Reply To: Thanks

A huge thank you to the sponsors, as well as to Harry and the rest of the Cipher Challenge team for this amazing competition. The excitement generated by the competition lasts in my school for weeks, and students aged 11 to 18 take part. The accessibility of the first few weeks means that new participants can jump in each year, and the subsequent gradual increase in difficulty means that they develop a significant number of skills over the course of just one Cipher Challenge year. The toughness of the final rounds makes any success achieved there a worthy achievement and I know that many students at my school have talked about what they have learnt through the latter stages on their university applications, even if they weren’t one of the final winners. Judging by the forums, there are still lots of people working hard at the 10B cipher this year which, at the time of writing this post, is just over 8 days after it was first published online. In a world where everyone is used to getting answers so quickly online, it is wonderful to have so many people immersed in a single problem for days on end. This shows incredible resilience on their part and, as someone who believes strongly that intellectual development comes from thinking hard about something, even when completely stuck, the personal benefit these participants must obtain is surely considerable.

The quality of the puzzles and the story mean that there is a lot of intrinsic value in the competition, but the lure of the big prizes should not be underestimated, and this certainly helps the Cipher Challenge to command attention. The competition is now in its 23rd year, and I hope that it runs for many more as there is nothing else quite like it. Thank you again to all the sponsors and to everyone else who makes it possible.

Thanks Cribbage, and a huge thanks to you and all the other teachers who do so much to encourage your charges to get involved! Best wishes, Harry