14 January 2003

BBC: Cosmic message in a bottle The European Space Agency's Rosetta mission will carry a disc engraved with the first three chapters of Genesis in 1,000 languages when it takes-off this month to rendezvous with the comet Wirtanen. The inscription will be attached to outside of the space craft (much as the golden records and metal plates were to the Pioneer and Voyager craft), and was developed by the Long Now Foundation's Rosetta project The Rosetta project is a global collaboration of language specialists and native speakers working to develop a contemporary version of the historic Rosetta Stone. In this updated iteration, our goal is a meaningful survey and near permanent archive of 1,000 languages. Our intention is to create a unique platform for comparative linguistic research and education as well as a functional linguistic tool that might help in the recovery or revitalization of lost languages in unknown futures. [...] The resulting archive will be publicly available in three different media: a micro-etched nickel disk with 2,000 year life expectancy; a single volume monumental reference book; and through this growing online archive. Update: Rosetta comet chaser on hold, and therefore will be forced to get new quarry. 12:04:20 PM     comments