Am I the only one who looked at the gap in the rocks and small channel and thought that had to be part of it? I'm assuming whoever put it out there had it aligned so the shadow placement matters. Now, could be that an inter-dimensional portal opens when the sun angle causes the shadow to hit just the right spot...and that it's timed to a shift in the tilt of the earth so it could have been there since the flood receded and the grand canyon was carved 5,000 years ago or so.
From one image it almost appears that there was some excavation in front of the gap as if to capture some runoff. From another angle, though, not so much. But it does look like there is more to this little art installation than just the monolith itself.
If that thing is actually embedded in the surface, then my compliments go to whoever cut the hole with such precision. It looks pretty good from what can be seen in the pictures.
This sort of ‘art in the wild’ fits well within the Western landsape’s starkness. Artist James Turrell recently opened his long-term project within Roden Crater in AZ, where he has excavated observation chambers within the cinder cone that open up to the sky, connected by underground halls. I’d like to see it in person someday but the closest I’ve come was over a decade ago when some classmates managed to trespass on to the site one weekend and brought back pics from within some of the tunnels and rooms under construction. The bizarre precision and style of what he had built at that point was pretty fascinating.
Am I the only one who looked at the gap in the rocks and small channel and thought that had to be part of it? I'm assuming whoever put it out there had it aligned so the shadow placement matters. Now, could be that an inter-dimensional portal opens when the sun angle causes the shadow to hit just the right spot...and that it's timed to a shift in the tilt of the earth so it could have been there since the flood receded and the grand canyon was carved 5,000 years ago or so.
From one image it almost appears that there was some excavation in front of the gap as if to capture some runoff. From another angle, though, not so much. But it does look like there is more to this little art installation than just the monolith itself.
If that thing is actually embedded in the surface, then my compliments go to whoever cut the hole with such precision. It looks pretty good from what can be seen in the pictures.
This sort of ‘art in the wild’ fits well within the Western landsape’s starkness. Artist James Turrell recently opened his long-term project within Roden Crater in AZ, where he has excavated observation chambers within the cinder cone that open up to the sky, connected by underground halls. I’d like to see it in person someday but the closest I’ve come was over a decade ago when some classmates managed to trespass on to the site one weekend and brought back pics from within some of the tunnels and rooms under construction. The bizarre precision and style of what he had built at that point was pretty fascinating.
That's wild. I'd love to see it. That and the Clock of the Long Now.
he/him we all just have to live through it,
holding each other’s hands.
That word made me laugh all by itself. It's all the more entertaining, after googling the word, finding out you didn't actually make it up like I thought you did.
The word "unobtanium" is quite familiar to any who saw the movie Avatar.
I googled the word, as you did, and found a lot of very interesting and fascinating references to it. I had no idea that there was so much about it independent of references to that movie.
No precept or claim is more suspect or more likely to be false than one that can only be supported by invoking the claim of Divine authority for it--no matter who or what claims such authority.
Seriously, the only question is how long ago this little puzzle was set up. Let's take a sample of the metal, which is certain to be an alloy widely available in commerce (which ought to deal with the 'alien visitors' crap), and while we are at it look at the cement with which it is bedded into the rock. That will likewise tell a dull story of stuff you can buy in any building supplies store. And so on.
No need to deface the alien artifact by taking a sample. A battery operated handheld XRF metal analyser held up to the object will allow identification of pretty much any pure metal, or simple alloy, from magnesium to uranium.
Reference spectra for Vibranium and Unobtanium are not yet available.
Of course you are right. I saw one of those being used a couple of years back, and it was really impressive. But that knowledge was in a different part of my memory banks from the one I use on this board!
Maksutov:
That's the problem with this supernatural stuff, it doesn't really solve anything. It's a placeholder for ignorance.
Mayan Elephant:
Not only have I denounced the Big Lie, I have denounced the Big lie big lie.
Speaking of unobtanium, here's my favorite story about (nearly) naming an element. A lot of elements at the upper end of the Periodic Table have names taken from people and places involved in atomic research: Berklium, Lawrencium, Einstinium, etc.
The first hydrogen bomb explosion at Bikini Atoll produced temperatures never seen on earth, and several new elements were discovered.
Since the secret name for the operation was PROJECT PANDA, many scientists lobbied to have an element named PANDAMONIUM.
A missed opportunity, if you ask me.
The great problem of any civilization is how to rejuvenate itself without rebarbarization.
- Will Durant "Of what meaning is the world without mind? The question cannot exist."
- Edwin Land
The word "unobtanium" is quite familiar to any who saw the movie Avatar.
I googled the word, as you did, and found a lot of very interesting and fascinating references to it. I had no idea that there was so much about it independent of references to that movie.
It just goes to show, there is more to learn than years to learn it all.
Religion is for people whose existential fear is greater than their common sense.
Speaking of unobtanium, here's my favorite story about (nearly) naming an element. A lot of elements at the upper end of the Periodic Table have names taken from people and places involved in atomic research: Berklium, Lawrencium, Einstinium, etc.
The first hydrogen bomb explosion at Bikini Atoll produced temperatures never seen on earth, and several new elements were discovered.
Since the secret name for the operation was PROJECT PANDA, many scientists lobbied to have an element named PANDAMONIUM.
Thanks for the link. A lot of interesting history.
The great problem of any civilization is how to rejuvenate itself without rebarbarization.
- Will Durant "Of what meaning is the world without mind? The question cannot exist."
- Edwin Land
Less than two weeks after authorities stumbled across a mysterious metal object standing freely in the Utah desert — and just days after it disappeared — a similar monolith has been reported nearly halfway around the world. Residents in the Romanian city of Piatra Neamț say they have found another odd item that could have been ripped from the set of 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The local newspaper reports that the monolith, like the one discovered in Utah, is about 10 to 12 feet tall and apparently composed entirely of a dimly reflective metal. It was reportedly found standing on the Bâtca Doamnei plateau, near an archaeological site overlooking the city. Jurnal FM, a local radio station, recorded video of the purported object, revealing an eye-aching sheen and looped markings along its surface.
Explorers looking for the now-infamous Utah monolith say they saw it being taken away by a pick-up truck and that the words 'Bye b****' had been written into the floor, with a puddle of urine left in its place.
The triangular pillar appeared in the desert in Utah, and was first spotted on 18 November, but it disappeared on Friday.
The plot thickens.
Explorer Riccardo Marino trekked out to the remote site to see what was happening, posting his findings on Instagram.
Explaining what he and his friend did, Riccardo wrote: "We continued 30 minutes down the bumpy dirt road and arrived at 11.11pm to the pinpoint I selected for us to start hiking from.
Unsurprisingly there were other campers in the area that all seemed to be asleep.
"Right before leaving the car we heard voices in the distance, they were coming from the trucks we had just passed.
"We didn't acknowledge them and continued minding our own business. Our short hike under the moonlight was easy to navigate by just using Google Maps.
"We arrived to the location to see nothing but the foul markings left and we realised we must have been the first people to see it removed.
"On our way out we discovered fresh tire tracks that were made by a dolly, clearly left by someone not to long before us.
"When we got back to the car we drove back the way we came from and noticed the trucks where the noise was coming from were all gone.
"We figured it was the rest of the posse of monolith thieves exiting later than the first truck.
"Transporting the monolith without a posse in the dark had to have been a group effort. Not to mention it was 20 degrees Fahrenheit. We wanted to be the first to report this, so we drove two hours back to service to get a post out."
The Bureau of Land Management in Utah said it didn't remove the monolith.
It said in a statement: "[We] did not remove the structure which is considered private property. The structure has received international and national attention and we received reports that a person or group removed it on the evening of 27 Nov."
It added it wouldn't be investigating further.
Potential explanations for the monolith include extra-terrestrials, publicity stunts and a dead artist.
