(17-09-2019, 06:12 AM)Koen G Wrote: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.That's the problem, I'm not sure how the reshuffling of that site I used worked. I just pressed reshuffle each time. But if it shuffles well, shouldn't each successive shuffle be of equal randomness? Maybe I should force cumulative shuffling by pasting the results into the input and see whether that makes a difference.
Correct me if I'm wrong, because this is not my area at all, but it's my understanding that computer-generated randomization is fundamentally problematic, but close enough for most statistical tests. I've heard it said that a computer is ultimately incapable of true randomness, and humans are not nearly as good at it as we think we are. I remember being prompted for a "random number seed" when writing programs in Basic as a kid in the 80s, and being intrigued that the computer needed more than just "gimmie any old number," like you could say to a person. Since then computer simulation has achieved a high level of verisimilitude for a lot of processes, and I'd guess that randomization is one of them.
Still, I think inquiring into the code the webpage uses to shuffle the letters, and making sure it's a good enough model for pulling letters out of a well-shaken bag, is a great idea for improving this test.
Looks my interpretation of your data missed the mark a bit. Pity, that. I was hoping to see the VMS cluster closer to the natural languages, and it looks like I... saw what I wanted to see.
I foresee a trend of scientists and mathematicians, all under the given assumption that the VMS is a medieval hoax, making it their challenge to reverse engineer the VMS's text. In fact, I could see this becoming
the predominant trend in Voynich research circles, with theorists who doubt the hoax hypothesis becoming more peripheral. The treasure is an algorithm that is not only plausible and practical for 15th century Europe, but produces an output that is nearly indistinguishable from the real VMS text, for any amount of output, over many trials. In addition to 15min of fame, an accomplishment like this could be a real ticket into a career in IT or informatics. (And to the well-heeled and well-connected sceptic scene, if that's their cup o' joe.)
Anyhow, I think your test will be very helpful for vetting the many Voynich-bots about to be built.
There can be only one!