[handoflixue]

> In fragmentary form all of these elements must have been present in the input

Yes, and Shakespeare merely copied the existing 26 letters of the English alphabet. What magical process do you think students are using when they read and re-combine learned examples to solve assignments?

[jacquesm]

This same argument has now been made a couple of times in this thread (in different guises) and does absolutely nothing to move the conversation forward.

Words and letters are not copyrightable patterns in and of themselves. It is the composition of words and letters that we consider to be original creations and 'the bard' put them in a meaningful and original order not seen before, which established his reputation as a playwright.