The Rosetta Disk

[HUnewearl_Meira]

First and foremost, this has nothing whatsoever to do with language-teaching software. This is entirely unrelated.

What I'm talking about, is this--

Spoiler!

On one side is a label in eight languages, and on the other side is an excess of 15,000 micro-etched pages of documentation of 1,500 languages. The disk is expected to have the ability to endure a good 2,000-10,000 years. The entire goal of the project is to provide a device documenting our languages for the historians and archaeologists of the future, in a time when many of our current languages will be long since dead.

The Rosetta Project, a project of the Long Now Foundation, intends to produce these disks promiscuously, and distribute them to nondescript locations, all over the world.

Personally, I am fascinated. This is an artifact of our civilization that will be of enumerable value to another civilization thousands of years from now. This is an artifact that will act as a key to our generation's knowledge. This is truly a treasure.

[Zarode]

Interesting.

And sadly, that is all I have to say about this, honestly.

[zandra117]

Computer chips, data discs, and all of the other documentation technology that we majorly use only lasts about 100 years before it becomes completely unrecoverable.

[Sekani]

Somehow I don't see this precious disk lasting any longer than all of our current forms of digital or print media in the case of the end of civilization or anything like that.

[HUnewearl_Meira]

Well, one side of the disk is made of titanium (the side seen in the picture above; something of a label-side) and the other side is made of nickel (the real meat and potatoes of the disk's purpose). The container for the disk is a sphere, one side made of glass (meant as a semi-functional magnifier for the label), and the other side is stainless steel. None of the information is digital in nature, and is intended to be read with a magnifying device, so it'll be useful regardless of the state of technology. They're intending to produce perhaps thousands of these to be distributed all over the world, to lessen the likelihood that it'll be entirely lost, in the event of a catastrophic disaster-- they call this system, LOCKS-- Lots Of Copies Kept Safe.

So it's not likely to just disappear. The medium itself is designed to not degrade as our own DVDs inevitably will, it is not dependent on complex technology to read, and there are meant to be enough scattered all over the globe to prevent the destruction of even an entire continent from destroying the information. Simply enough, this thing is made to last.

[Monochrome]

Very cool. They should make thousands. I want one!

[Weeaboolits]

That looks like an awesome coaster, I want one.

[NPCMook]

I would definitely like to get my hands on one of these...

[Sord]

That looks like an awesome coaster, I want one.

that's one way to spread them around the world

[BlackRose]

Sounds kind of silly to me. I mean, records are very important, Library of Alexandria problem and all. But this seems like a lot of time and effort spent on something that probably won't work. They must realize that, because their plan is to make a whole lot so that a few actually make it past 8000 years into the future. That's a LONG time to play the chance game. I think their ambition is beyond their sense.

Then again, no harm in trying.