Re: Randomness of a bit string

["Perry E. Metzger" <pmetzger@lehman.com>]

Timothy C. May says:
> Here's a short article I wrote for sci.crypt aboout "randomness" of a
> bit string and the Kolmogorov-Chaitin definition that a string is
> random if and only if it has no shorter description than itself.

With respect, Tim, this definition is insufficient. For cryptographic
purposes, a string must not merely be incompressible but also unknown.
One can imagine things that are uncontrollable and incompressable but
well known -- such as, say the least signifcant bits in the payoffs on
winning horses at some race track.

Perry