipDt beinp.;. address before the British Interplr
or First Steps in Celestial Syntax.

UNCLASSIFIED 80

.'. .. ...... .
~~.~...,..-:""""'----.,..,..
:-:~.:;;):" .
........,.......,-----
...... _ .~., • •~_;.':~ : ••0 '.~

..
.'
 IAL INTELLIGENCE . '.....
J, if they are as much as 50 years
sible that "others" have satellite
. aern" anything that sounds non-__
. ave ·probably called us several .- ~.
for an answer; ·or worse yet, they .
ey have-reached such impressive -.:
~ destroyedthemselves," .'::. ,.::::. .:-...':
.. the ·targetS on ·whiCh Dr.' Drak~·· .-.
~ of -1960 in Project OZma,· an- .'
signals from outer space. The
1S 1420.405752 megacycles per
This particular frequency, pos-
ssors on the faculty of Cornell
.ilip Morrison, happens to be the
hydrogen which permeates space
quency is within the range of
h the earth's atmosphere. Pre-
uency would be known to other
.mderstand radio theory. We're
~ communication medium; other
" or the as yet undiscovered and
perior to ours might even have
ieutrinos (weightless, uncharged
it difficult even to detect); if so,
:wo before we learn how to build
o establish communication with
-getting signals of such a nature
random cosmic noise; once we
a good chance of understanding
ild start with trains of signals
I, 2, 3, ... , followed perhaps
inue with equal-length extended
pulses, with occasional pulses in
ky, Russia's :;reatest radio astronomer,
".Xe of Souid Life:
::li::ation and one of them maywen prove
critical [situation.'l}: . - -- -
ear eatastrepbe or some other di!co\"ely
:ol1abi~ conseQuences. .
:l which ~ lead to ucessh"e specia!j~­
:on.
icial intelligent beings."
~ ...
".- .
. .
L. D. CALLIMAHOS .. UNCLASSIFIED
be~ween; when these signals are aligned Bush over one another, they
_. ~ .. would show a circle, the Pythagorean Theorem,' or similar geometric
design. : These attention-getting signals ..would be followed by early
"language lessons," interspersed with .it.emS of technical information to .
. , ..help bring us up to the level of our superiorS, "them.n.,o _ . . ' .-
may
.-:; .: ,It. be assumed ·thatthe sense of sight~-ot an- equivalent, is
.~ . _.~ .. possessed by an higher forms of life; the problems of communication
could thus be greatly Simplified through the medium of a "raster"
representation such as that of a televisjonJS..een. After a conference
held at Green Bank in 1961 to discuss the possibility of communication
with other planets, one of the p~cipants, Bernard M. Oliver, made
up a hypothetical message on the raster principle. The message,
consisting of 12'11 binary. digits or "bits,His shown in Fig. 1. Since ..
1271 has but. two prime factOlS, 31 and 41, we would naturally be led
to write out the message in raster form, in 41 lines of 31 bits each, or
in 31 lineS of 41 bits each; the latter case reveals a greater nonrandom-
ness in the patterns disclosed, indicating that these are the correct
dimensions. In Fig. 2 is the write-out of the message, in which the
binary 1's have been replaced by a dot and the O's left as blank spaces.
Now for its interpretation.
There are dots at the four comers of the pictogram as reference
points, marking the outlines of the rectangle, At the upper left is a
representation of. the sun; directly underneath in a column are dots
representing 8 planets. identified by the appropriate binary coding to
their left, preceded by a binary point as a markere- - The erect, two-
legged beings illustrated are cbviously..bisexual and mammalian; one
handof the male figure points to the fourth planet where they ap-
parenily reside. .At the top of the pictogram may be seen representa-
tions of hydrogen. carbon, and oxygen atoms, indicating that the
chemical structure of life on their planet is similar to ours. From the
third planet there emerges a wavy line, showing that it is covered with
water; the representation of a fish shows that they must have visited us
and therefore have space travel. One hand of the female figure points
to a ~ (preceded by the usual binary point), perhaps implying that
there are six fingers on each hand; we could therefore assume that
their number system is probably to the base 12. At the right of the
female figure may be seen a bracket, in the middle of which is eleven in
binary form (preceded by a binary point}: this implies that the "beings . ~_._­
are 11 units high. A reasonable interpretation is that the unit is 21
em.• the wave length of the transmission. making them about 7 ~-:! feet
tall, which should be all right for average Martians.
In 1952 the British mathematician Lancelot Hogben delivered an
address before the British Interplanetary Society entitled "Astraglossa,
. or F~ Steps in Celestial Synt8:t.'~ Hogben pointed out that number
. '". . ~.
81' ... UNCLASSIFIED'.
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•....
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.. . .... : .;-. .. .::
.,
.~

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L. D. C,.
UNCLASSIFIED EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE ..
.
toe-
~.

1000000000000000000000000000000000000000 is most universal concept for -

10000111000~0~00001000001000000100000100
0000010001000000000000000000000000000000
000000100010~001000000100000000000010000
'~U0000010001000001~000001000000001000100
0100000001110000000000000010000000000001
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO~OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
0000000000000000000000001000001000000100
0001000011000100000000001100000000000000
0000000000000000000110000110000110000110
1101101101001100001100101100101100100100
10010010010101001001~0001100001100001100
o 0 1 1 0 0 0-0 1 1··0 0 0 0'0'0 0 0- 0 1 0 0 0 0 0'0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1. 1 1 1 0 1 0 0
0000000000000000000100000000000100000100
0000000001011011100100000000000001111101
0000000000000000000000000000100000000000
0000001000100111000000000000101000000000
0000001010010000110010101110010100000000
0000000101001000010000000000100100000000
0000000001001000001000000000001111100000
0000000011111000000111010100000010101000
0000000010101000000010000000000010001010
0000000010100010000000000000000001000100
1000100010011011001110110110100000100010
0010101010001000100000000000000000010001
0001001001000100010000001000000000000111
0000011111000001110000000111110100000101
0100000101000001000100000010000000000100
0001000011100001000001000001000000000010
0000100010001000100000100000110001100001
0000010001000100010000010000011000000001
1000001101100011011000001100111
oe
intelligent beings; therefore, mae
steps in ematerrestrial communi
- ::::.e~uld transmit pulses representin
"radiog. 1)'Phs" represen tinzg " +"
later carried out the basic idea :
shapes to represent elementary
different approach was develope
Mathematics at the University I
book entitled "Linens: Design of
"Lincos," an acronym of "lingu;
munication of ideas through syro
of those who have taken the trou
is too difficult. After all, the o'
across to another party, whose
different from our own. In othe
an "inverse cryptography," or
designed, not to hide meaning, l'
prebend. Clevern~ on ~he par:
factor not reliance on mgenu
crypt;grapher-somehow, this tl
make his meaning clear to the r
possess a cosmic equivalent of the
o· As an illustration of how much
& 0 e • minimum of material, and as an e~
••e •
G
•
(;
6
let us consider a message I have cit
expect of an initial co~~ical
• • e • shown a series of· transmissrons v
inhabited planet, many light y~
oe •• •• •• •.

.•
. • CO. • • • ••••. are representations for the 32 dil
·e 0 •
•
II

G
••

•
e
--, • •
.- - - .•.. .. ...
08 ••
• •••• 0
••

•
• eo.'
0
••

• •••
e •• '
or distinctive pulse shapes) heard
--.The punctuation marks are not p'
different time lapses: adjacent s;
unit) between them; a space be-
e e eft. e. • e. O' (2 units); commas. semicolons, an
.
.... ..•••. .'..
ft 8 •• •.
• •68. ••••••. . 16 units ·respectively. Betweei
. .

••••• .... ••..

• Cl9 0 e • • • 0 • e •. reference purposes) .there 15 a tim·
o • e •• 0 '.
• o .• •• • •e·• ..... .- .••• o·. The first tr~ion, (I), is
-~ o e _
different symbols .which will be t·
•••• .
mission (2) is the"clear implicatil

... ....
e....e... ... o' - _. . --
o
• • e·. _ . ••••
• •
• •• . _. e'
•. - _..
. . ....•. - • • •• 0 O· a The Rosetta Stone is a piece or blac .
•• oC the Nile. beanDga bilin:ual Wc:ription
-.•• .
.00-
.... . .: . and Greek) with which Jean Fran~is C~
Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Fig. 2.

UNCLASSIFIED 82
.....
:~

- -. -.....- ..... . __. _.._ ._ . ._._ - - _ _--~.~~..~_~.~~.~~\~.••."":::r.;_:-._-_.. ~';.l5::""-..: -• . ~ .•"-' Do · ; _ · · · .' .

.. .
:- .
f • . .•
_-..a_ioI ~ -. ::' .-,:,. -eo. ;
UAL INTELLIGENCE
)0000000000000000000
~ooo~oooooo~ooooo~oo
30~00000000000000000
)0~00000000000010000
J000100000000~000~00
)00000~0000000000001
) 0000000000·000000'0·'0
)OOO~OOOO~OOOOOO~OO
JOOO~~OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
l00001~00001~0000~10~
) 0 1 0 1 1 o:~ ~. 0 1 1 0,0 1 0 0 ~ 0 0
'OOOl~00001100001100'_
'000~00000111110100
.0000000000100000100
)0000000000001111101
'0000000100000000000
0000000101000000000
,0101110010100000000
'0000000100100000000
0000000001111100000
10~0~0000001010~000
0000000000010001010
0000000000001000100
0110110100000100010
0000000000000010001
0001000000000000~11
0000~11110~00000~01
0000010000000000~00
1000001000000000010
0100000110001100001
0010000011000000001
0001100111
I.
~e ~~
g 5 c>
f/1't
liFe 6 *'
~~ &
,~:~:c;·;·;;·?;;";~~·~.0;p\k~:··>·~,/:t:\-·.'~_::-~~.:~~~:·i·f.i~;~:Jc?itr--·~5j~:::'f~
-;0.
.....
. ,
L~ D. CALLIMAHOS . UNCLASSIFIED
is the most universal concept for establishizig communication between
. intelligent beings; therefore, mathematics forms the basis for the first .",'
, steps in extraterrestrial communicatimL·:..He then illustrated he ...-.' how
o· could transmit pulses representing integci.'and distinCtive .signels or . " . ._-
..
"radioglyphs" representing .. +'~, _n, "=:='!,'and so on. ,"Mo~on
. later:carried out the basic idea' a little further~--usmg different pulse" '"..
_. shapes to represent elementarY 'mathematical sYmbols~'" An entirely .
different approach was developed by Hans 'Freudenthal, Professor of .
Mathematics at the University ·of Utrechtt-who in 1960 published a
book entitled "Lincos: Design of a Language for Cosmic Intercourse."
"Lineos," an acronym of "lingua cosmica," tries to establish a com-
o munication of ideas through symbolic logic, but the general consensus
of those who have taken the trouble to study his book is that his :plan- -
is too difficult. After all, the object of the exercise is getting ideas
across to another party, whose thinking processes may be entirely
different from our own. In other words, what we need to develop is
an "inverse cryptography," or communication symbolism specially
designed, not to hide meaning, but to be as easy as possible to com-
prehend. Cleverness on the part of the sender is then the important
factor. not reliance on ingenuity of the recipient. The inverse
c:ryptographer-somebow, this term doesn't sound quite right-must
make his meaning clear to the recipient, even if the latter does not
possess a cosmic equivalent of the Rosetta Stone.:J
o· As an illustration of how.much infonnation could be conveyed with a
minimum of material, and as an example of facile inverse cryptography,
let us consider a message I have devised to be typical of what we might
espect of an initial communication from outer space. In Fig.· 3 is
6 shown a series of ~..nsmissions which could have come from another
~. $' inhabited planet, many light years away. The 32 arbitrary symbols
e • e are representations for the ~2 different signals (combinations of beeps,
e~ ••
or distinctive pulse shapes) heard on a frequency of 1420.4 megacycles.
The punctuation marks are not part of the message, but here represent
eee' different time lapses: adjacent symbols are sent with a short pause (1
o· unit) between them; a space between symbols means a longer pause
e'
S' (2 units); comma.s,semicolons, and periods indicate pauses of 4, 8, and
$'
O' 16 units, respectively. Between tTa:Dsmissions (numbered here for
ref~re.!1ce p~) there is a time lapse of 32 units.
• eo-e· The fust transmi$sion, (1), is obviously an enumeration of the 32
.
~~
different symbols which will be used in the communications; in trans-
G'
o· mission (2) is the clear implication that A represents the integer I, B
~.
. . ,
.@..••
01' , The Rosetta Stone is • piece of black basalt fOUDd. in 1799 Dar the Rosetta mouth
" of the Nile. beariuc a biJincual inicriptioD (in ECYJ)tiaD. hieqlypbics, EgypEiaD. demotic:,
and Greek) widlwhich .leaD F~ Clwnpollioo was able to solve the mystery of the
Egyptian hieroglyphs.
.. '. -..-~. .",
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UNCLASSIFIED
...........-
. ":.
....
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L. D. CALLIMAHOS UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED. EXTRATERRF.

(11 A. B. e.
D. E. F. C. H. ·l• .1. IC. I.. II. II. O. P. Q. It. S. T. U. T••• %. T. Z. the integer 2, ••• , J the integer
-, a..
S. e. I. @. .A. B. e. D. E. F. C. H. I • .1. It. I.. II. II. II. P. Q. It.
theie~are introduced symbols fQr
S. T. U. T••• %. T• ..z••!. a.. S. e. I. @.
A A. B: A A A. e; A A A A. D: A 4 A A 4. E; 4 4 4 ... A A.. F; A .l A A A A A.. C;
in teaching. us their mathemat
.::: .."121
A A A A. A A A A. H; A A A A A A A A A. I: A A A A A I. A A A ...; J. addition, subtraction, multiplier
13) A It A I. B; A II: A It A I. C; A It A 1( A. X A I. D. 4 It A I. B; B IC A I. C: e It A I. D. . ~ and the concept of zero; lnequa
B IC C L E; E I. B It C; Fit D I. .1; .1 I. D Ie F. E I. It E; It E I. E.'
roots; and definitions of .... and
141 C If A I. B; J) • I. I. C; C II E I. B; E II C I. II a. new to the 31 symbols recoveree
151 J) It H I. II; C Ie Ii I. C; F II: F I. II; E II E L H.
most beautiful concepts in pure
(61 .1 L IJI: .1 It A L M; .1 It i L AB; M It A L AB. J It J L Ill; J It .1 It J L Of;
iN Ie c"Lie: . - - •. .. - . . if they can teach us' such a-com-
(7) B 0 C L F; D 0 B L H; E 0 B I. AM; D 0 All L D!f.
be staggered by what they will
(8) F pel. B; H P B L·D; J P B L E; J PEL B.
transmission. Beginning with
(91 A P.J L Q .1; A P .&HI/ I. q AIOf; q J. P J L Q AIOf.
cluster concepts are introduce.
(101 Q .1 L It A: Q.J 0 B I. II B: A II E II A LitE LEO q J. Q A!1Il I. II 111.;
transmission (30), we now are ui
q .&HI/ 0 B I. It N!I. pure Venerean. Furthermore,
1111 HI. H: esc. C S C•. D Ie ALe Ii: B; J) xes E It A: E Ie A S D X C. the code they are using on us
(121 J) T A: J) T B: J) T C; J) L D; DUE: D U F: Due. J r !; J U M. thousands upon thousands of
1131 FIPJ:I V CN: A.'i!IIll " C y ~; "!l PC\' CRe. this is easily appreciated by an.
11-:1 lr E It A % I. E X A; B lr E It A XL" B 0 E X It • BOA :r L i 0 F. the meaning of all 30 transmissii
(lSI C TiL 1; E Y B L IE; aTE L CB: .. D Ie A :r T S I. !E.
Even right after this first meso
1161 S£ Z B I. E: ;'l) Z B I. H; Ie Z C L e; .A.&£ Z C L E. • AI It F X ;:: B I. E.
• EO: Z 8_1. .•• E~ • ABE Z C L II E. BE Z B L IO! E.
with that planet, we shall have (
(17) D • L DOC 0 a 0 A }- BD; E • I. E 0 J) 0 COB 0 A L AiIf; H • I. 1llICDl. Fermat's Last Theorem, Golc
1181 I. P D L A II q C It q E II II C It Q X It. I. Y aww:I. unsolved problems in mathem:
S L A It Q • A • X It Q 11 B • :r It Q 11 C • :r It Q • D • :r It. S Y Si\CA.'8f. not be difficult for "them" to d
1201 cElt A ,. L .. E It A X: B c E Ie A , L B .. E Ie A x; nological superiority (first of ,.
B • E ~ • D It C X , LB. E It C X. c B ; c D I I. lr a :r 10 :l I L i 0 D. able to call us!). If "they" b-
1211 S T c a. 0 .. II A X Z B ,. It l L II. structure constant," they are at
1221 B Ii: C L c @I'IO.\ #; Bite L E. COD L c @h'lU. I; COD L :.a. five for sure, suspect the sixth,
D r !l L e @N!lA #; D Y B L sr, ratio, among others, of the spec
(:31 !l It C L E; e @);Jd ,. BleD L E; e @1lllC I. E Y I L IE; e @1iIIB I. F T B L C E;
e @NNC ,. I T E; I @1iU I. H U C; e 4P IillC ,. "Y BlQilIII; I @1lIIC I.
electron; it may take a century
1241 I L I @h"!lD I. C L e @GIQ I. E. C. M. AC. AC. c 4i1illll". AIL\ I @IIIID I.
And after we resolve our pre."
12S1 I @IIHE ,. I. B D " , @A I; I @hllF , L I. I @.I. I T B. I @,A ,. I. c @IIIC I.
appropriate to. make discreet
e @Hh'E ,. L B I. c @1lIC ,; I @NMF , L I. c @llllC , T B. . harmony and peace with our fe'
1261 e @101i!f ,. I. D 0 Q e e s c @~ ,. T C. otherwise ingested by the su:
1%71 q B It q D Ie Q H II: Cl AF X Q ClI' Y A; fortune to contact us. But as
Q I It Q D It Q l! It Q AF K Q ClI K c' @lCIfI I L A.
(and generations of his descend:
1281 C·X I @A ,. I. e: e @A' L D. ·'X K e .... ,. I. AS; I @I.' L C.
;'l) Z e @A ,. I. H; e @A ,. I. a.
e ~A i L A. It C::. II iI. ce• .1 P C. I.. E. II. c @Ii!II ,. • The solution mt)· be found on p. 1
It. II. , @IQ;I I.
• \Ydh what he haS learned uO.tr
I @I ,. I. A. II C::. II It ce. oJ , C. I..
e @C , I. A. a c::. II It C::• .1 P e. I.. X. II. , @1lHt I.
reader ronnula~ these two questions_d.
1291 e @/lIlE , L I .. e @B I: I @1IH7 I L " c @I .. T B. compact Corm; the solutions appear on
c @lWf I I. B c @C # J: B I @D #; ..e @IIA& # L t @C I 0 e @D ,.
cl8ssic uasolved problemsin mathemati
(301 I @1lH£ I I. e @HAB , ; c @.- #; e @IIICF I I. c @1Wl I. I @JW: I. values of %, Y. and z can be found
I @lWf.. # I. e @HAB 1:.
c @xu: I; I @1W. # 1. I @1WI I. 1.@lW: , .
is an intepT Puter thaD 2; Goldbach's
other mathematicians Wled to make t;
Fir. 3. number :rater than 2 can be exprased

84 UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED

• J.. at":".·
.... ~
._~.-:-.J.:' . .... .. . .. p .:. "•

: ...
 .: ' ......
..... . .r-:>
.... . .'
"~

. , :. ,::
. : ,~':r'" -,,/.:,t: ,,~-:;;;,_.'_ "" .....-__......,;'--..;....-;....:-..
'.'

'., , ......., ' .. ~ ....... ··.t··

.'

"
. _..~ ": .
__ ._.. _ _

:'IMAHOS UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED .EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE

~. o. p, Q. K. S. T, U. V••• X. T. Z.
the integer 2, •.• , J the integer 10. In .the first twenty transmissions
r, c. H, I, J. X. L, Jr. II, O. P. Q. ft.
~. ' there are introduced symbols fQr theintroductory expository treatment
• E: A A A A A A. F: A A A 1 A A A. C: in teaching us their p:18.thematics~ Among the items treated are:
I: J.. A A-j A 4 A 4 A ~:'J. ,- addition,suotraCtion, multiplication~ and division; .decimal notafion , .. ' ,.
• L D. rT"l L B: B It j L C: C It 4 L D.
and the conCept of zero; inequalities and apprg,rimation; powers and
It F. E LitE: X I: L E.
L II B.
". -'.- roots; and definitions of
rand e: ,Transmission (21) adds nothing .
l. H.
new to the.31 symbols recover~4 t}lUS far, but it does quote o,ne of the
to.e. J It J L III: J K J It J L Cll;
most beautiful concepts in pure mathematics: they are telling us that, .
if they can teach us suCh a complex noticiin.t this early stage, we will
'f L I!!I. be staggered by what they will teach us by the 200th or the 2000th
.. s. transmission. Beginning with itransmission (22), words and word-
:. II A.'lll, cluster concepts are introduced, so that by the time we come to
c: to E 0 Q J. Q Alill to It MA: tranSinissioD (30), we now are understanding; iIl'a:-iDaiUier of Speaking,--
pure Venerean. Furthermore, we can now see how we could recov er
" C S E It A; E It J. S D It C.
the code they are using on us, and which will obviously consist of
:; Due. J T I: J U M.
thousands upon thousands of code groups with different meanings;
:C.
this is easily appreciated by anyone who takes the trouble to fathom
;: X K I B 0 1 X to !l 0 F.
the meaning of all 30 transmissions in the foregoing example.'
: 4 X '( 5 L 5£.
Z C l. E. Jr AI It r X Z B L E. Even right after this first message, if we are in direct communication
.~::. with that planet, we shall have questions to put to "them ": the proof of
C c.a 0 .l L A31i; H • L Dh'CiH. Fermat's Last Theorem, Goldbach's conjecture,' and many other
unsolved problems in mathematics and the natural sciences. It will
x !: Q if D • X A. S V Il!'A'liH. not be difficult for "them" to demonstrate their intellectual and tech-
: E ;.: J.. X: nological superiority (first of' all, don't forget it was they who were
;. • II i L 1r !l X lr D X L 5 0 D.
able to call Us!).' If ..they" but know the seoentk digit of the "fine
.structure constant," they are ages ahead of us (we know only the first
five for sure, suspect the sixth). This number, 137.039 ... , is the
z «. E! a to !E; • @lINB ,. rTB L C £:
ratio, among others, of the speed of light to the speed of the hydrogen
~ :.~;:: i. "V :;---:;';''i.'IH;
,,'@'llHC i. electron; it may take a century to calculate this constant to 9 digits.
:.c. ~ .• @!l.~'D #. A..I A. @IIND 'I. And after we resolve our pressing scientific questions, it might be
. c €'l j. Y 5. • '!P'" '# L • @KNC ;. appropriate to make discreet inquiries as to how we could live in
~ e ~~:: ;. 'r 8,
harmony and peace with our fellow man-that is, if we aren't eaten or
otherwise ingested by the superior civilization that had the good
fortune to contact us. But as far as the cryptologist is concerned, he
i L .us: C @A P L C. (and generations of his descendants who might experience the supreme
~; C-@"'!If j..
{. c ~NKI .,
- • Tliesolution may hi: fO\mdon p:l09;'but esChew the PRmat\ire peek. or

;•• @lQiI F, s \\lth what he bas teamed from this example of 'Pace communication. let the
'5:3 ~ Y B.
reader iOnDuWe these two questions directly for L-.msmission to "them... in a clea= and
;A ;. L • ~c i 0 • @D I. compact form; the solutions appear on PC. 109. For the reader who is a little rusty on
ito. @lil.:l i . • @~C ;.
classicUDSOh-ed problems in mathematics, Fermat's Last Theorem stares that DO integ!'31
,r L • 'i-$AO I. « @~_#. ,,-a!ues of z, Y. and z can be fouDd to satisfy the equation :J!' + l' - z' _ if It
is aD int.e:er:reater thaD 2; GcMdbIcl1'i ''nOtorious'' COIljec:tUre ("DOtorious" only because
other mathemaci~ fa.iled to make the conjecture themselves) states that every even
number :rater ~ 2 CIlD be a:pnssed as the sum of two primes.
~.

UNCLASSIFIED- - UNCLASSJFIED
 ~ .. ·.r · ·.··· " : ",_._:.; ..:.".:'.. -" : t.:>" .. ~••.
.....,:
;

r-"-
. ". -

L. D. CALLIMAHOS UNCLASSIFIED
-emu of their lives when we hear from Clthem") must keep a level head,
not- get excited, and be- prepared to cope with problems the like of
.:..wliich he has never seen-:out of this world, so to speak.
.~.
Electronir
BY JOHN
Tapt::
INTRODUCTION
Calligraphy, the art of produ
familiar term in the English Ian;
letters in its alphabet, English!
manual or mechanical. Slight :
tions have little effect on legib
texts are easily obtained due to
All that is necessary is a unique ~
it is a typewriter key or a COe
English requires only that a sig1 .
letter. The Morse and Baudot
suIt of.such transmissions is eas
Generally speaking, most alp;
graphic problems. However, Sf
graphic in nature. Such langue
sent some idea or thing. Altho
rules of formation, the number
often ver y large. For exampl
thousand unique ideographs. 11
as a single element. The followi
lar symbols with very dissimilar r

Character
- A- _...- ...-
'1- -------
'11
/F -------
. 7} -------
ffi ------.
~ -------
Therefore, .for these languages,
tention in order to obtain intelli

86 UNCLAS$lAED ·! •
·· .
!
i
-.
..
., .~'

.. 4 , _.

.'.: . ,: . (..:.~~~;-"?J.
..... .
" ~i\ ~~.~;~:??:~~:
..:. .
:"~~
'.
I
 .

50! 03~ISSV1:>Nn

.- -. . _0 - ._.- _-
_..

Symbols
A 1 I 9 Q reciprocal Y power
°B 2 J 10 R decimal point Z root
C 3 K+ S :£ .. factorial
Do! L == T > & -::
E 5 M- U < S e
F 6 N 0 V == (: [
G 7 o X W{ # ]
H8 P 4- X ) @code

Code values
001 cuestion 007 radius 013 circle
002 true 008 volume or sphere 014 area
003
false 009 .,. (ellipsis) 015 rectangle
prime
004 010 perimeter of rect.
circum. of circle
005 011 area of rectangle
006 area of circle 012 perimeter 999
Code values 1, 2, 3 ... 99 == x, Y, z . . . (abstractions, unknowns,
variables) .

. Fermat's
- Last -Theorem: .- __ -- - __ 0.-
¢ @ A :# Y e @ 0 if K ¢@ B # Y ¢ @ D # L e @C # Y ¢@ D :. e @ 0 .,. L B;
e @ NNB #. e @ D ;; L C. D. E. e @ NNI ~; ¢@ NNB NNA :.

Golciliich's Conjecture: _._.....

B c@A·#. Bc@A # L¢@B #; c@B #" TB~ e@B#"Lc@C: Kt@D#"; ,• .l _
¢@C it Le@N~D #,t@D #" L¢@NND.#. c@NNB NNA #. °

- .' - . .
'UO!1'e:>!tIDtIIttIO:) ao-edS ,soqsuxnx-e:) 'IW"O+ tI0!lnlOS
_. :

SON.aOI'I'!&LNI TiI"g,I.Sgffii::l:.r.vcu.xa 031:iISSV1:>Nn

,
I

...:..._---------. --- ....... 1 .•••• > C.. . >..J ......,.; •• ,._~,.,,_, "'_01_ ; •••• » .. ·i',...·· ~""~'.~" .; :

....
.; '

::..~.:":"':. _:..•. :.. .:'-.'. :. . :'~'':::!'~~~..:.'''''': ":'. i,;" ~..;.;•••.•• ~ .:;.• '.: ~' ' 4::'''~ .:.":~ ." >:.' ~: ".;..•; ::'.-::.:-," ~~"':' ~ .