Multiplying Owls and a Possible Treasure Hunt??

Post already updated (twice!) with info on The Times (UK) leak! See notes in red below!

One of this blog's visitors predicted today's owl count!  Not only that, she did so using a way of deciphering the numbers which led to her prediction that Pottermore would be an encyclopedia.

The theory posted by Molly in a prior thread in the comment trail plotted out the owl number differentiation over the last few days, but it was hard to decipher in comments.  I think her idea can be better presented with this graph:

click to enlarge

Basically what is done here is to take the number of owls each day and then chart the difference between daily owl counts, and to continue to do this consecutively, until you reach the number 101.  According to Molly, 101 is code for basic information, like Biology 101, Stats 101.  And basic information is an encyclopedia!

This may seem a bit convoluted, but one thing that impressed me was that Molly accurately predicted today's owl count as an increase of 7, which works in this formula.

Molly, if you're reading this, please let me know if I've presented your info correctly.

What I like about this is that it charts the owls over 7 days -- and we all know how magical the number 7 is to JK Rowling.  Also, it works with all the other evidence we've seen for an encyclopedia;

• the notes from the original Secret Street View, which documented details from the books, aspects of JKR's career, and memories of fandom -- all of which would be included in an encyclopedia
• the fixed numbers on her Youtube -- which many seem to point to the same kind of detailed information as above
• the fixed videos on Youtube -- which document important dates in her career, and in one she specifically references the encyclopedia

What do you think?  Does this analysis of the numbers work for you?  One concern I have -- could you take any set of numbers and eventually get down to 101? But could you do it in so few steps?



What other theories can you make out of this?  Remember the owl difference each day is (2-4-4-5-5-7)

Finally, I'd like to say that my best guess is that Pottermore will most likely include the long-awaited encyclopedia, but I think it will be larger than that.  I think it will be a Potter/Wizarding World Universe to include gaming, social media, the encyclopedia, and maybe even a place for fanfiction/fanart, etc.

What's your final guess?  Make your prediction now!

UPDATE !!: Exciting news is being posted online and one of this blog's visitors, JFeijten, has Tweeted about it and provided a link: http://yfrog.com/z/h4wk2p

Supposedly this is an article from The Times UK with secret information about Pottermore which was accidentally leaked from JK Rowling's representatives.

What it says is that Pottermore will be an online game but with real treasures hidden in the real world, leading players on a world-wide treasure hunt.

What rings true to me about this possibility is that it touches on two key ingredients to JKR's potion for success which I have analyzed for many years in my workshop A Writer's Guide to Harry Potter: 1) a fabulously plotted trail-of-clues mystery, and 2) reader involvement.  One reason critics of Potter never fully comprehend for JKR's phenomenal success was not only that she got kids reading, but she got them INVOLVED in her story.  She played a game with you from the very beginning, which especially deepened with Prisoner of Azkaban.

So, like her leading us on a world-wide GPS hunt to piece together Pottermore, I could see her conducting a real-life treasure hunt to involve her readers in this new venture.

However, that can't be all it is.  I think all our theories so far regarding the encyclopedia and other possibilities for Pottermore are still valid.  A world-wide treasure hunt will not continue indefinitely.  There has to be something to back it up.  And that will be the Pottermore Universe of all that we've been deciphering here!

When the news is released tomorrow, if it is indeed a treasure hunt, come back here with your clues, and like we're doing now, we'll decipher them together!  Because, ya know, that's what wizards do! :-)

Update 2: Just had a thought -- IF, and I mean IF, Pottermore does begin as a scavenger hunt, could JKR have already hidden some of the GPS coordinates and other clues in the Youtube Flash? We've been playing with various theories on this blog as to what those numbers mean, and one I was testing early on was that some of the groupings of numbers could come together to form GPS coordinates (like those video viewer #s coupled with 50 or 4/2).  However, when I plugged them into SecretStreetView, they did not reveal any new letters.  But some were true coordinates.  So, MAYBE, they could reveal one or two of the hidden treasures to be revealed tomorrow!

If so, I think some locations hinted at in the video may need to be investigated as well:  Harvard, New York, Leavesden.

Here's a chart of possible coordinate numbers hidden on the Pottermore Youtube.  I've listed them as decimal coordinates such as those used in StreetView.  Not only do you have to put together various combinations of 2 and 3 digit numbers with 5 and 6 digit ones, but you have to check each possibility with both positive and negative combinations.  Those to the left in red I consider more likely possibilities.  Plus, I've included 17, the most recent number released through JKR's Pottermore Tweet!

click to enlarge

Ok guys, please keep in mind that I'm simply guessing along with all of you. I have no inside knowledge. This theory of coordinates hidden in the Pottermore Youtube could be totally wrong.  Messing around charting all the various combination is a major TIME-SUCK!  So, proceed at your own risk! (But let us know if you find something!!! :-)

Follow prior posts deciphering Pottermore clues at the Pottermore label