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Software developed by an Israeli team is giving intriguing new hints about what researchers believe to be the multiple hands that wrote the Bible.
The new software analyzes style and word choices to distinguish parts of a single text written by different authors, and when applied to the Bible its algorithm teased out distinct writerly voices in the holy book.
The program, part of a sub-field of artificial intelligence studies known as authorship attribution, has a range of potential applications -- from helping law enforcement to developing new computer programs for writers. But the Bible provided a tempting test case for the algorithm's creators.
The places in which the program disagreed with accepted scholarship might prove interesting leads for scholars. The first chapter of Genesis, for example, is usually thought to have been written by the "priestly" author, but the software indicated it was not.
Similarly, the book of Isaiah is largely thought to have been written by two distinct authors, with the second author taking over after Chapter 39. The software's results agreed that the book might have two authors, but suggested the second author's section actually began six chapters earlier, in Chapter 33.
The differences "have the potential to generate fruitful discussion among scholars," said Michael Segal of Hebrew University's Bible Department, who was not involved in the project.
Originally posted by babybunnies
Er.... I always thought that The Bible WAS written by multiple authors. Book Of Matthew, Book of John, Book of John the Revelator (Revelations), etc etc etc ?
Personally, I have always believed that The Bible is a collection of folk tales passed down the ages.
Originally posted by fixer1967
Yes, 300 and 400 years after the fact. And it has been edited more than any other book every written.
Originally posted by fixer1967
reply to post by boondock-saint
There was a TV show about that very thing a year or so ago. It said that back in the middle ages that every time there was a new ruler both the Bible and calender would be edited to the wants of that ruler. So not only has the Bible beed changed who knows how many times so has the calender which could be off by as much as 300 years!!!!!!!!!!!. That it why you find big gaps in history, they keep messing with dates.
Sorry about getting a little off topic there.
Originally posted by boondock-saint
. . . the Bible a hoax ???
please discuss, I want to hear your opinions. Do we take accept the results of the software tests or call it pseudo science ???
Originally posted by boondock-saint
I wonder if there will be any similarities between
the authors of the Bible and the gnostic gospels ??
Today, scholars generally split the text into two main strands. One is believed to have been written by a figure or group known as the "priestly" author, because of apparent connections to the temple priests in Jerusalem. The rest is "non-priestly." Scholars have meticulously gone over the text to ascertain which parts belong to which strand.