We can now learn more about one of the most controversial monarchs in European history, thanks to a trio of amateur cryptologists who unknowingly stumbled upon a treasure trove of long-lost letters by Mary, Queen of Scots and worked painstakingly to crack their code.
George Lasry of Israel, Norbert Biermann of Germany and Satoshi Tomokiyo of Japan are part of an international community of codebreakers and scholars working on historical ciphers (aka secret codes). Though they all have other day jobs: Lasry is a computer scientist, Biermann is a pianist and musical coach and Tomokiyo is an astrophysicist who works for a patent firm.
