Website of the Week: CryptoKids™

Do you like codes and ciphers? Do you write your friends notes in "invisible" ink? Do you ever wonder whether the E-mail you send to your friends is really safe from prying eyes? Today's website, CryptoKids™ from the National Security Agency/Central Security Service, is for you.

Join Crypto Cat™, Decipher Dog™, and all of their friends to learn about cryptology, the science of making and breaking codes. (Itinerant Cryptographer is especially good at a subset of cryptology known as cryptanalysis, which is trying to break into codes without knowing the special "key" behind how they were made.)

Learn to create codes, make ciphers, and solve some brainteasers, cryptograms, and something I'd never heard of before called a Yardleygram.

Food Detectives

As a fan of the Food Network, I'll watch most any show they broadcast at least once. But Food Detectives, hosted by Ted Allen, caught my eye and is worth a second look. Ever want to test those food myths you've heard about? Is the last drop of soda in the bottle really all backwash? (No, only about 2%, according to their tests). Can you really fry an egg on your car engine? (Yes, but it looks so horrid afterward that you might not want to eat it). You can upload your most pressing food questions to Ted Allen via video clip or drop him an E-mail here. Food Detectives reminds me of Mythbusters lite, but it's a charming show that's worth a view.