trash@oliveb.UUCP (Tom Repa) (11/06/86)
> From: "Keith F. Lynch" <KFL%MX.LCS.MIT.EDU@MC.LCS.MIT.EDU> > From: pyramid!decwrl!amdcad!lll-crg!hoptoad!tim@Ucb-Vax.arpa (Tim Maroney) > ... biasing a random number generator, which is presumably a > microscopic silicon device whose functioning requires special > training for understanding. > > A true random number generator might be a speck of radium with a > Geiger counter next to it. A silicon device, i.e. computer, can only > be a ~rpseudo-random number generator. The numbers that are produced by > it may be well distributed, but they only APPEAR random - because of > our lack of knowledge of the algorithm or lack of ability to compute > its results in our heads. If someone appears to demonstrate an ability > to bias a properly operating pseudo-random number generator, that is > excellent evidence that the experiment IS bogus. > ...Keith Uh, not quite. There are Hardware random number generators that are quite random, anhd implemented in silicon. ATT makes one, and Intel has one in their "Keyprom". I'm thinking of making one for Phil Stevens to use in his informal psi experiments. That is if I can convince him to keep this psi stuff out of my physics newsgroup. (Hint, Hint, to all you psiers). The one in Intel's "Keyprom" looks easy to do in discretes, so I will probably use a form of that design. (If any of Intels lawyers are reading this, don't sue as it's not for profit and I don't make enough to bother with.) It works by having the output of 3 asynchronous oscillators of varible frequency XORed (more or less) and feeding this into a shift register whose output controls the switched capacitors which change the oscillators fequency. Oh recursion is such a wonderful thing. The ouput is quite random. If you want more info, call Intel and ask for article reprint AR-381 "Locking up system security", or the Solutions magazine May/June 1985. I don't know how the ATT chip work, and they probably wouldn't tell me if I asked. But it's part of their encryption chipset. Just thought I'd let you know. Tom Repa(trash@oliven) P.S. Normal computers can give true random output, too. If you don't this, I invite you to come here and use our CAD system sometime. You never know _what_ its output is going to be!! :-) Disclaimer: This article was for information only. If you believe anything I say, you deserve whatever you get. If you want the Truth, go out and find it for yourself. -- Path: {hplabs,glacier,ihnp4}!oliveb!oliven!trash If those paths don't work, try: {hali,yuggoth,rlyeh}!miskatonic!shining!trapazohedron!:-O -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ___ ___ * \ / * " That is not dead which can eternal lie, //|\\ And in strange aeons even death may die. / / | \ \ | \ / | \ \ / / Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl ! ___________________________________________________________________________