gp note: The importance of Easter Island is primarily as an ecological morality play. Yes, we are all fascinated by the Monuments and there is an intense interest in the archeological investigations concerning them. But first consider the following:
Have you ever wondered what a world without trees would look like? Close your eyes, and try to imagine a desolate Earth. There’d be no more paper, and everyone would have to resort to technological use—that is, if anyone was left.Trees are a crucial factor to our existence not only because they produce paper, lumber and chewing gum, but because they serve an important role in the carbon cycle. And because of our ever-increasing population of 6.7 billion, that seemingly distant future is nearing each and every day. People have proposed many solutions to this environmental issue called deforestation, including either shipping everyone to the Moon or…to just stop cutting trees! (article continued after this first video).
Easter Island (Rapa Nui)-A Sign and Warning to the World (2.42 minutes)
Even if our species survived the devastation of deforestation, life as we know it would be very different from now in 2011, where only half of the world’s forests are gone. Scientists speculate our great-grandchildren might not even have the chance to visit the great Amazon rainforest in 50 years! Yet on such a dry, lifeless world, no one would be left to experience the disastrous consequences of deforestation. Little tribulations like the decrease of property value and potential increase of urban noise become irrelevant compared to other calamities like roadside spills, animal wastes, water runoff into streams, and sewage/farm chemicals left unfiltered. For now, let’s find out the local and global effects of deforestation:
by Naseem S.
Recent History of Easter Island
Lessons from Easter Island | Carl Lipo | TEDxBermuda
Click here for The Mystery of Rapa Nui – written and produced by Jonathan Renouf
What Really Happened On Easter Island?
Lidar – Instead of Radar – to make new archeological discoveries. Radar uses sound waves bouncing off of objects. Lidar uses lasers – but it is expensive. Watch this – 2.11 minutes:
National Geographic Live! – Walking with Giants: How the Easter Island Moai Moved
National geographic Documentary | Secrets of Easter Island
Mysteries of Easter Island – no attribution – which were edited out
GP Note:
Google CEO Eric Schmidt told the audience at the 2010 Techonomy Conference in Lake Tahoe: “The world is not ready for the technology revolution that will be happening to them relatively soon. One, because people don’t understand what is going to happen and two, because of the compounding effect that is occurring. Between the dawn of civilization through 2003, there was just five exabytes of information created. That much information is now created every two days, and the pace is increasing. No wonder we are sort of over-loaded. People aren”t ready for the technology revolution that’s going to happen to them. The real issue is user-generated content. People are describing enormous amounts of things abut themselves on video and photographs and so forth..If you take the combination of power laws plus optionality around choices and absolute scale, then you get the chaotic nature of what we are all doing.”
Click here to see that conference.
GP Note 2: Archeologists around the world a making new discoveries and re-creating the past with innovative scientific and technological techniques, including rebuilding ancient warships from all periods. Many videos on the internet enable us to participate in these discoveries. So we shall have to talk to Nicholas Carr about this.
Nicholas Carr: What the Internet is Doing to our minds
Nicholas Carr: Is the Internet Making Us Stupid?
Horizon Video – Mystery of Easter Island