Re: VMs: Gordon Rugg's experiment

[Dennis <tsalagi@xxxxxxxx>]

Jorge Stolfi wrote:
> 
> I did some analysis of the texts that are available at Gordon Rugg's
> site, and of other material which he kindly sent me. I am still
> writing a detailed report, but my main objection is that the
> table-and-grille method is too good. For one thing, it allows complete
> control over the first 500 or so words; so one could use it to produce
> a literal copy of --say-- Hamlet's monologue. Therefore, to uncover
> the method's limitations one would have to analyze a much larger
> sample.

	This, along with the other points you make, sound like
a reduction to absurdity.  That alone would be disproof
of Rugg's method.  

	Reductions to absurdity are often used to disprove
this sort of thing.  Friedman showed that the
"Shakespearean ciphers" could show that *he* was the
author of Shakespeare's plays.  The debunkers of the
"Bible Code" showed that applying the Bible Code method
to *Moby Dick* predicts the assassination of Indira
Gandhi.  (One assumes that *Moby Dick* was not divinely
inspired.)  No doubt we can all think of other
examples...

Dennis
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