The Curious Case of Carl Cornejo (Part 2) – Case Closed? · 4:29am February 22nd

well, I'm not sure how many answers this ultimately provides, but it's certainly a fascinating case study of a person! :O

You wanted answers, PresentPerfect, and that's fair and square. I did more legwork to give you three possible answers – and, if we put pressure on the right people, we can narrow it down to one.

The human who ran Carl Cornejo's Disqus account has been replaced with a bot.
Sethisto and/or EqD associates are behind it.
Carl Cornejo is the most dedicated, most insane actor we have ever encountered – way, way crazier than we thought.

People were very complimentary about yesterday's efforts, so I decided to dive into Carl's comments again. I had focused on content and history. Today I focused on times (given in GMT) and patterns.

Carl Cornejo has posted exactly 6 comments on each of these Morning Discussions: 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st of February 2024.

The comments of

the 14th were posted at 13:17, 13:17, 13:17, 13:32, 13:32 and 13:32
the 15th were posted at 13:26, 13:26, 13:26, 13:44, 13:44 and 13:44
the 16th were posted at 13:20, 13:20, 13:20, 13:29, 13:29 and 13:29
the 17th were posted at 13:56, 13:56, 13:56, 13:56, 13:56 and 13:56
the 18th were posted at 13:20, 13:20, 13:20, 13:29, 13:29 and 13:29
the 19th were posted at 13:23, 13:23, 13:23, 13:26, 13:26 and 13:26
the 20th were posted at 13:53, 13:53, 13:53, 13:59, 13:59 and 13:59
the 21st were posted at 13:53, 13:53, 13:53, 13:59, 13:59 and 13:59

The comments of the 18th follow the same pattern as those of the 16th. 3 comments were made within the same minute (13:20); there was an interval of 9 minutes; 3 more comments were made within the same minute (13:29).

The general pattern is a dump of 3 comments in the same minute, then an interval of 3, 6, 9, 15 or 18 minutes (all multiples of 3), then another dump of 3 comments in the same minute. Oh, and they were all made in the hour of 13:00.

The 17th is interesting. Carl posted 6 comments, one edited, in the space of just a minute (13:56).

But the key findings came from the Nightly Discussions, and it's thanks to them that we're within touching distance of finally nailing Carl: 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th of February 2024.

The comments of

the 14th were posted at 02:01, 02:01, 02:16, 02:16, 02:19, 02:19, 02:22, 02:22, 02:37, 02:37, 02:40, 02:40, 02:43, 02:43, 02:58, 02:58, 03:24 and 03:24
the 15th were posted at 02:07, 02:07, 02:10, 02:10, 02:19, 02:19, 02:28, 02:28, 02:31, 02:31, 02:40, 02:40, 02:49, 02:49, 02:52, 02:52, 03:24 and 03:24
the 16th were posted at 02:04, 02:04, 02:13, 02:13, 02:13, 02:19, 02:19, 02:19, 02:25, 02:25, 02:25, 02:34, 02:34, 02:40, 02:40, 02:46, 02:46, 02:55, 02:55, 03:24 and 03:24
the 17th were posted at 02:19, 02:19, 02:19, 02:19, 02:19, 02:19, 02:40, 02:40, 02:40, 02:43, 02:46, 02:49, 02:52, 02:55, 02:58, 03:24, 03:24 and 03:24

Let's take the 14th and 15th. He's gifted them 18 comments each. They come in pairs that occur within a minute, but the craziest pattern is this: (a + b + b) + (a + b + b) + a + c.

If you check the intervals between pairs, that's what you get. On the 14th, there was an interval of 15 minutes between the first pair and the second. Then there was an interval of 3 minutes between the second pair and the third. If you list the intervals, you get (15 + 3 + 3) + (15 + 3 + 3) + 15 + 26. In other words, you get (a + b + b) + (a + b + b) + a + c.

On the 15th, there was an interval of 3 minutes between the first pair and the second. Then there was an interval of 9 minutes between the second pair and the third. If you list them, you get (3 + 9 + 9) + (3 + 9 + 9) + 3 + 32. That's right, people: (a + b + b) + (a + b + b) + a + c.

Each night, too, Carl decided to leave us at 03:24 sharp. He's an organised man. There are other patterns, but I've made the point clearly enough: Carl operates like a bot.

This is the greatest thing that's happened to the Curious Case of Carl Cornejo.

If I can spot these patterns in an evening, how in the world haven't Disqus and EqD? This is where things get really interesting, and everyone will have to do their part.

We know that Carl Cornejo's Disqus was controlled by a human. So, if it's controlled by a bot, then, surely, EqD will boot him. I suggest we bring these findings to EqD and request that they investigate the account. If they find it guilty of being a bot, the story's over. But if they don't… (Oh, man, I am loving this.)

If EqD decide that Carl's here to stay, then we can conclude:

a) They're in the know.

b) Carl passed the test.

Just think about how crazy those outcomes are. That's why we have to put pressure on EqD to pull the finger out and take a good look at Carl Cornejo. Are you telling me no one's ever reported him for spam?

So, this is it. If we make a noise and they don't ban him, then either Seth comes clean and admits he or his people are behind the account – or, at the very least, that he tolerates it for some reason – or (and this is just mad) Carl Cornejo is still the human Carl Cornejo, formerly Angelocobro.

And he's following formulae like (a + b + b) + (a + b + b) + a + c? Are you serious? This man's life revolves around precisely posting lunacy that no one really cares about? If this is the truth of it, then I am stunned. Here's an insanity that demands my deepest respect.

Look what a little bit of observation has unearthed. I never thought it would lead to how close we are to solving, as SNES Chalmers put it, the Cornejo Code. Let's get it done, people. Chip in. Don't be bystanders. Use what influence you have to get EqD on this so that the truth may come forth.

Seth, Calpain, Alger (if you're still on mod duty),

Equestria Daily – is Carl Cornejo staying or leaving?

Update 1: Closure – Carl Cornejo has been banned.

Update 2: Case Open! Carl Cornejo is real!