|
Post by Todd on Oct 1, 2020 8:07:28 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 1, 2020 12:34:45 GMT -5
I've solved the equations on pages 42 - 45. I originally had a variable wrong, and that was causing some irrational problems.
|
|
|
Post by karangela on Oct 1, 2020 13:37:29 GMT -5
Could you please talk a little more about how you did it please?
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 1, 2020 14:33:02 GMT -5
Could you please talk a little more about how you did it please? Here's what I did. There are probably more math-y ways: First, I noticed that in the four equations there were only a total four different kufi used. (Is kufi the plural of kufic?) I substituted a letter for each one and came up with these equations:
A + B = C + D
4 x A = B x D
A - C = B x B
A - B = D / 2
There are two notes written on the page: Whole numbers only please, and there ought to be a naught. So, no fractions, and one of the four values is zero.
I guessed that the zero wouldn't be involved in multiplication or division operations. Mostly because, if it was, the only solution would be for all four variables to be zero. Which is a valid solution, I suppose. But not very useful.
I knew this simply by trial. If A=0, then 4xA=BxD meant that either B or D must also be zero. If it were B, then A-C=BxB would force C to also be zero. If it were D, then A-B=D/2 would mean that B had to be zero, and therefore also C. Confused?
So if it's not A, B, or D that is zero, then it must be C. By sheer luck, from that premise, the first values I tried in A-C=BxB worked, and allowed me to calculate D.
I guess I have to acknowledge that there's a possibility other numbers will also solve the equation, but the ones I came up with are certainly the smallest numbers.
|
|
|
Post by minamurray on Oct 1, 2020 15:51:47 GMT -5
Is someone saving all this off-line? In the most recent podcast Matt said we should... just in case...
|
|
|
Post by wortelboer on Oct 1, 2020 16:09:26 GMT -5
I believe I have the numbers for pages 42-45 also.
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 1, 2020 16:13:00 GMT -5
Is someone saving all this off-line? In the most recent podcast Matt said we should... just in case... I've always been a bit of a hoarder.
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 1, 2020 17:18:02 GMT -5
Should we tell Matt about us... Or should we stay quiet because we probably know more about what happened to Alice than anyone outside the Library?
|
|
|
Post by karangela on Oct 1, 2020 17:43:17 GMT -5
I vote for transparency. Let’s tell him.😊
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 1, 2020 19:50:17 GMT -5
I think I've figured out how the first digit in the kufic works. That little sketch on the bottom of 38 is the key to look at the top left 3x3 block. Out of all the "good" kufi, there are only two variations, and of the three that are decoded for us, the two that have the same pattern have the same first digit in the Ottendorf. I'm kind of lost for the next step. I keep wanting 088 and 038 to look similar at the beginning and end, but they only do at the beginning.
|
|
|
Post by wortelboer on Oct 2, 2020 8:30:20 GMT -5
I think I've figured out how the first digit in the kufic works. That little sketch on the bottom of 38 is the key to look at the top left 3x3 block. Out of all the "good" kufi, there are only two variations, and of the three that are decoded for us, the two that have the same pattern have the same first digit in the Ottendorf. I'm kind of lost for the next step. I keep wanting 088 and 038 to look similar at the beginning and end, but they only do at the beginning. I agree that page 38 gives us the starting point, but I am spending my time on page 37. It seems to be telling us where to look to find the numbers. The first number would be three of the corners. The second number the middle and the top and bottom of the outer square...etc. Unfortunately I have no figured out how the same number is so different from each other. If I didn't have pages 37 and 38 I would think pages 40 and 41 each just represented a single number. For instance 088-08-9 the square next to it would be the number 8 - because we already know the symbols for 0 and 9.
the symbol next to 038-13-1 would be the symbol for the number 1 since we know what the symbols for 0, 3, and 8 are.
But that falls apart for the last symbol because it means that the symbol stands for either 2, 7 or 5.
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 2, 2020 10:58:31 GMT -5
You are absolutely correct that we shouldn't discount pages 36 and 37, as they show Alice's thought process heading into this. On page 36 the squares are 12x12, and break the rules, but at that time, it looked like her intent was for the outside frame to be the 3 digits, the middle frame to make the next 2 digits, and the inside frame the final digit. Page 37 is a bit more perplexing. She arrives at the 13 x 13 format, and again starts to assign colors to digits, but that corner X makes me think it's another ruled our design. Page 38 seemed to confirm that to me, showing another square kufic with a corner marked with X, and two more scribbled out squares. There is also a note written: "wierd (sp) corner that doesn't break the rules?" I am not aware of what rule she refers to. It just really feels like we should be able to look at "088-08-9" and say "Oh, here's what the 8 looks like." It's worth noting that each of Alice's kufi have one of two patterns in the upper left 3x3 area. And also that this 3x3 is surrounded by white space, essentially leaving only 9 available spaces below and to the right of this 3x3.
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 3, 2020 11:35:45 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 3, 2020 20:18:49 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by Todd on Oct 4, 2020 10:23:28 GMT -5
|
|