Sometime last year, I had taught my son how Rubik’s cube work and explained to him about algorithms.
It piqued his curiosity and he has been in to algorithm since then.
After not finding my IPad for the umpteenth time, I added a 4 digit password yesterday morning before leaving home. When I returned in the evening, my son was looking really sheepish.
“What did you do?” I asked as soon as I saw his cheeky grin.
“Nothing” he said
Then I noticed that he was using my IPad.
I knew he would try to crack the password, so I didn’t use any of the standard 4 digits numbers. Since there are about 10000 combinations you can get with a 4 digit numbers. I opted for 8068 thinking that if he was going to use algorithm, a combination of double digit, 0 and a 6 would take a long time.
My son is not telling me how he managed to crack my password.
Honestly, I am scared, there is a thin line separating the right and wrong. and I worry if he would cross that line
Really interested. If you ever get to know, let me know too. Are those nos. in any way important to you? Or were they random?
URT: it was a totally random number..he won’t tell me how he got it.
Like URT, I am also VERY curious, how he cracked it also with same questions, did u just pick it, out of the blue, or any kind of link b/w the digits?…
Swathi: I deliberately picked the number thinking that even if he was going to crack it, he will start from 0 and will take a long time to reach my chosen number. The number I picked is considered to be the least commonly used and I was thinking my son would be looking for the most commonly used.
one possibility is if he knew your IOS (Apple) password he could have gained access to the Ipad again: See http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1212
Goutham: He hasn’t been able to crack my Apple password. It is 10 digit long and I used alphanumeric, caps etc,. I think he succeeded in cracking the 4 digit password because of a combination of knowing how his mother’s brain work and pure deductive skills. I had once told him that random chances of people picking any number between 1 to 9, always be higher for a number between 1 and 5, followed by 7 and 9. 6 and 8 are the least popular number, so I assume, he was looking at a combination of 6 and 8. He won’t tell me how he did it.
I am sure that he knows right from wrong.. we all walk that fine line.. you just have to be comfortable in the fact that you voice will be in his head when you are around him.
MS: I told him about statistical probability of randomness when he was in grade 5. I didn’t think he would remember all that. It was an eye opener for me..
yes, i agree with MS. we all walk thru the fine line of right or wrong..i remember when i was 6/7 i was always tempted to take 10 paisa from my amma’s change-box for sweets. one day i even picked it . it wasnt hidden, it was always just out in the table. i could have easily done it. but somehow i simply couldnt take even a 5paisa from it, though i knew amma was not going to know it from a L&G “kayappetti” which was almost full of 5, 10, 20, 25, paisas…it might have been the effect of her constant reminder was stealing is “paapam”? though i remember landing up in heaven/hell that bothered me, only being right/wrong.
Swathi: I haven’t taught my kids heaven and hell. They read Dante’s divine comedy when they were young and they couldn’t comprehend the Christian version of Heaven and hell. I taught them right and wrong, but there is so much grey areas between right and wrong and I worry if they would know where that line is.