Maybe Our Fat Chum Chet Could Help!

by on June 28, 2004

Courtesy of the now non-blogging (but suspiciously time-wasting-on-the-interweb) Chun the Unavoidable, I present you with the Mayday Mystery. These are a series of mysterious ads which have been running in an Arizona paper since May 1, 1985. It seems to be an erudite, mathematico-historical puzzle of some kind, containing specific Tuscon-area clues (?), but what is the point? Is there a prize? Some of the ads are rebus-like, while others tend to the Dr. Bronner’s label All-One-God-Faith style. Sample text from the May 1, 2004 edition:

1) “Quaerendo invenietis” [1747]}}!!+}The 473rd Anniversary of the Confessio Augustana will again be celebrated in the Riemann Room of the 5)Hotel Californias (non uni fidit antro) where the Founders will be entertained by an in situ demonstration of 17) l’art d’accommoder les restes. The Pigs will be less entertained by le dÃ©noument–and the Hirelings least of all. 29) Alberich has programmed The Symmetry Generator as per I Corinthians 1:28 to serve as the propaedeutic for Ireton’s penetration of [$\omega_{p,n}= i log Ëœp^n$] on Trinity Sunday.

Perhaps the brainy CT readership will figure everything out? If there’s lots of money involved, the solver of the puzzle is respectfully encouraged to pass some along to your humble author. Perhaps I will use it to take a vacation in Thailand. I hear Koh Phi Phi is very nice this time of year.

UPDATE: Adam Kotsko has put out a call for posts for a Chun the Unavoidable Festschrift. Suggested topics include: Halitosis in Literature, Cunnilinguis and the Discursive Performance of Class, Richard Clarke, and The blogospheric reception of the verb “to chun.” You know what to do, people.

1

Adam Kotsko 06.28.04 at 3:39 am

The following is a tacky breach of commenting etiquette, I know, but I encourage everyone to respond to my CFP for a Festschrift for Chun. Possible topics are listed in the linked post.

2

TomD 06.28.04 at 10:24 am

Quaerendo Invenietis [1747] is clearly a reference to J.S.Bach’s Musical Offering (date of composition) which contains a puzzle canon with that title – “Seek and ye shall find”. The next bit is about the Augsburg Confession (1530), a fundamental document of Lutheranism. (Bach being, of course, a Lutheran.)

“Most Invincible Emperor, Caesar Augustus, Most Clement Lord: Inasmuch as Your Imperial Majesty has summoned a Diet of the Empire here at Augsburg to deliberate concerning measures against the Turk, that most atrocious, hereditary, and ancient enemy of the Christian name and religion, in what way, namely, effectually to withstand his furor and assaults by strong and lasting military provision;” (etc.) (!)

“Mus non uni fidit antro” is from Erasmus’ “Adages”: “A mouse does not trust in only one hole”. Curiously, one of the Google hits of this phrase is at the University of Augsburg.

Etc. etc. etc.

It sounds like a cryptic crossword taken to extremes.

3

Doug 06.28.04 at 1:58 pm

When did Chun become an Unavoidable Festschrift?

4

Mr Ripley 06.28.04 at 7:28 pm

Compare and contrast the neologisms “to chun” and “to puchalsky.”

5

Chris in Boston 06.28.04 at 9:22 pm

Are you sure these aren’t notes for Thomas Pynchon’s next book?

6

nate 06.29.04 at 2:30 am

If you do end up going to koh PhiPhi, e-mail me. There are better hotels to stay at than the resort looking hotel in the photos. And yes it is about as close to paradise as you can get.

7

nate 06.29.04 at 2:30 am

If you do end up going to koh PhiPhi, e-mail me. There are better hotels to stay at than the resort looking hotel in the photos. And yes it is about as close to paradise as you can get.

8

nate 06.29.04 at 2:31 am

If you do end up going to koh PhiPhi, e-mail me. There are better hotels to stay at than the resort looking hotel in the photos. And yes it is about as close to paradise as you can get.

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