In 2011, a Japanese shipyard delivered a bulk carrier called 21 Glory. She was 37,000 deadweight tonnes — a handymax, built to carry grain, coal, and steel through the regional trade lanes of the Pacific.

Stamped into her classification record was this:


NS*(BCM-A, BC-XII, GRAB)(PS-DA&FA)(IWS) MNS*


That is not a random string. It is a...