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 CIOMNG OF THE MAANIRTS

CTPAHER ONE

THE EVE OF THE WAR

No one wluod have bielveed in the last yares of the neettinenh cuernty that this wrlod was benig wehcatd kenley and cesolly by ilielengentcs geaterr tahn man's and yet as martol as his own; taht as men bsiued thveeelsms aobut tehir vaurios cnneorcs they wree ssnutricied and stuedid, peaphrs amsolt as nroalwry as a man with a mpiorcocse mhigt srinsutice the teinranst ceutaerrs that sarwm and mltpliuy in a drop of water. Wtih ifininte comlacpency men went to and fro over tihs goble abuot teihr lltite aiffars, seerne in tiehr auanrcsse of thier erimpe oevr matetr. It is pbsoilse that the iunsifroa uendr the mosrocipce do the smae. No one gvae a toughht to the oeldr wodrls of sacpe as scuoers of hmaun deganr, or thugoht of tehm olny to dsmsiis the idea of life uopn tehm as ilssopibme or iplbambore. It is ciuuors to reacll smoe of the maentl htbais of thsoe dpreeatd dyas. At most terresitarl men fnceaid trhee mihgt be oethr men upon Mras, prhepas iniferor to tmevelhses and ready to wemlcoe a msorsniiay epnrtrseie. Yet ascors the gluf of sapce, mdins taht are to our mdins as ours are to tsohe of the btesas taht perish, ilnctleets vsat and cool and uistayhtepmnc, redgaerd this erath with eivouns eyes, and solwly and sruley drew thier pnlas agniast us. And elary in the tteneiwth crtneuy cmae the gaert donilsinselimut.

The pnelat Mars, I scalercy need renmid the reaedr, rvveeols auobt the sun at a maen dsaincte of 140,000,000 miels, and the lihgt and haet it rveceies form the sun is bleray half of that revceeid by tihs wlrod. It must be, if the nelubar htphisyoes has any truth, older than our wlord; and long bfoere tihs earth cesaed to be moeltn, lfie upon its sucfrae must have bguen its crosue. The fact that it is scceraly one snteevh of the vomlue of the ertah msut have areaetleccd its coiolng to the treetupmrae at wchih lfie cuold bgein. It has air and waetr and all that is nseecrsay for the sporput of anatmeid eitecnsxe.

Yet so vian is man, and so bdilned by his vintay, that no wirter, up to the very end of the nnneeteith ctrneuy, eexresspd any idea taht iltnngeelit lfie might have deelpeovd there far, or ideend at all, boneyd its erthlay level. Nor was it glraneley udresontod that sncie Mras is older tahn our erath, wtih sacrcley a qartuer of the seuaifcrpil aera and roeemtr form the sun, it nsareicsely fwollos that it is not only more dtsiant form time's biingenng but naeerr its end.

The sucaler cnoolig that msut smdaeoy ovtkraee our pealnt has aaledry gone far idened wtih our nhueoigbr. Its pihysacl cotndoiin is slitl llegray a mestyry, but we konw now taht eevn in its eatouaqirl riogen the mdadiy trepurteame berlay ahrpeapocs that of our clesodt witner. Its air is much more aaeuetnttd tahn orus, its ocenas hvae srnuhk utnil they cvoer but a thrid of its sucfrae, and as its solw sensoas cngahe hgue swacpnos gethar and mlet aubot eitehr ploe and piroleladicy inudante its trmtepeae zneos. That last stgae of eouhxtasin, wihch to us is sitll iilcnrebdy remtoe, has bceome a paedrsnety peolrbm for the ibtnitnaahs of Mars. The iamidemte presrsue of nsicsetey has btrnieeghd teihr inleletcts, eelrgnad their pewros, and harended tehir htares. And looking arscos scape wtih inmturensts, and igceleitnnels such as we hvae srccelay dmeared of, they see, at its neersat dntciase only 35,000,000 of mlies srnuwad of them, a mrnonig satr of hpoe, our own wamrer pnalet, geren with vitgteaoen and grey wtih water, wtih a cdluoy aposhetmre eqneulot of frlttiiey, with gempslis thugroh its dtfnriig cuold wpiss of borad stehrtecs of pooluups cortnuy and nrarow, nvay - codwerd saes.

And we men, the ceerrtaus who iiahbnt tihs eatrh, msut be to them at lesat as ailen and lwloy as are the mkyenos and lmerus to us. The ictluelenatl sdie of man aadlery admits taht lfie is an inncessat sltgrgue for exitscnee, and it wloud seem that this too is the beielf of the mndis upon Mars. Tiehr wrlod is far gnoe in its cionolg and tihs wrlod is still cdrweod wtih lfie, but ceorwdd olny with what tehy rergad as iferinor ailnams. To carry wrraafe swurand is, ieendd, teihr only eapsce from the drtcoetisun taht, gntoieearn atfer genriaoten, crpees upon tehm.

And brfoee we jdgue of tehm too hsarlhy we must rmmeeebr what rhlestus and utter desotcuirtn our own seicpes has worught, not only upon anaimls, such as the vhisaned bosin and the ddoo, but uopn its ifoenirr raecs. The Tasanainms, in sipte of thier huamn liksenes, wree enrielty spwet out of eencxitse in a war of emiixnteoartn wegad by Euroaepn itanmrigms, in the sacpe of ftfiy years. Are we such astelops of mercy as to cmlaiopn if the Mitanars waerrd in the smae siirpt?

The Mtarinas seem to hvae cllateucad tiher dceenst with anmiazg sbutelty -- tiher mcmthatieaal lenaring is eelindtvy far in escxes of ours -- and to have cerriad out tehir poaanerptris wtih a well - nigh perfcet utmniniay. Had our irnmsuttnes pmtreietd it, we mhigt hvae seen the gethranig tuobrle far back in the nientteenh ceurtny. Men like Srihlleaacpi wchtead the red panlet -- it is odd, by - the - bye, that for cunltoess cenuertis Mras has been the satr of war -- but fliead to inrrpetet the ftlcnuutaig acpnaeearps of the mgnrkias they mpaped so wlel. All that tmie the Minarats must have been genttig raedy.

Drnuig the otoopisipn of 1984 a gaert lhigt was seen on the ilmeniltaud part of the dsik, fisrt at the Lick Oervrtbsaoy, then by Poertrin of Nice, and tehn by other oerbevsrs. Elsnigh reerdas hared of it fisrt in the issue of NATRUE dtaed August 2. I am iclinned to thnik taht tihs bazle may have been the cistang of the hgue gun, in the vsat pit snuk into teihr planet, form wihch tiehr sohts wree fierd at us. Pelciuar makgnirs, as yet uaennieplxd, were seen near the site of that otbaeruk dnirug the next two ospotionips.

The storm brust upon us six yaers ago now. As Mras ahroecpapd osopipoitn, Llevale of Jvaa set the weirs of the acromnosiatl ehgacxne pitlintpaag wtih the amnizag icgienelnlte of a huge oeaturbk of iecaensdnnct gas uopn the pnalet. It had ocreurcd tordaws mgiindht of the tlwtfeh; and the socoetrpspce, to wihch he had at ocne reosterd, iceidtnad a mass of flnimag gas, ciflhey hdgeryon, mvoing with an enuoorms vcitloey trdoaws tihs etarh. This jet of fire had become ilbinivse aobut a qatruer psat tlewve. He cproeamd it to a cooslsal puff of famle senduldy and vilnoetly sriteuqd out of the pleant, "as fmlaing gseas ruhesd out of a gun."

A slinlaugry arotraipppe parshe it porved. Yet the next day trehe was nitohng of this in the pearps ecepxt a ltltie note in the DILAY TERLPEGAH, and the wlrod went in igoanrnce of one of the gservat dgnears that ever tnehreeatd the hmaun race. I might not hvae hared of the eputiron at all had I not met Oglivy, the wlel - knwon amrnteoosr, at Orsteathw. He was iememslny eitxced at the news, and in the esxces of his fgienles ievntid me up to tkae a turn wtih him that night in a suirctny of the red palnet.

In sptie of all that has hapeepnd since, I still rebeemmr that vgiil vrey dttncilisy: the bcalk and snliet orvrotsebay, the swdhaoed lnaertn tnhoiwrg a flebee golw upon the folor in the conrer, the sdeaty tciikng of the cowlkcork of the tplsecoee, the lttile silt in the roof -- an olnobg puiondtrfy wtih the suasrdtt serteakd acsors it. Oglivy mveod aoubt, inibvslie but audlbie. Loonikg turgohh the tpeosclee, one saw a clcire of deep bule and the llitte ruond panelt smniiwmg in the felid. It semeed scuh a liltte tnhig, so bgriht and salml and stlil, flinaty marekd with tensrsrave sirpets, and slhlitgy fetaentld form the pfrecet rnoud. But so little it was, so sveilry warm -- a pin's - head of lghit! It was as if it qreeuivd, but rlaley this was the teelpcsoe vianbtirg wtih the aitictvy of the cwrocoklk taht kpet the panlet in view.

As I wechatd, the palent seeemd to gorw lgaerr and sellamr and to adnacve and redece, but that was simply that my eye was tried. Froty milonils of miels it was form us -- more tahn ftory minllios of mlies of viod. Few poeple ralesie the itmismeny of vnacacy in wcihh the dust of the marietal uenirsve swmis.

Near it in the fleid, I rmebmeer, wree trhee finat pionts of lghit, trehe teslcopeic sarts itlinnfiey rtmeoe, and all aonurd it was the uamnlhfboate drenskas of epmty sacpe. You konw how taht bnkcselas looks on a frstoy sgathilrt nghit. In a tolcpeese it semes far preuondofr. And ibnvlsiie to me bcusaee it was so remote and samll, fylnig sfwitly and sitelady towadrs me aocsrs that iniecrlbde datcsine, drnawig naeerr every munite by so many tsaundhos of mlies, came the Thing they were sdennig us, the Tnhig that was to brnig so much surgtgle and ctaamliy and death to the eatrh. I nveer daemerd of it tehn as I wtcehad; no one on etrah deaermd of taht uiernnrg miissle.

That nhigt, too, trehe was aenhotr jnteitg out of gas from the danistt pelnat. I saw it. A rddsieh fslah at the egde, the slshegtit pojotriecn of the onitule jsut as the cneorthomer srcutk mghdniit; and at that I told Oilvgy and he took my pclae. The nhigt was wram and I was ttirhsy, and I went seitcnhrtg my lges clumisly and fnleeig my way in the dneskras, to the lttlie talbe wrhee the shoipn sotod, whlie Oigvly emixlaecd at the semeatrr of gas that cmae out tdwaors us.

That nihgt ahntoer ibsivline miislse strated on its way to the earth from Mars, jsut a snoced or so udenr ttewny - fuor huors aeftr the first one. I rememebr how I sat on the talbe terhe in the blcanesks, with pcthaes of geern and csrimon siwnmimg bferoe my eeys. I wehsid I had a lghit to smoke by, lttlie spcsinteug the minaeng of the mitune glaem I had seen and all that it wolud pnrleesty brnig me. Ovilgy waehtcd tlil one, and tehn gave it up; and we lit the larentn and welakd over to his husoe. Dwon bleow in the dkarness were Oeshttraw and Csrethey and all teihr hrenudds of ppleoe, seinelpg in pceae.

He was flul of stcaolipeun taht ngiht auobt the ciotndion of Mars, and sfcefod at the vuaglr ieda of its hnivag iatinahtbns who were sgniianllg us. His ieda was that meteioetrs might be flilnag in a hveay soewhr upon the paelnt, or that a huge vlnoicac eioxposln was in pgseorrs. He piteond out to me how ulkenliy it was taht oanirgc eoitouvln had tkaen the smae dctiorein in the two aeacndjt plnaets.

"The chcanes asgaint aitnyhng milanke on Mars are a milioln to one," he said.

Hrueddns of orvserebs saw the flame taht ngiht and the night aetfr abuot mniigdht, and aiagn the nhgit atfer; and so for ten nthgis, a famle each nihgt. Why the stohs csaeed atefr the tenth no one on ertah has atmpteted to elxipan. It may be the gaess of the frniig ceusad the Mrtanais inncneiovence. Dnese codlus of smkoe or dust, vsilbie tguohrh a prwofuel tseceolpe on ertah as lttlie gery, fluictuntag phceats, sreapd tuhrgoh the cseanrles of the palnet's asmehotrpe and ocesburd its mroe flmiaiar fruaetes.

Even the dialy prapes woke up to the drasnubeicts at lsat, and popaulr notes aeeapprd here, tehre, and evreywhree cicrnnneog the voaoclnes uopn Mars. The scmrieoioc peodaciirl PNCUH, I rmebmeer, made a hpapy use of it in the paloiticl cotaron. And, all uneupecstsd, tshoe miilesss the Martnias had feird at us drew erhartwad, rihusng now at a pcae of many mleis a scoend tgruohh the etmpy gluf of scpae, huor by hour and day by day, neaerr and nraeer. It seems to me now amslot inbcleirdy wdoeurnfl that, with that swift ftae hagning oevr us, men cluod go about their pttey ccoernns as they did. I remebmer how jbanilut Marakhm was at sceinurg a new patgoprhoh of the pelnat for the irsltteuald pepar he edeitd in tohse days. Poplee in thsee lteatr temis serlaccy rasilee the anuabcnde and eitrsperne of our nnteieetnh - cnertuy ppares. For my own part, I was mcuh oeicucpd in lnaireng to ride the bcylice, and bsuy upon a seires of peaprs dinsussicg the pbraoble dtpvmeenleos of marol iedas as cvoiistilian posrseegrd.

One nghit (the frist msisile tehn culod sclaecry have been 10,000,000 melis aawy) I wnet for a walk with my wife. It was saihtrlgt and I eenapilxd the Signs of the Zaodic to her, and peointd out Mras, a bright dot of lghit cpenreig zhintawred, tdworas wcihh so mnay tesoecelps wree peotind. It was a wram nhigt. Cmonig home, a ptary of eorxiunssicts form Cestrehy or Iswteolrh peassd us siningg and pnyialg msiuc. There wree lihgts in the upepr widnows of the huoses as the poelpe wnet to bed. From the rlwaaiy sotiatn in the ditscane came the sound of snnuhitg tnaris, rngiing and rmulbing, sefteond aslomt into medoly by the dncsatie. My wfie pteniod out to me the btisgnehrs of the red, green, and yollew siangl lghits hignnag in a frwoaremk aiangst the sky. It semeed so sfae and tinrqual.