HOLY COW- Roman VOICES recorded on a pot from Pompeii?

[Matt Lukes]

I have long fantasized about raising voices from ancient, inanimate objects. But then I worry that we'll learn that the Romans all spoke in high-pitched, squeaky Monty Pythonesque voices.

"I have a vewy good fwiend in Wome called Biggus *ickus" :lol:

[tlclark]

Yes, and yesterday in CSI Miami they blew up a surveillance camera shot from 2*2 pixels to a high-res 1024*768 on their computer... :roll:

Ugh! I hate it when I see "enhancements" on television. "Invention" more likely.

On a more cosmic scale, it is true that every historical event is somehow recorded in the universe simply because of the laws of conservation of energy and momentum. Every sound wave is still bouncing around in an echo, somewhere, though infinitessimally small. Every motion sets other atoms in motion. These eventually travel to the kinetic motion of atoms and maybe into the vibrations of the time-space continuum.

It's like the ripples in a pond from a thrown stone. Even if you don't see the stone drop you can tell something was there. However, sorting it out from all the other vibrations is nearly impossible, but only nearly. Someday we may have the ability to observe it directly, and we will we have a "Theory of Everything" that predicts the motion of everything. We can then take a snapshot of the universe and rewind it back as far as we like. And we we answer ALL of the questions we have. We could see the battles of history in real time.

It's entirely possible that historians will be replaced by physicists with massive devices listening to the hum of the universe.

Of course that's a level of physics that's FAR FAR into the future, but it's something to hope for.

This seems more like wishful thinking to me.

Travis

[Praefectusclassis]

Of course that's a level of physics that's FAR FAR into the future, but it's something to hope for.

I dunno if I'd hope for that. Would it be fun to know everything?

[Dan Howard]

On a more cosmic scale, it is true that every historical event is somehow recorded in the universe simply because of the laws of conservation of energy and momentum. Every sound wave is still bouncing around in an echo, somewhere, though infinitessimally small.

No they aren't. Energy must be conserved but not in its original form. Sound gets converted to other forms of energy, it doesn't bounce around forever, capable of being "listened" to sometime in the future. If EVP was possible then James Randi would have paid out his million dollar reward years ago. So called "white noise" is caused by interference from the thousands of radio waves we transmit every second, radiation from the sun, etc. It has nothing to do with spirits, or psychic phenomena, or infinitely recurring sound waves.

[tlclark]

On a more cosmic scale, it is true that every historical event is somehow recorded in the universe simply because of the laws of conservation of energy and momentum. Every sound wave is still bouncing around in an echo, somewhere, though infinitessimally small.

No they aren't. Energy must be conserved but not in its original form. Sound gets converted to other forms of energy, it doesn't bounce around forever, capable of being "listened" to sometime in the future.

Yes that's correct. Sorry for my lack of precision (I'm not a scientist, just a sci-fi geek.). By "Echo" I mean a residue of the original energy, not necessarily the original sound. Still the energy is still there. It can't disappear. Whatever it converts to is still "readable" provided we know how to read it. It may be unbelievably complex and take the kind of physics we only see used by god-like aliens in sci-fiction, but it's possible. The kinetic energy of the atoms is just heat, and everything eventually winds up as heat according to Entropy and the 2nd law of thermodynamics. As hard as it may be to believe, that heat still contains "information". I was just thinking out loud about the possibility that we may one day have the answers to all of histories greatest mysteries (Provided we care enough still when we are all God-like beings transcending time and space).

If EVP was possible then James Randi would have paid out his million dollar reward years ago. So called "white noise" is caused by interference from the thousands of radio waves we transmit every second, radiation from the sun, etc. It has nothing to do with spirits, or psychic phenomena, or infinitely recurring sound waves.

Yeah, I agree. I don't believe in EVP either and I didn't mean to imply that sound continues forever. But when the sound hits a barrier that doesn't convey the sound, the barrier is vibrated or warmed, ever so infinitessimally, but it is warmed. We are already reading light that has shifted into the invisible spectrum, left over from the big bang. Some day we may be able to do the same with everything.

Wouldn't that be cool!

And of course if we did, that would make historians and archaeologists obsolete, though I am not in fear of my job just yet.

Oh well, this is far too esoteric and OT to continue, but it would be cool to hear voices from the past.

Travis

[Arthes]

I think it's a very well made joke. The professor with the pipe, etc, and look at his eyes, he's laughing

I remember as a youngster being riveted to the screen watching an April Fool's TV documentary about the Mars Viking landings, where a "rock" suddenly moved with purpose at the end! It was very convincing, especially with all the "boffins" leading the viewer to the climax.

Very good :wink:

Do you remember the Spaghetti Tree and Noel Edmunds's broadcast live from the airplane....which now is entirely possible....lol
As for the 'sounds from the past' I have a belief in 'because it is not yet known, does not mean it does not exist..!

[Arthes]

Psychometry...I can occasionally pick up information by handling something ...there are some who can actually see the history of these objects in their mind and on checking, it is found they are correct..
Imagine an archaeologist with that gift.....!
regards
Arthes

[Dan Howard]

So take your claims to James Randi. He still has a standing reward of one million dollars for anyone who can successfully demonstrate the phenomena. Come back and tell us what you plan to do with the money. He will even pay a "spotter's fee" to anyone who can recommend someone with these abilities, should they be demonstrable.