Life after Humanity?

[observer]

Interesting TV prog last night; speculating on a future without mankind, and how long it would take for all traces of our civilisation and our existence to dissapear. Almost all traces would be eradicated within 10,000 years, the longest lasting could be the Hoover Dam, and the Great Wall of China. Nature would reassert itself, plants would overgrow our steel and concrete world, and life would go on, as if we had never existed.

[Jerry]

I believe this has been illustrated in a film called Planet of the Apes, where a 20th century spaceship enters a time warp and lands on a strange planet where the apes have evolved to supremacy. At the end of the film Charlton Heston sees a broken remnant of the Statue of Liberty and realizes he's entered the future on earth and cries "The FOOLS, the FOOLS".

 

Come to think of it, though, humanity was present there, it had just regressed into unintelligible grunts instead of having language. And the copper plating of the Statue would have deteriorated within a thousand years, wouldn't it? In the film it is still recognizable with a green patina.

[observer]

Forgot, one of the lasting bits of evidence of human existence would be the faces carved out of granite at Mt Rushmore.

[Steve the Original]

Jerry one of my favourite TV and Film series!!

 

Remember nothing is stronger than mother nature and time.. but the question would be if life Earth would still exist,ie Animals not just plants..

 

 

Steve

[observer]

The fictitious scenario just took out humans; but one would assume that from plants and the sea, life forms would evolve in any event.

[Jerry]

I completely overlooked the badlands Four Presidents faces. I've never been to Mt. Rushmore to see them, but I understand a nearby monument to Chief Crazy Horse may dwarf them. He is mounted on a steed and in warpath mode.

[tonymaillman]

Jerry ......... it's more fitting that a monument to Crazy Horse should be bigger, after all hes was a REAL American !

[Jerry]

Funny you should say that. The last bio I read on that war chief was about his warpaint -- and a suggestion that he might well have been a half breed, containing one half European DNA. I'll revisit that site. It had said he looked 'white', not red.

 

He has been portrayed by white actors in films, but I think the best film about him as a main character was Will Sampson (pure indigenous appearance) in WHITE BUFFALO with Charles Bronson.

[Jerry]

Can't find the text - but found another that says he had curly light colored hair, and was called Curly as a young man. His grandparents had met with Lewis and Clark's expedition. There were many fur trappers in the area when he grew up. However, that is sometimes considered racist propaganda by hostile natives. They say the settlers could not believe a savage could be so brilliant a military strategist and circulated unproven rumors that he was part European. I'm sorry I brought it up.

[Jerry]

Orig. Steve remembers a haunting tune called The Year 2525. I just replayed it on the 'net. It starts out in the year 2525, proceeds to 3535, 4545, 5510,6510, and ends after 9595 -- 10,000 years man has survived.

 

It wonders if God is coming back again, if he he wants to wipe the slate clean and begin again.

 

Yes, a provocative memory of ?: 70s ? musings?

[observer]

Another interesting aspect of the prog, was a visit to the abandoned area of Cherbyl in Russia; where radiation killed off trees and plant life, but both flora and fauna are now making a come back and radiation levels are now fairly low.