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THE WAY I SEE IT By NEVILLE WILLIAMS "Spycatcher": do Wright's electronics bear scrutiny? As a former Assistant Director of Ml5, Peter Wright had a story to tell which the British Government tried desperately to suppress. But according to one informed critic, official concern may well have been misplaced, because the main effect of one section of the book, dealing with electronic surveillance, is to undermine the author's own credibility. In the normal course of events, I might not have given much thought to a book about the devious goingson in Britain's Ml5 and M16 intelligence organisations. Controversial though the matter may be, it is not one on which the average reader can bring informed judgment to bear. So why get involved? As it happens, however, the book was the subject of comment by British technical writer, Barry Fox, in "New Scientist" for October 22 last. Under the title "The Wright Stuff?", Barry Fox professed to be bewildered by the science of "Spycatcher". He pointed out that, far from being a mere administrator, Peter Wright professes a high level of expertise in wireless/radio technology, mainly as applied to the theory and practice of electronic surveillance and bugging. But despite this, various terms and expressions in the text were said by Barry Fox to be totally uncharacteristic of a writer with a technical background. Moreover, some of the explanations were so garbled that they conveyed little, even to an informed reader. 74 SILICON CHIP As a technical writer and editor from way back, I am certainly well aware of the sort of thing that Barry Fox is complaining about. Like most other specialist skills, electronics has its own vocabulary, expressions and conventions which become as much a part of those involved as their own mother tongue. In any technical text, inappropriate terminology, disregard for conventions and glib but inaccurate explanations are all indicators that the writer is out of his/her technical depth. As examples of Wright's alleged lapses in this general area, Fox mentions: • The author's use of "MH" and ''megacycles' ' when he presumably means "MHz". • In the context of bugging, using small parabolic objects irradiated by microwaves, "he muddles together the behaviour of sound and microwave radio signals" to the point where the explanation is "extraordinarily confusing". • When M16 interrogated double agent Kim Philby, they borrowed a high quality microphone from the BBC, hid it under a floorboard, fed the signal down a phone line and recorded the interview on dicta phone cylinders and acetate discs. Why the complex and rather odd procedures when Philby would have been well aware that such an interrogation would be recorded? • Wright apparently spent years working on a system called "MOP" which allowed DC to be fed down an audio pair to power a remote device. He seemed totally unaware that "phantom powering" is about as old as the telephone! • To make more sense of a covert (presumably mono) recording containing a babble of voices, Wright resorted to listening to the tape on a machine having two staggered heads. Wright does not explain how the echo effect so produced made "even the worst tapes much easier to understand", nor could Barry Fox find any support for this claim. • Wright claims to have developed techniques for identifying the frequencies being monitored by consulates by detecting signals being radiated by the receiver oscillators. He appears to be unaware that, in the 1930s, the British Post Office was using vans equipped with special receivers and directional aerials to track down unlicensed radio sets, by monitoring oscillator radiation. Based on these and other such observations, Barry Fox is led to speculate whether Peter Wright was over-estimating his own abilities or fantasising over his past career; or whether, in the context of prevailing secrecy, he was able to out-talk his technically uninformed superiors. Still further questions Although Barry Fox did not labour the point, the inference was clear enough: if, for whatever reason, the author's account of his technical activities is open to question, might it not be that other aspects of the text would need to be discounted? But then again, if the text was so transparently flawed, why all the costly and futile effort on the part of the British Government to have the book banned? Somewhat intrigued by all this, I sought out a copy of "Spycatcher" a few weeks later when I was on holiday on the north coast, with time to spare. I didn't need to read far to encounter the sort of thing Barry Fox had been complaining about and to register that, at the very least, the services of a good technical subeditor would have helped. On page 8, for example, Peter Wright credits his father with being joint developer of a "vacuum" receiver - a term that would appear to fall awkwardly between "valve" (British) and "vacuum tube'' (American) terminology. On page 10, Wright tells how his father spent hours explaining crystals and valves and showing him how to "delicately turn the dials of a set so that the random static suddenly became a clear signal". To my mind, both pars bear the stamp of a non-technical writer possibly Peter Wright's co-author Paul Greengrass. But why weren't they tidied up at the proof stage? I'm not sure who wrote the story on " the thing" on pages 18-20 relating to a listening device secreted in the Great Seal behind the Ambassador's chair in the US embassy in Moscow. Wright says that the Americans finally submitted the device to him to determine how it worked - which he managed to do some weeks later. But his explanation leaves much to be desired and I'm quite certain that in the past, if someone had submitted it to me for publication, it would have been returned to the author for clarification. In this instance, the authors would not have been inhibited by security, because it happened in 1951 and involved a device designed and installed by the Russians, who both Ml5 and Ml6 obviously saw as their ever-present threat. Glaqcing back over my notes, scribbled as I read, I was reminded 9f other questions that could reasonably be put to the authors: • Page 63: how a new "thin" cable, to be buried in masonary, "gave off far less electromagnetic emission". I would have thought that electromagnetic emission was a function of the current flow rather than of conductor dimensions. • Page 91: how the local oscillator in a superhet "always radiates sound waves as it operates". In fact, the oscillator of a traditional superhet radiates an RF signal, which may be rendered audible by a heterodyne process in a surveillance receiver. • Page 92: "Nothing happened. The static hummed". I'm willing to bet that that wasn't written by someone with a technical background. • Page 105: "We were careful to use straight receivers for the RAFTER operation, each operating on a single megacycle frequency, so there were no local oscillators on our side" . That has to be the clumsiest reference yet to a TRF receiver. • Page 105: "The Russians used large radio frequency amplifiers with the HF receivers". "Large" or high-gain? "RAFTER" , by the way, was the code name for a surveillance technique said to have been devised by Wright. While monitoring an oscillator in an embassy receiver, a powerful carrier was swept across the band on which the receiver was presumed to be operating. If the carrier passed through the frequency to which the receiver was actually tuned, it would hopefully produce an overload condition or otherwise disturb or modulate the oscillator being monitored, sufficiently for the effect to be apparent. A different perspective Discussion of surveillance is confined largely to the first third of the Problems? ... and you don't have our .120page catalogue . .. At last . .. a TRADE catalogue for the consumer ARISTA ... your one-stop problem solver. Video plugs and sockets ... Video extension speakers . . . Video flyleads ... Video RF interference filters ... Video splitters . .. Indoor antennas .. . Video switching units . . . Down converters . .. Video speaker controllers ... Video camera lights .. . Video tape rewinders ... Video cine adaptors ... Video head cleaners . . . 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The remainder of the book is taken up with a discourse on (precomputer} data filing and cryptography and with the relentless pursuit of undercover agentf such as Philby, Burgess, Maclean, Blunt and - according to Wright Hollis. Some may find this interesting; others will not. But, to get back to my earlier question, why all the expensive effort to prevent publication? It certainly could have had little to do with the technical content, which is "ancient history" from the pre-digital era. Even at that time, much of it would have been as accessible to the Russians as to the British. More likely, the legal action was a knee-jerk response to a principle - heightened by the fact that Wright was a self-educated oddman-out who would predictably present the British secret service in an unflattering light: dominated by "old-boy" and public service attitudes, inefficient and often grubby. Enough said! Jump-starting cars While there may be little in common between stopping Russian spies and starting Australian cars, that does happen to be the next subject on the list. Scarcely had my last article been fed down the line into the SILICON CHIP modem than I was confronted by a television advert that most readers will probably have seen by now - several times! Worried about his very pregnant wife, a husband pulls into the driveway of his home and hurries inside - leaving the car headlights on. Around 3 G' clock the next morning she needs transport to hospital but by now the battery is dead flat. With commendable presence of mind, the very pregnant wife lifts the car bonnet, slides the switch on the new Exide "Switch" battery and tells her husband to start the car. The engine responds immediately, she returns the switch to its original position, closes the bonnet and off they go. Pardon my bewilderment. Here was a major manufacturer ostensibly providing an on-board standby battery, using it to start the engine, TO STARTER CIRCUIT JUMPER CABLE DONOR BATTERY TO VEHICLE EARTH DISCHARGED BATTERY 4 -2~~=ENGINE BLOCK OR CHASSIS MAKE CERTAIN VEHICLES DO NOT TOUCH From the Automotive Division of Pacific Dunlop Batteries, this diagram summarises the four steps when jump-starting a stalled vehicle. It applies for negative earth vehicles only, which must not be in physical contact (see text). 76 SILICON CHIP then apparently disconnecting it and exposing the electronics to a flat-battery situation, without a second thought. As soon as practical, I got in touch with Exide batteries and in due course, found myself in conversation with Alan Hyde, National Sales Manager for the parent company, Pacific Dunlop Batteries in Sandringham, Victoria. I explained about the article I had just written and the possible problems of jump-starting vehicles. Based on my account of what the article contained, Alan Hyde endorsed all that had been said and indicated that his company was about to release a brochure on the subject entitled: "Jump Starting Procedure". He subsequently posted me a draft of the text, which makes a number of points additional to those mentioned last month: • Cars manufactured since 1971 normally have the negative battery terminal grounded to chassis. In earlier models, or where there is any doubt, check to ensure that neither of the vehicles has a positive earth system. • Where the discharged battery has removeable filler tops, make sure that they are firmly in place before using the jumper leads. A damp cloth draped over each battery will help confine explosive gases; but keep the cloth clear of moving parts! • Switch off the ignition of both vehicles, together with all electrical equipment, before making the jumper connections. Close all doors and the boot lid to disconnect courtesy lights. • Many modern cars have electronic components which remain active, even when the ignition switch is off. It is essential in such cases to use jumper leads which incorporate anti-surge circuitry. If in doubt, take the precaution of checking with the vehicle manufacturer. The diagram, as shown, indicates the connection procedure recommended by Pacific Dunlop for routine situations. The vital thing is that connection (4), which closes the jump circuit, should be made to a part of the engine block remote from the battery and fuel system. The "Switch" battery So what's the story behind the Exide "Switch" battery? Fortunately, there is more to it than the simple "jump" start implied by the TV advertisement. The "Switch" is actually two batteries in one assembly, the main unit being developed from the standard Exide PS500 - a design that the manufacturer claims to have half the warranty returns experienced by competitive Australian batteries. The second or "reserve" section has about one-quarter the capacity of the main unit, but sufficient in normal situations to ensure at least 24 routine starts. With the switch in the "off" position, the main section functions as an ordinary battery, maintained by the normal charging circuit and liable to being "flattened" if the driver carelessly leaves the headlights on, as per the TV advert. The reserve section ls connected internally to the main section by a semiconductor diode such that, while current can flow into the reserve section from the charging circuit, it cannot flow in the opposite direction into a load. The reserve section is therefore maintained automatically at near full charge during normal operation of the vehicle. In an emergency situation, sliding the switch to "on" puts the two batteries in parallel, making the still charged reserve section available for engine starting, etc. Immediately after starting, the switch can be returned to "off". Because the diode is still in circuit, it will conduct automatically if the charging voltage rises significantly above that of the reserve battery, effectively clamping any surges or transients to a safe level. Within about 30 minutes, the main section should have been substantially reactivated. Alan Hyde stressed that company engineers had gone to great lengths to get the design right and to ensure that the switching system can cope both with the rigours of the engine compartment and the proximity of battery acid. In "The Exide Switch Technical Brochure" the battery is described as "sealed and maintenance-free". It carries a 2-year warranty, provided it is used under the specified conditions: notably that it has not been tampered with and has never been exposed to a charge voltage in excess of 15V. Exide warns that overcharging will "boil off" the electrolyte which cannot thereafter be topped up. Something for the sceptics In the January and February issues, I referred to the fact that people have argued for decades about the alleged therapeutic qualities of electricity, wireless waves, magnets, &c. By way of example, I mentioned a couple of dubious American practitioners who, in the early 1920s, CONTACT INTERNATIONAL PO BOX 390 COW ANDILLA, SA 5033. 2/283 BURBRIDGE ROAD, BROOKLYN PARK, SA. 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One could possibly equate such excesses to the sheer novelty of wireless technology at the time but I did not have that option in respect to a certain middle-aged American gentleman who appeared on a local TV talk show a few weeks back. Identified as Malcolm Vogels, his self-appointed mission, apparently, was to publicise the amazing properties of crystals. As it happened, I had just previously seen mention of a resurgence of the crystal cult in America in the context of the "New Age" mentality - described in the particular article as '' a hodgepodge of mysticism and pseudoscience" that can all too readily become a substitute for more rigorous thinking. Presumably to establish his credentials in real science, Malcolm Vogels said that he had been employed by IBM for some 27 years and had invented the coating that was still being used by the aforesaid company for their computer discs. But wait a minute! Even without re-checking the literature, I knew that oxide-coated magnetic tapes dated back to around 1927 and that, in the early 1930s, the technology had been under intense investigation by major German companies such as AEG, I. G. Farben and BASF. Allowing for years of research work by other European interests, by American and Japanese ~ompanies, and the subsequent extension from audio into video recording, a great many individuals must surely have contributed to the technology behind the coating on IBM's computer discs. For me, I'm afraid, the claim raised more questions than it answered. Nor did I find his statements or demonstrations on television in any way convincing. By gripping a crystal firmly and concentrating his thoughts (as evidenced by the pained expression on his face), Malcolm Vo gels was purportedly able to transfer information to the crystal. Then by pointing it at the audience, the information could supposedly be projected towards them. It seemed to work for a couple of people; at least they came up with what he said were the right answers. The remainder looked amused and bemused by it all. A crystal filter? In another demonstration, passing Sydney_t_ap water through a simple 3-turn glass helix, surrounding a crystal, transformed it into what a teenager said tasted like "pure" water. A similar procedure transformed bottled orange juice into "freshly squeezed". We were assured that the idea worked just as well with apple juice. What a clever little crystal. Not only was it able to change the chemical content of Sydney tap water, bottled orange juice or canned apple juice, but it knew what chemicals to remove and what chemicals to leave in! But that's not all. I gather that, in a non-televised demonstration, it or a similar crystal proved to have therapeutic qualities as well - at least to the satisfaction of a couple of those present. What kind of a crystal? At the very least, I think it's fair to ask what kind of crystal exhibits these wonderful qualities? According to my dictionary, a real crystal is: "a solid body having a characteristic internal structure and enclosed by symmetrically arranged plane surfaces, intersecting at definite and characteristic angles''. That leaves open quite a range of elements from which to choose. Do they all have subtle, mysterious properties, or only some? The most interesting crystal I can recall personally was a newly grown chunk of germanium shown to me by the late Graham Hall. It was due to be sliced into thousands of tiny wafers for an early production run of the ill-fated Australian Ducon germanium transistors. Having in mind the therapeutic properties attributed to germanium by Dr Asia (see January issue], one might expect quite phenomenal results from a large germanium crystal! But I gather that the "New Age" cult is concerned with crystalline quartz, which exhibits such vitally important piezoelectric properties. Does it not, these days, control the frequency of just about every transmitter and professional receiver one can think of? And is it not responsible for the uncanny accuracy of countless quartz clocks and watches? If a tiny wafer of quartz can be so important electrically, it is surely not unreasonable to accept that a complete crystal should exhibit certain remarkable properties! Mind you, Malcolm Vogels didn't seem to be keen to define or explain those properties: how liquids could possibly be upgraded by dribbling them past a crystal; how a crystal could absorb and store and disseminate information; how it could heal human ills. Maybe that's not so surprising. According to those who like to question the improbable, it is characteristic of the "New Age" philosophy: maintain that certain things are so but don't get caught up on the specifics of how and why. Say the sceptics: if they don't define the property they are talking about, it makes it that much more difficult for us either to measure or disprove it! ~ The "New Age" philosophy: maintain that certain things are so but don't get caught up on the specifics of how and why. 78 SILICON CHIP