Bletchley Park

Yesterday morning through afternoon, I took a break from grant proposals to go to the museum at Bletchley Park with some math and CS folks. Here is the beginning of its wikipedia entry:

Bletchley Park, also known as Station X, is an estate located in the town of Bletchley, in Buckinghamshire now part of Milton Keynes, England. During World War II, Bletchley Park was the location of the United Kingdom's main codebreaking establishment. Codes and ciphers of several Axis countries were deciphered there, most famously the German Enigma. The high-level intelligence produced by Bletchley Park, codenamed Ultra, is frequently credited with aiding the Allied war effort and shortening the war, although Ultra's effect on the actual outcome of WWII is debated.

I got to see a remade Colossus in action and when the normal people in the guided tour were gone, we stayed and asked some more technical questions of one of the guys who built and runs the remake. The actual guided tour spend too much time on the war and not enough time on the technical stuff. :) I didn't get a chance to explore most parts of the museum at all because between lunch, the guided tour, and the extra conversation, there wasn't time for anything else.

I'm going to go back because there is a lot more for me to see. I know Lemming wants to go and my ticket is good for a year's admission, so hopefully he'll come visit within the next year.