Everyone's a nerd about something. What are you a nerd about?

TheGoonch@lemmy.world to Ask Lemmy@lemmy.world – 176 points –

I know it's an unpopular opinion given current circumstances, but I've always been a huge nerd about Russia. The history, the geography, the music, etc. And as an American, I've always found it fascinating how U.S.-Russian relations have fluctuated over time. We've gone from allies, to enemies, to frenemies. This doesn't mean I support Z or Putin, of course. What are you a nerd about?

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Cryptography. It just fascinates me and I constantly want to know more about it.

What are some of your favorite cryptography/cipher history facts?

I just recently learned that cryptography was heavily regulated, in the US at least. What I mean to say is that in the older days (80's - 90's) it was illegal to export any encryption system out of the country. This was mainly due to concerns about the potential for these technologies to be used by adversaries to encrypt communications that could not be intercepted by intelligence agencies.

Obviously, cryptography is valuable, however it was unexpected to read about all the regulations in place regarding this subject, though, now I think it makes sense.