On Sun, Jan 15, 2006 at 07:34:10PM +0200, Peter wrote:
> > If you really want it to last forever, make it out of indium. That stuff
> > just doesn't oxidise, better than gold in that regard. Also expensive,
> > very, very expensive... But, imagine SS tablets sputtered with a
> > protective indium coating.
> 
> I don't think that stainless competes in the same league as fired clay, 
> or even glass. Gold is *very* permanent but it is often transformed into 
> something else as time passes (other objects), because of its intrinsic 
> value. Clay does not have that problem. Etching things into stone also 
> works. This can be done mechanically or with acid. There are very few 
> 'permanent' options on a human scale. Pottery and fired clays (bricks, 
> tables, mosaic) are the only known 'media' that convey graphics and 
> writing over 5000 years and more. The other known media that survived 
> 'well' are hewn stone and cave paintings ;-)

Well the value thing is a definete problem, I can totally see stainless
panels being mistaken for silver and stolen. That said, for mass storage
I see some *big* issues in trying to handle any reasonable quantity of
fired clay tablets. Heck, look at the common image of some archiologist
carefully peicing together litle clay shards from some site...

Just depends on your tradeoffs I think. If it were to store a few
"kilobytes" of info, I'd do it on clay. But more? Definetely some sort
of non-brittle material, just so I can make thin, compact, sheets of it.

As for it getting stolen... Store it in a cavern accessed by a very long
tunnel. Then line that tunnel with long-life radioactive isotopes
releasing gamma radiation. While long-life and intensity are mutually
incompatable, a long enough tunnel will fix that... Then the only people
who could get to the end of my tunnel and look at the artifacts without
getting killed are those with enough technology that stainless wouldn't
be very valuable to them!

-- 
pete@petertodd.ca http://www.petertodd.ca
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