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#112123 09/15/03 04:35 PM
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I just got that in an email too, and now i'm not going to worry so much about my typing... though I did pretty well that time... as an H&P Typer, I often re-arrange letters in words.

seriously, it's a pretty fascinating little study...



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#112124 09/15/03 05:04 PM
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To me this is exactly analogous to other tricks the brain plays on us - where the brain fills in the gaps because that's what brains do - fill in the gaps, put things in order, add structure to apparent chaos.
Absolutely; most of us seem to be hard-wired to try to find a pattern, and preferably a familiar one.

I had no trouble reading the letter (Hello, sweet paulb, and thanks!); but, as the link to S.D.* shows, the longer the word, the harder it gets. (Unless it's clear from the context what the word ought to be, I start having to pause at words of about 8 letters.) Out of context could be hard indeed. I have found this true in many kinds of word puzzles, where you have to pick a word out of thin air, and try all kinds of permutations to find out whether you got the right one or not.

Keith, your statement about crosswords intrigues me. Does anyone have any experience with crossword puzzles in other languages?

*It always hurts my feelings to find out that a topic here has already been discussed elsewhere. I believe this group to be the best and the brightest (not that I'm prejudiced or anything!), and I also want us to be first!


#112125 09/15/03 06:51 PM
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It's making the rounds in Portuguese, too:

De aorcdo com uma pqsieusa de uma uinrvesriddae ignlsea, não ipomtra em qaul odrem as lrteas de uma plravaa etãso, a úncia csioa iprotmatne é que a piremria e útmlia lrteas etejasm no lgaur crteo. O rseto pdoe ser uma ttaol bçguana que
vcoê pdoe anida ler sem pobrlmea. Itso é poqrue nós não lmeos cdaa lrtea isladoa, mas a plravaa cmoo um tdoo.


It was interesting to test my ability to read it in this, my second language. I did almost as well as I did in English, but the test is tainted: how well would I have done if I hadn't seen the English text in advance?




#112126 09/15/03 06:59 PM
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How're the Lisabuorers doing on this one, I'd like to know.


#112127 09/15/03 07:29 PM
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I had no trouble reading the letter but, as the link to S.D.* shows, the longer the word, the harder it gets. (Unless it's clear from the context what the word ought to be, I start having to pause at words of about 8 letters.) Out of context could be hard indeed.

bshlulit! just kidding :)


#112128 09/15/03 07:47 PM
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aorta to Ruanda at an Elinor Ukraine it deoxyribonucleic mu in wail oregano the Lubbock in a wrong are, the Olsen Ira is tail the Frito and Lubbock Lubbock are in the rhapsody pea. The Ruanda can be a tobacco mu and you can sits Rafael it wove a porcelain Tijuana is be we do not Rafael Ervin Lubbock by Ivan but the wrong as a woe. Ceiling!



#112129 09/15/03 07:54 PM
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longer [and] Out of context could be hard indeed
Ltes try:
aoprmpmhohripoc
hlutanlicae
eahepnlt
cmsiounmt
gaunalldr

I can't really tell as I've written them myself but I reckon you're right. Certainly number four looks pretty impossible.


#112130 09/15/03 07:57 PM
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It also seems that none of the misplaced letters stray too far from home. I haven't done a strict analysis on them, though.


#112131 09/15/03 08:04 PM
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What's this obsession with Lubbock?!


#112132 09/16/03 02:08 AM
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In reply to:

Does anyone have any experience with crossword puzzles in other languages?


Indonesian crosswords depend on synonyms and general knowledge, with the occasional foreign word (usually English).

Bingley



Bingley
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