Re: NSA technology transfer (fwd)

[mgream@acacia.itd.uts.edu.au (Matthew Gream)]

"Dan Harmon" wrote:
> 
> I'm reposting this in response to a few recent posts inquiring about the 
> NSA flyer.
[..]
> > This is from a flyer that NSA people have been distributing:
> > 
> >      NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY --  TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER
> > 
> >      Information Sorting and Retrieval by Language or Topic
> > 

Related note: I was doing some research at the National Library of
Australia the other day and came across a publication (a 12 page
pamphlet or thereabouts) titled "Careers for Mathematicians and
Engineers at the National Security Agency". It's dated about 1976, and
describes what engineers, physicists, mathematicians and computer
scientists can engage in at NSA. 

The people in the pictures look like they had been rescued from a 70's
low budget CIA or Police TV flick. As for equipment, there were
pictures of oscilloscopes, `computers' with LEDs and switches on the
front and other stuff as well (and neat labels on the switches too).

Much was given to the potential types of work you can do, and
descriptions of the facilities at Ft. Meade (though, it didn't
explicitly name the place, but named campuses where you can study at
while working at NSA -- the target audience is high school students it
seems), most either in Maryland or Washington DC (if my US geography
serves me the best), Georgetown University was one of them. IMHO a
security risk in itself, knowing the exact places and courses that NSA
personel are located, almost as bad as our DSD advertising for job
placements in the Government Gazette ` .. for the collection and
interpretation of foreign signals intelligence ..'.

Some of the claims are down right funny. For instance, it is stated
that "To assure maximum opportunity for achievement, the Agency
provides a high degree of personal freedom to pursue individual
interests in an atmosphere conducive to scholary achievement". Sure!
You just have to suffer the indignation of not being able to publish it
to your respected peers (well, at least those outside the agency).

I made a photocopy of two pages, one with a guy standing in front of
the NSA emblem, smiling of course [would you by a cryptosystem from
this man ...]. The other, my favourite, is of a woman standing at a
blackboard with another guy, she's obviously teaching him about
something. Chalked on the board is a picture of a 7 bit LFSR with a
single tap, and then next to it (partly obscured by the man) are a few
equations. It lost a bit in the color -> b/w photocopy, but I plan to
scan in the two photocopied papers when next I see my friend and his
flatbed.

It was a good giggle!

Matthew.

-- 
Matthew Gream <M.Gream@uts.edu.au> -- Consent Technologies, (02) 821-2043
Disclaimer: I'm only a student at UTS, and don't represent them.