Future Tourist Sites that Hope to Remain Hidden

So many of the world’s most alluring tourist sites are those which we know very little about.  The cities, tombs and other remains of lost civilizations unearthed and surrounded by mystery are always a fascinating draw.  Archeologists armed with toothbrushes try their best to piece together what they’ve discovered but sadly few of these lost civilizations have bothered to leave behind a record explaining the remains.

Civilizations never expect to disappear so naturally they don’t prepare anything to educate future generations who may discover their remains.  But what happens when these remains are toxic and have an active life span of 500 generations? What happens when future archeologists unearth a chamber full of strange barrels which when cracked open are found to contain chemical agents and radioactivity?

This is exactly the challenge facing engineers at a Waste Isolation Plant being built in New Mexico according to a fascinating article in the LA Times

An underground cavern will soon be stocked with horrifically dangerous chemical waste and radioactive materials that will continue to be dangerous for the next 25,000 years.  How do you warn future civilizations to stay away when it’s impossible to know if English, or any language for that matter, will even be spoken that far in the future?  The result is captivating lesson in universal communication models and physical structures that warn “GO AWAY” without actually spelling it out with letters.  It is just the type of thing one can imagine being unearthed in a science fiction film much like what happend with the monolith in the movie 2001

Check out the article and its cool interactive schemtics.  There are few man-made structures on this planet you can honestly predict will still be around in 25,000 years.  The whole purpose of this one is to do exactly that.  Because nuclear waste is the gift that keeps on giving.