Who Wrote The Bible Code?: A Physicist Probes The Current Controversy
Author: Randall Ingermanson
Genre: Non-fiction
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Year: 1999
ISBN: 1578562252
Series Info: Not part of a series.
Summary: A computational physicist investigates claims that secret information is encoded in the Hebrew Bible.
Awards and Honors for Who Wrote The Bible Code?:
- "Best Book Published in 1999" by San Diego Christian Writers Guild
Sample Chapters: Click here for sample chapters
Synopsis of Who Wrote The Bible Code?
If the Bible code is real, then a super-intelligent author intended to encode a substantial amount of information as hidden codes within the text of the Hebrew Bible. If the Bible code is not real, then all such alleged "codes" are just what we'd expect to see by random chance. In my book, I answer the question: How much information is intentionally encoded in the text?
Please note that it is logically impossible to prove that the Bible has zero information encoded. (What if God mischievously encoded only a single word? Nobody can prove He didn't. On the other hand, if He did encode only one word, nobody could prove that either.)
The real question, then, is whether God encoded a LARGE amount of information, as the proponents of the Bible code claim. My book uses a simple and objective method to show that the total amount of information encoded in the Bible is either zero or very, very small.
This is a whole new way of looking at the Bible code. I've written my own software in Java to analyze the Hebrew Bible. In my book, I explain in plain English how one looks for intentional information. I use simple examples involving coins, dice, The Cat in the Hat, the Hebrew translation of War and Peace, and the Bible. This is not a difficult problem that only mathematicians can understand. Normal, nontechnical readers can understand this stuff. My "math-impaired" editor understood it. You can too.
Table of Contents for Who Wrote The Bible Code?
- Chapter 1, Reading Between the Lines
- Chapter 2, Alphabet Soup
- Chapter 3, The Signature of God?
- Chapter 4, A Look Under the Hood
- Chapter 5, The Bias Protection Plan
- Chapter 6, To Catch a Cheat
- Chapter 7, An Infinite Number of Monkeys
- Chapter 8, Stamp Out and Eliminate Needless Redundancy
- Chapter 9, "Lies, D-Lies, and Statistics"
- Chapter 10, How To Crack the Bible Code
- Chapter 11, The Bible Code Under a Microscope
- Chapter 12, Is Hebrew Different?
- Chapter 13, Let There Be Light!
- Chapter 14, The Rest of the Story
- Chapter 15, The Signature of Yeshua?
- Chapter 16, How Do We Explain the Great Rabbis Experiment?
- Chapter 17, The Not-So-Mysterious Bible Codes
- Chapter 18, Paradigms Lost, Paradigms Found
Reviews of Who Wrote The Bible Code?
Publishers Weekly (July 26, 1999) page 80, excerpts: "Ingermanson opens his book with a judicious survey of what others have said about Drosnin's discoveries... Next, Ingermanson introduces a series of entropy tests, equidistant letter sequencing tests, trigram tests, and chi-square analyses to test the theories of Drosnin and his believers... Ingermanson's book will likely not be the final word on the Bible code, but it will certainly generate a great deal of interest in circles where these matters are discussed."
CBA Marketplace (August 1999) page 71, excerpts: "Using scientific methods, Ingermanson examines the Bible code. He writes like he's solving a mystery and includes personal anecdotes interspersed with data... ...he encourages readers to study and celebrate the Bible as a powerful book with many layers of meaning, saying, "The real secrets of the Bible are 'hidden in plain sight.'" Recommend this well-documented book to customers intrigued by the subject."
Charisma Magazine (September 1999) page 84, excerpts: "Carefully reviewing the principles of random selection, he shows how proponents' methods don't adhere to the standards of scientific scrutiny. The book builds a strong case against the codes, which many supporters have claimed shows the Bible had a divine Author."
Amazon Reviewer: "There's a relatively small intersection between the kinds of people who would be interested in the so-called "Bible Codes" and those who actually have the mathematical background to investigate just how significant or insignificant the findings of Drosnin, Rambsel, Jeffery, et al really are. Dr. Ingermanson is one who, fortunately, took the time to address the question in a thoughtful, methodical manner."
Amazon Reviewer: "I've done intensive research on the Bible Code, looking at all sides of the issue. This is the only book that approaches the subject with a systematic, rational, and scientific viewpoint. The proponents of the code call it "science" therefore, it needs to be evaluated in the same way, and that is what this book does. --- Bottom line: the author starts from an objective position and makes his commentary as the research unfolds -- fair, scientfic, and clear. --- Beyond that: On a topic where "skewering" the opposition is the norm, Ingermanson approaches the subject with grace and care. He refuses to enter into the arena of accusation. When he disagrees with a position he does it by "speaking the truth in love." An unusual approach in this genre. Buy the book. It will challenge you unless you are a physicist, mathamatician, or statistician, but it will be worth your time and effort if you care about discovering the truth about the Bible Code."
Amazon Reviewer: "If you do not read any other book on the Bible Code, READ THIS ONE! Dr. Ingermanson has tackled this subject completely. For the uninitiated, He explains what the Bible Code is, and does a very good job. Then he reviews other books and papers on the subject. Finally, he applies the tool of mathematics to the problem. But for the non-math people out there, he actually makes it understandable, putting all the scary equations into an online appendix which is available to the non-squeamish. And he comes up with an answer. (Read the book to see his conclusion) Dr. Ingermanson's style of writing is light-hearted, yet sincere. He builds interest throughout the course of the book and keeps the reader engaged to the end. It is a delightful excursion to the solution to the Bible Code mystery. Sherlock Holmes should be so much fun!"
Associated Downloads
Technical Appendices: Click here to see the technical appendices in PDF format. These explain the mathematics, for those readers who care. (I promised myself when I wrote the book that I'd have no equations in the book. I succeeded, but only by putting 'em all in the appendices. I hope you agree that was a wise decision.) The math I'm using here is mostly of the undergraduate variety that should be readable by math, science, and engineering students.
Download My Software: When I released my book, I also included software on my web site to run all the calculations that were in the book. That was in 1999, and the old software no longer runs on today's machines. My plan (March, 2007) is update the software and make it available here. You'll be able to download the free software I developed to study the Bible code, along with a 35-page user manual and some texts to try it out on. So keep an eye on this spot.
Download My Source Code: Click here to download the source code for my software as a zip file (63k). For experts only! Download this only if you know Java, have the tools to program in Java, and want to verify that I didn't screw up my programming, or if you want to modify my software.
