Anthonares

Somewhat belatedly, I came across the Long Now Foundation, a group devoted to promoting long term thinking. When I say long term, I mean 10,000 years, not 8, as goes the political definition. They are that “dances around the maypole” of the 10,000 year clock, as conceived by Danny Hillis. The clock has been written about extensively in magazines, including Wired, way back in 1995 (or 01995, as the group refers to it), but most recently here’s a great writeup in Discover.

This is a picture of a prototype clock that now sits in the London Science Museum, which cost a few million dollars and is expected to run with 1 second accuracy for 10,000 years. It uses only ingenious engineering, not atomic oscillations, as do most super-accurate clocks. This clock is also a splendid piece of technological art. As will be its successors; the final clock will be built into a cave in the Nevada desert and will stand 60 feet high (I’m reminded of Deep Thought).

Long Now also provides a great lecture series on Futurism that touches on science, technology, politics, and religion. It’s wonderful to see people take a different view of humanity. After all, humans have been technological creatures for 10,000 years or so, so it’s not too much to think that 10,000 years in the future we will still be around.
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Some of you might have heard me make a statement something like this:
“The Fountains of Bellagio are the most impressive creation of human hands I’ve had the chance to see.”

I’ve seen some of the most beautiful works of art, Michaelangelo’s Pieta and Sistene Chapel. I’ve walked agape through the halls of the most decadent structure Western society has created, St. Peter’s Basillica. I’ve looked out over the hundreds of miles visible on a clear day from the top of mankind’s largest freestanding structure, the CN tower. I’ve yet to see many things, for sure, but nothing has impressed me like those fountains.

Situated in a large artificial pool almost 1000 feet long, the fountains are a gigantic tribute to the beauty of water and music. Standing barely 100 feet away from the nearest jets, the fountains become a white wall capable of shooting hundreds of feet into the air. Some of the larger jets erupt so loudly through the surface of the lake that they make a sound very much like a shotgun salute. Yet with so much power available, the jets are choreographed in often delicate and surprisingly graceful ways. Combined with some of the most inspiring music ever written, the effect is absolutely breathtaking.

Technology can be so dehumanizing. It distances us from our friends and neighbors, often robbing us of time to know ourselves. Yet, it can, and will ever more so, help to create some of the most fantastic expressions of humanity the world will ever know.