VMs: Fw: Edward Kelley and the VMS

["Jeff" <jeff@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Gordon Rugg" <g.rugg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Jeff" <jeff@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: 15 July 2004 09:01
Subject: Re: Edward Kelley and the VMS


> Dear Jeff,
>
> Thanks for your very interesting email. I'm not currently subscribed to
> the mailing list because of volume of work, unfortunately; you're
> welcome to forward this message to the list if you want.
>
> In brief, my Cryptologia paper shows that it's possible to hoax
> something as complex as Voynichese, and with similar properties to
> Voynichese, using sixteenth century techniques. That's a different
> question from whether the manuscript actually is a hoax. Using Occam's
> razor, I think that the hoax hypothesis is now the simplest explanation.
> I'd love to see someone find a code in the manuscript, but I haven't
> seen any strong evidence to support that hypothesis.
>
> I'm currently looking at the manuscript to test the table and grille
> hypothesis. The preliminary results suggest that tables and grilles are
> the best fit with the data, but they're only preliminary.
>
> I reached my conclusion via a method that I developed with my colleague
> Joanne Hyde, for systematically re-assessing previous research into
> long-standing, difficult research problems. It's briefly described in
> the Scientific American article; there's a more detailed article in
> preparation - I'll let the group know when it's due out.
>
> One bit of evidence from this approach hasn't made much impression on
> the mailing list, but may interest you. From the literature on expert
> and novice behaviour, we'd predict that if Kelley created a second
> language after Enochian, it would contain over-corrections for the worst
> features of Enochian. There's general agreement that these worst
> features are the syntax (identical to that of Elizabethan English); the
> lack of morphemic structure within words (any character can follow any
> other) and the script, which is not ergonomically good. Over-correcting
> for these would produce something with syntax very different from
> Elizabethan English (or no syntax at all); strict rules about which
> characters can follow which other ones; and an ergonomically efficient
> script. That looks to me like a pretty good description of Voynichese.
>
> By the way, you might like to know that I've added some new material
> throughout my website; I'll put more up over the next few weeks.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Gordon
>
>
> Jeff wrote:
> > Hi Gordon
> >
> > I have recently been doing quite a bit of provenance research on the
VMS. I
> > had quite a good hunch and followed it up. I was hopeful of finding the
> > author and everything seemed to be fitting together nicely when I
stumbled
> > again into the Dee and Kelley connection. I now have more links than I
have
> > ever had before and they all fit nicely. However a great deal of the
> > evidence would seem to indicate that you might be right on the mark in
your
> > assesment of the Kelley connection. It could go one of two ways at the
> > moment. As I am not one to bury the truth I will be pursuing this even
if it
> > shows the VMS to be a hoax and vindicates your current position.
> >
> > One question I have to ask is did you come to your conclusions through
> > research on historical evidence or was it more of a hunch? If it was a
hunch
> > then I think you have made a brilliant deduction my dear Holmes. I have
> > already indicated to the VMS list that you may be right in your
thinking.
> > Whether or not they are prepared to accept it is immaterial.
> >
> > Of course there is one other possibility that I am not prepared to go
into
> > at the moment as I need more evidence to back it up. Needless to say if
the
> > other alternative appears to be the right one it will nullify your
> > hypothesis. However, Kelley will still play a crucial part in the whole
> > story. Sorry I can't say more at the present but I will let you know the
> > results when they have been validated.
> >
> > These are interesting times!
> >
> > Jeff
> >
> >
>
>

______________________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send mail to majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxx with a body saying:
unsubscribe vms-list