His eyes stinging from all the Google Translate hits popping up on his server logs (what did I tell you?), Elias Schwerdtfeger posted up an English translation of his Voynich Bullshit Index post from a couple of days ago, no doubt cursing me through gritted teeth as he typed. 🙂
By my reckoning, I reckon my Averlino theory in “The Curse of the Voynich” gets:
- 10 points initial float (i.e. for having any kind of theory)
- 2 points x 8 years wasted
- 9 points x 2 identified nine-rosette buildings – St Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Castello Sforzesco in Milan
- 9 points x 2 buildings identified after visiting them
…that is, a grand total of 62 points. Not bad: but in the words of most school reports, Could Do Better. 🙂
How many points for “having been able to read the MS in a previous life”? 😉
I only recognised my initial reaction to the VMS as a ‘deja vu’ much after the fact…
Formally, I gave up trying to decipher the MS in 2003, but perhaps my continued interest
in its origin could still be called a ‘waste of time’ 🙂
I think that should earn an honorary 100 points! 🙂
Hi Nick, we crossed paths briefly on the old mailing list. I spent most of my time rediscovering Stolfi’s abugida theory of the script. It made the script more functional, but alas, but it was still Voynich to me. Repetion was still repetition, too. Sigh. Now I see I’ll have to get your book and debrief myself!
I think you need a spirit helper. That would put you over 100 points easily. Perhaps the preincarnation of Gordon Rugg would be willing to help you.
I’ll be dropping in every decade or so to see if the two of you have made any progress. You might look into the possibility that it’s all a joke by Jasper Fforde or one of his characters.
Last time I checked, Gordon Rugg’s preincarnation was unwilling to produce any more Voynich research of note (if not of value); so as far as getting beyond the 100 point barrier, it looks as though we’re on our own. 🙂
As far as spirit helpers go, does rum count?
See you in a decade! 🙂