War of the Words

A while back, I received an email that showed how the human brain is usually able to read text, even if the letters in the words are significantly jumbled.

So long as the first and last letters of each word remain in their correct location, it doesn’t matter how mixed up each word’s interior is, for most people, the text is still legible. I found this fascinating, but most of the examples I saw only had a few lines of text.

I wanted to increase the length of this, so created my own version. To source some text, I had a look some well known books that are no longer covered by copyright. At first I was going to use Jane Austen’s “Emma”, but then happened upon H. G. Wells’ “War of the Worlds” (according to litverse.com) and knew that was the text to use.

Below is first chapter of “War of the Worlds”, with word lettering randomly jumbled. Obviously, this couldn’t be applied to words having three letters or less. Also, punctuation for the most part is left intact.
After processing this text, and having heard Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds many times in the past, I now have Justin Hayward’s song, “Forever Autumn“, stuck in my head.

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BOOK ONE

THE CMINOG OF THE MRITAANS

CHPEATR ONE

THE EVE OF THE WAR

No one wuold have bieveled in the last yares of the nneteetinh cenurty that this wolrd was bneig whtaecd kelney and clleosy by igtienenclles geeatrr tahn man's and yet as martol as his own; taht as men biuesd tlheesevms about tiher vriaous cerncons they were scnuiestird and stdeuid, paeprhs aosmlt as nwolrray as a man with a mccoisproe mihgt surstniice the tnsearint cuetrreas taht srwam and milultpy in a dorp of waetr. Wtih iifintne cpecaoclnmy men went to and fro over this globe abuot thier ltlite afiarfs, serene in teihr anassurce of teihr emirpe oevr meattr. It is pioblsse taht the iiusnorfa unedr the mcsipcoore do the same. No one gvae a tohuhgt to the odelr wrolds of sapce as seoucrs of huamn danger, or thuhgot of tehm olny to dmssiis the ieda of lfie upon tehm as ipbilssmoe or ialrbopbme. It is couuirs to rclael smoe of the matenl hatbis of thsoe deptread days. At most trieaterrsl men fianced trhee mihgt be ohetr men uopn Mras, prheaps inefrior to tleesvemhs and rdaey to wemcloe a msiirasony eertnirspe. Yet across the gluf of space, mdins taht are to our mdins as orus are to tshoe of the batess that psrieh, ieenltclts vsat and cool and unhmeitpsaytc, raergded this erath wtih eionuvs eyes, and sowlly and serluy derw tiehr panls asaingt us. And elary in the tttewenih cnrteuy cmae the graet dseusmnniloiilt.

The palent Mars, I slecrcay need reimnd the radeer, rvevelos aubot the sun at a maen dascntie of 140,000,000 mleis, and the lhigt and heat it recviees from the sun is bearly hlaf of taht reiceevd by this wolrd. It msut be, if the nbeualr hoseytphis has any turth, odelr than our wlord; and long brefoe tihs erath cseead to be moteln, lfie uopn its scufare must have bgeun its cuorse. The fcat taht it is searlccy one seventh of the vmolue of the etarh must hvae acleecrtaed its coiolng to the trtpereuame at wcihh life cluod bgien. It has air and weatr and all that is ncesarsey for the supprot of aainmted eietxsnce.

Yet so vian is man, and so bnleidd by his vtnaiy, that no wterir, up to the very end of the nenneietth cuetnry, eepxessrd any ieda taht ieitnlnglet life might have deevolped three far, or ieendd at all, bnyoed its etrlhay lveel. Nor was it ganerlley usetonrodd that snice Mars is oedlr than our earth, wtih scacrley a qeutarr of the scfpeairiul aera and rtemoer form the sun, it neesacrilsy folowls that it is not olny more dntsait form tmie's bnnigneig but neaerr its end.

The suealcr conoilg taht msut smaedoy okavtere our pnelat has alaerdy gnoe far iedend wtih our nieugohbr. Its phcasiyl coditoinn is sltil laelgry a mtsryey, but we know now taht even in its etuiaaoqrl roiegn the midady tmtperureae blarey aephcoaprs that of our ceosdlt witner. Its air is much more attuaneetd than ours, its oances hvae sunrhk uitnl they cover but a trhid of its scfarue, and as its solw saneoss chnage huge swonacps gaehtr and mlet about ethier pole and peciidloalry iunndate its taermetpe zoens. Taht lsat satge of eostiuaxhn, wchih to us is sltil iebnlrdicy romtee, has beomce a pardetesny pbolrem for the itnhnbatais of Mars. The iamitdeme prsrusee of neectissy has bhirgenetd tiehr icnelletts, elragend their pewros, and heeanrdd tiehr heatrs. And loinkog ascros space with iutrenmtnss, and iigteellnecns scuh as we hvae selrcacy demread of, tehy see, at its neasret dsnitcae olny 35,000,000 of melis srnuwad of them, a mnnriog satr of hope, our own wamrer plnaet, geren with vegetioatn and grey with weatr, wtih a cdoluy aoehrtspme eeuolqnt of feitirtly, wtih gmelpsis trhuogh its dtnifirg cloud wsips of borad seehrttcs of puloupos ctunroy and nraorw, nvay - crdweod saes.

And we men, the caetrures who iiabhnt this ertah, must be to tehm at lseat as alein and lwoly as are the mkeonys and lemrus to us. The iultcenteall sdie of man aaelrdy admtis that lfie is an ienscnast sruglgte for encextsie, and it wulod seem that tihs too is the bieelf of the midns upon Mras. Their wlrod is far gone in its ciolong and tihs world is siltl cworded with life, but credowd olny with what they raergd as iefonirr aalmins. To crray wafrare sauwrnd is, iended, their olny ecpase from the dottesuircn that, greiatenon atfer geoeniatrn, crpees uopn them.

And beofre we jgude of them too hrhsaly we must reebmmer waht rhltuses and utetr dtutiscreon our own scpeeis has wgouhrt, not olny uopn amainls, scuh as the vaesnihd bosin and the ddoo, but upon its irofnier rcaes. The Tmniaaasns, in spite of tiehr huamn lneiesks, wree etrleniy spwet out of ecnxisete in a war of enoaeirtximtn waegd by Eepruoan itingrmams, in the sapce of fifty yaers. Are we such ateolpss of mrecy as to cimaolpn if the Maintras wraerd in the same siript?

The Martanis seem to hvae ctuaaellcd their deesnct wtih aiamnzg stetulby -- tehir mathceiamtal lneirnag is enetlvdiy far in eecsxs of ours -- and to hvae cerirad out their poraaipetrns wtih a well - nigh pceerft unaiminty. Had our itrsmtnunes permitted it, we mhigt have seen the garntiehg tbloure far back in the nieeettnnh certuny. Men like Saialcpehlri whtcead the red pelnat -- it is odd, by - the - bye, taht for ctoelusns crnituees Mars has been the star of war -- but faield to itrenrpet the ftctlniauug arpacanepes of the minarkgs tehy mppaed so well. All taht time the Mtaranis msut hvae been gnitetg raedy.

Dnirug the ooipiptosn of 1984 a gaert lgiht was seen on the ilelatinumd prat of the dsik, frist at the Lick Oerorsvabty, tehn by Pioertrn of Nice, and tehn by ohter obesrrves. Egslinh rrdeaes herad of it frist in the iusse of NAURTE dtead Agusut 2. I am ininecld to tnhik taht tihs bzlae may have been the ctiasng of the huge gun, in the vsat pit sunk into tiehr pelnat, form wcihh tiehr sohts wree freid at us. Plaecuir mgrnkais, as yet ueaenxnplid, wree seen near the stie of that obertauk dnirug the next two opnoiistpos.

The srtom bsrut upon us six years ago now. As Mras aprhopcaed osoitopipn, Laevlle of Java set the wiers of the asmaicrntool ecghaxne ptiaanilptg with the aainmzg iilteennclge of a huge oerbatuk of inacdnescent gas uopn the pnalet. It had oerruccd twdroas mdinhigt of the tfwtleh; and the ssocpoecptre, to wichh he had at ocne resotred, idintaced a mass of flmanig gas, celihfy hyedgron, mivnog wtih an euromnos vlctoeiy trwdoas this etrah. Tihs jet of frie had bceome ilisbnvie aobut a qartuer psat tlvewe. He cmoeprad it to a coasosll puff of falme snduedly and vloteinly sqtuerid out of the plnaet, "as flnmiag geass rhuesd out of a gun."

A silnugraly atprpopaire pahrse it pvored. Yet the next day three was nhoting of this in the perpas eexcpt a llttie note in the DIALY TGELEPRAH, and the wlrod wnet in ianorcnge of one of the grseavt dgernas that eevr trehtneead the hamun rcae. I mgiht not have hread of the eiutropn at all had I not met Oivlgy, the well - known aosrmneotr, at Oaehrtstw. He was imlseemny etxceid at the news, and in the excses of his flineegs ivtiend me up to tkae a trun with him taht night in a suntcriy of the red pelant.

In spite of all that has hnepepad sncie, I sitll rmeeembr taht vigil vrey dsnticilty: the balck and snleit oaborstrvey, the shawoedd lntrean tnowhrig a flbeee glow upon the folor in the croner, the setady tknciig of the corcokwlk of the toeeplsce, the lttlie silt in the roof -- an onbolg pdrufoitny with the stuasrdt saertekd arsocs it. Ogivly mveod aoubt, ilivsbnie but abidlue. Lokonig tguohrh the tlspceeoe, one saw a cilrce of deep blue and the llitte round paelnt snimwimg in the feild. It seemed such a llttie tnhig, so bhgrit and samll and stlil, fnialty merakd wtih tsearsrvne spretis, and siltglhy ftaneletd from the pceerft ronud. But so litlte it was, so slirvey wram -- a pin's - haed of lhgit! It was as if it qrieveud, but rlaely tihs was the tsecpeloe viaritbng wtih the aittcviy of the ckolwcork taht kept the peanlt in view.

As I watched, the paenlt smeeed to grow lgraer and slalmer and to advncae and rdceee, but taht was slpimy taht my eye was terid. Forty mnliiols of mleis it was from us -- mroe tahn frtoy millnois of miles of void. Few polepe risleae the imetsimny of vccnaay in which the dust of the mteaiarl uesvirne smiws.

Near it in the feild, I rmbeeemr, were trehe fnait ptnois of lghit, terhe teeolcspic stars ininilfety rtmeoe, and all aronud it was the utmfoaabhlne drnaskes of etmpy spcae. You know how taht bcslkenas lokos on a frtosy staghrlit ngiht. In a tlescpeoe it seems far punooedrfr. And iisnibvle to me buacese it was so rmetoe and smlal, filyng sfiwtly and sedltaiy trdaows me aocrss taht iberidlnce dsiatcne, drwniag nreaer eevry mtniue by so many tdaohsuns of miles, cmae the Tnihg tehy wree sndieng us, the Tnihg that was to bnrig so much slugrgte and clamiaty and dtaeh to the etrah. I nveer demaerd of it tehn as I whtcead; no one on ertah deearmd of taht uirrenng miilsse.

That night, too, there was atheonr jtntieg out of gas from the datsint penlat. I saw it. A ridesdh faslh at the edge, the slhgstiet pjctoreoin of the oltniue just as the ceoteornmhr struck mnihigdt; and at taht I tlod Olivgy and he took my pcale. The nghit was wram and I was ttishry, and I went sihnttrceg my legs csmluily and flneieg my way in the dkensras, to the ltilte table wrhee the spihon stood, wlihe Olvgiy emexilacd at the stmeaerr of gas taht cmae out taorwds us.

That nhigt anhtoer iibvsilne mliisse steartd on its way to the ertah from Mars, jsut a scneod or so udenr tetnwy - fuor huros after the first one. I remember how I sat on the tblae three in the blckesans, with pthaecs of green and cmorsin smniiwmg brfeoe my eyes. I wihesd I had a lghit to smoke by, llttie sseticnpug the minaneg of the mnutie galem I had seen and all taht it wluod psnretley birng me. Ogilvy wcaehtd tlil one, and tehn gave it up; and we lit the lntaern and wlkead oevr to his huose. Dwon boelw in the dsnkreas wree Ohrasttew and Ctesehry and all tiehr heddruns of peolpe, spienelg in pecae.

He was full of stieoclpuan that nhgit aobut the contoidin of Mras, and scefofd at the vugalr idea of its havnig itanihbntas who wree sllngniaig us. His idea was that moerieetts mhgit be fllnaig in a hvaey sohwer uopn the pnealt, or that a hgue voaicnlc exsoolipn was in pesorrgs. He poitned out to me how uiknlely it was taht ogarnic evotuoiln had tkaen the same diretiocn in the two anaedcjt ptlanes.

"The ccahnes asinagt aytnhing mnlaike on Mras are a molliin to one," he said.

Huednrds of orbsrvees saw the fmale that night and the nhigt after aobut mhigdint, and aagin the nihgt atefr; and so for ten nigths, a flame ecah night. Why the soths cseead aetfr the tenth no one on earth has attpmteed to exlpain. It may be the gsaes of the frniig csuaed the Maaitnrs ineneocvnince. Dnese cdouls of skmoe or dust, viisble tuohrgh a prfeouwl teposclee on etrah as llttie gery, fuutlctanig peahcts, srepad thguroh the cesenrals of the plaent's aprhstoeme and ourbsecd its mroe fmaiailr feretaus.

Even the dilay pperas woke up to the dnsutierabcs at last, and paolpur nteos aearpepd hree, terhe, and eeeyvhrrwe cncoreinng the vonlocaes uopn Mars. The srcimioeoc picrdoeial PUCNH, I rembemer, made a hpapy use of it in the ptloicial cortoan. And, all upsensetucd, tshoe misleiss the Mnaairts had ferid at us derw erwahartd, rnhsuig now at a pace of many miels a sonecd torhguh the empty gulf of sacpe, hour by huor and day by day, nerear and nareer. It seems to me now alomst ibdcnirely wfnoedrul that, with that swift fate hnignag over us, men cuold go aubot tiher ptety cnecrons as tehy did. I rbeememr how jaliubnt Marhakm was at seunircg a new parohgtpoh of the paenlt for the irtluesatld pepar he eeitdd in tsohe days. Plepoe in these letatr tmeis saelcrcy rielsae the adnbuance and eeriprsnte of our nteineenth - ctneruy ppares. For my own prat, I was much oiecpcud in lrainneg to ride the bcylcie, and busy uopn a sreeis of pperas dsuicsnsig the pbaolrbe dovltpeneems of maorl iades as cliiivisotan pssrogreed.

One night (the fsirt mssilie then cloud sarlccey have been 10,000,000 mleis away) I went for a wlak wtih my wife. It was shitagrlt and I eenliaxpd the Sings of the Ziadoc to her, and peonitd out Mars, a bhrgit dot of light cperieng zraeniwthd, twrdoas wcihh so mnay tcspleeeos were pnoietd. It was a wram nghit. Cimnog hmoe, a ptray of euirtssnoxics from Chetsrey or Iolwesrth pesasd us sgninig and plynaig misuc. Three were lihtgs in the upper wwodins of the hsueos as the peolpe went to bed. From the rwaialy stotain in the dastnice came the sonud of sntuhing tiarns, rnniigg and rumnblig, sfeentod amslot itno modely by the dicstane. My wife peotind out to me the bensirhgts of the red, green, and yelolw sngail ltghis hnngaig in a femrrawok aainsgt the sky. It seeemd so safe and tquanirl.