Re: No numbers in the VMS

[Nick Pelling <incoming@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Guilano,

> I understand that discussing with each newcomer issues which have already been
> settled long ago must be more frustrating than rewarding, but please be
> patient.
> If this theme has been discarded only on entropy  consideration, I believe
> that it's been dismissed too hastily.

Ooops - in my original reply, I tried (in the following paragraph) to 
signal my own distrust of statistics... I've also proposed (in other 
emails) that context-based statistical coding would be another way of 
producing encoded text with a lower entropy than the plaintext, so I'm 
completely in agreement with you on this point.

*Now* I understand what you're proposing: not a Hebrew transliteration of 
(say) medieval Latin, but instead a Hebrew embedding or crossliteralisation 
of the same, which would necessarily expand out (using various 
conventions), thus yielding a lower entropy (probably).

All I can say is - try it and see. The VMS has a large number of very 
distinct structural and visual properties, and any theory would need to 
address these: matching the basic entropy is only really one consideration 
of many. Anything that gives us an insight into the kind of language 
underlying the VMS will be extremely useful... but typical experiments so 
far haven't really come that close.

The recent work we've done on-list for identifying the underlying 
(concealed) astrological alphabet should have the effect of increasing the 
entropy by a significant amount... but until we've locked down the alphabet 
a bit more (and got a bit more of a handle on the morphology), I'd rather 
stay away from statistics. :-)

> P.S. All of the above would be quite amusing for someone already in the grave
> since a number of centuries, if VMS is nothing but a hoax...

IMHO, it would be even more amusing if was actually a syllabic Pinyin 
description of sylphium usage and abusage. :-)

Cheers, .....Nick Pelling.....