Re: VMs: Kepler & the VMS

[Gabriel Landini <G.Landini@xxxxxxxxxx>]

On Saturday 24 Apr 2004 6:23 pm, Robert Teague wrote:
> Dates I've found in the manuscript so far are 1533, 1558, 1583, 1593,
> and 1615, leaving 0, 2, 4, and 7.

As pointed out before, the problem is that the "proof" that the numbers are 
correct relies on the interpretation of very poor quality diagrams for which 
the meaning is not certain.

But also, we do not even know where a particular group of characters should 
appear or behave like numbers!

Interpreted drawing -> find a date for the alleged astonomical event -> find a 
character pattern that fits the date.

To me, the first and also the third steps are problematical.

If some vms characters were to behave like roman numerals (there is no 
certainity of that either!), the above does not mean that one could not find 
those by chance, but the likelihood is, I think, remote.

For a recognition of this kind, one needs an extra proof of the *functioning* 
of the numbers. This is the way the page numbering in the Codex Serphinianus 
(I can never remember it is with a "f" or a "ph", sorry) was cracked (they 
were in a sequence).

So one should be looking, for example, for a table with names and geographical 
coordinates, or operations (like an sum) of some kind, or a particular 
sequence, or a geometrical diagram showing relations between measurements.
Unfortunately there seems to be very little resembling any of those (perhaps 
some of the key-like sequences could be sorted numbers or letters.)

To Rene,
Yes, JV Field is the expert you mentioned. She is well aware of the vms (she 
was the organiser of the meeting of the History of Cryptography meeting at 
Cambridge).

Cheers,

Gabriel


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