Messages to travel through time, space<\/p>\n
By Lim Tri Santosa<\/p>\n
BANDUNG (JP): When I was eight years old, I watched a
\ndocumentary about a bunch of archaeologists who discovered some
\nhieroglyphics in Egypt. I was immediately inspired. I gathered my
\nmetal lunch box, filled with 5 rupiah and 10 rupiah coins, a list
\nof my best friends ranked in order, my \"cute\" photo and my best
\nsocks and handkerchief, which I was sure constituted a scientific
\nbreakthrough. I then stuffed these treasures into a plastic bag
\nand buried my \"time capsule\" under roughly three inches of dirt
\nfor future generations to find.<\/p>\n
I lied to my mom that I lost my lunch box when I was playing
\nwith my friends. My time capsule remained hidden for an entire 24
\nhours before my mother discovered I had no socks to wear to
\nSunday school.<\/p>\n
So, not all of my projects have been a ringing success. Still,
\ntime capsules are a great way to record a special moment in
\nhistory. And whether you have decided to celebrate the new
\nmillennium this year or the next, I say there is no better time
\nto reflect on the past, speculate about the future or document
\nquestionable fashion trends than now.<\/p>\n
That said, making a time capsule can be a lot of fun,
\nespecially if several people contribute to its contents. This
\nmakes it a perfect project for classes, families or a group of
\nfriends, and a great excuse to plan a 10 or 20 year reunion. What
\nif you could write a note today and have it delivered to the
\nfuture inhabitants of Earth 50,000 years from now. Absolutely
\nmind-boggling, isn't it?<\/p>\n
Yet that is exactly what the KEO project headed by French
\nartist Jean-Marc Philippe, who began the work in 1994, aims to
\nachieve.<\/p>\n
Will Earth still be inhabited 50,000 years from now? A French
\norganization thinks so. In fact, it is confident enough to send
\nthose future dwellers a gift from space. The KEO satellite,
\nexpected to be launched in 2001, will fly high above the Earth
\nwith messages from as many humans as possible, possibly well into
\nthe billions, according to project managers in Paris.<\/p>\n
After traveling for 50 millennia in orbit, the satellite will
\nreturn to the planet, delivering CD-ROM messages from KEO
\nparticipants. To name their satellite project, supporters
\nresearched the most frequent phonemes in major world languages
\nand came up with \"K\", \"E\" and \"O.\" A phoneme is the smallest
\nphonetic unit in a language that is capable of conveying a
\ndistinction in meaning.<\/p>\n
Anyone can submit a message at no cost to KEO via e-mail
\n(www.keo.org). Ranging from schoolchildren to prisoners, people
\nfrom more than 120 countries (including Indonesia) have already
\nsubmitted missives for the future, according to the Paris-based
\nnon-profit group. The messages are uncensored and remain in their
\noriginal language, but must not exceed 6,000 characters in
\nlength.<\/p>\n
Not wired? No problem. You can send your KEO message via
\nregular mail to KEO at 65bis, Boulevard Brune, 75014 Paris,
\nFrance. The project is also looking into ways to collect messages
\nfrom people who cannot read or write.<\/p>\n
Why launch the messages into outer space? Because space
\nappeals more to the human imagination. Furthermore, complications
\nwould have arisen over the question of where and in what country
\nthe messages would be buried, whereas space belongs to everyone.<\/p>\n
KEO will also carry a few symbolic offerings that will be more
\nlively and easily understood. A view of today's Earth engraved on
\nthe satellite's internal spherical envelope so that it will be
\nimmediately visible to KEO's finders. It will depict the contours
\nof seas and continents. At the core of the satellite, portraits
\nof men, women and children, representative of the various races
\nat the dawn of the third millennium, which will tend to blend
\ntogether with future generations. An artificial diamond will hold
\nprecious gifts: a sample of sea water, a sample of the air we
\nbreathe, a sample of human blood and some fertile soil, attesting
\nto the present state of the key elements without which we would
\nnot exist.<\/p>\n
KEO is designed to soar to 1,400 kilometers above Earth. As a
\npassive satellite, it will come back to its native soil
\nresponding to the pressure of solar radiation, the lunar and
\nplanetary attraction, the laws of ballistics and the slowing
\neffect generated by Earth's atmosphere. To ensure the safe return
\nof its payload, it needs an extremely resistant body. Its strong
\nexternal envelope, made from several distinct Titanium shells,
\nwill protect it from the dangers of a long flight in space's
\nhostile environment. The wings should open and close as they pass
\nbetween sunlight and darkness, using only natural solar power.
\nShould KEO land in an ocean it will float.<\/p>\n
KEO is what we would call a \"passive\" capsule. Once it has
\nbeen launched into orbit, we can no longer contact it. The choice
\nof a passive capsule was dictated by the length of time it would
\nbe in orbit. Working parts permitting communication would over
\ntime have undergone an unforeseeable decomposition, thus
\nendangering the future of the capsule itself.<\/p>\n
Even if KEO survives, how will future intelligent beings
\nunderstand the perhaps billions of messages inscribed on the CD-
\nROMs? The satellite will include a \"user manual\", with
\ninstructions on how to construct a CD-ROM player.<\/p>\n
Beyond the technological challenges, this project must also
\ntake up the challenge of giving everyone an equal chance to
\nparticipate in this collective endeavor, despite differences in
\ncommunications infrastructure and in literacy levels among the
\nEarth's population.<\/p>\n
Yet, I still have one doubt, which reminds me of an
\ninteresting question: If a tree falls in the forest and no one is
\nthere to hear it, does it still make a sound? Uhm ... , never
\nmind. You still have plenty of time before the 2001 to write down
\nyour autobiography and submit it to KEO. The future looks forward
\nto hearing your story.<\/p>",
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