Google
 

Aardvark Daily

New Zealand's longest-running online daily news and commentary publication, now in its 25th year. The opinion pieces presented here are not purported to be fact but reasonable effort is made to ensure accuracy.

Content copyright © 1995 - 2019 to Bruce Simpson (aka Aardvark), the logo was kindly created for Aardvark Daily by the folks at aardvark.co.uk



Please visit the sponsor!
Please visit the sponsor!

In support of paper

18 Nov 2024

Does anyone remember the days when inky stains on paper was our primary method of archiving and disseminating information?

Surprisingly, it wasn't very long ago that books, newspapers, memos, letters and other forms of paper-based communications were the norm and electronic media was the exception.

That we have seen so much change in such a short period of time may perhaps be a reason to sound a few warning bells because I think we're in danger of losing a huge amount of our history and our knowledge if some kind of major apocalypse strikes.

As we increasingly trust our valuable data to non-human-readable media such as disks, flash-memory devices and "the cloud", maybe we should spare a thought for the level of danger that even a relatively common event might have on our access to that data.

A CME as large as (or larger than) The Carrington Event could see power grids knocked out and computer systems damaged across the face of the planet -- with little in the way of migitation possible. If your data is stored in the cloud but you have no power then even if those cloud-based systems managed to emerge unscathed, you'd still be unable use them.

Other events that could precipitate the loss of electronically stored data might include a major nuclear conflict that would not only create destructive EMPs but also obliterate the infrastructure on which access to this data relies.

The one great thing about printed material is that all you need to access it is some light and a mark-one eyeball. Even if all our fancy tech was rendered useless in a microsecond, an archive of printed material would still serve to provide an essential source of learning, information and knowledge for ourselves and future generations.

Of course printed material is not without its own drawbacks. It's heavy, bulky, hard to back-up and vulnerable to things such as fire, flood, mold and, over time, even the simple oxidation of the paper on which it's printed. However, its ability to operate without the need for additional support technology makes it uniquely suited to weathering the storms of celestial or man-made vents that could otherwise cast us back to the stone age.

Given the rather turmultuous state of the world right now, with conflicts that could go nuclear with almost existential effects, I have to wonder if we're doing enough to protect the legacy of our knowledge-store. Any attempt to rebuild civilisation from the ashes of a major natural or man-made apocalypse would rely hugely on access to the knowledge we've acquired over the centuries. Without such access, we'd be effectively starting from scratch.

Should there come a time when we're forced to beat our old computers into plough shears in order to survive, the most powerful nation on the planet will be the one with the most complete and accessible information archives. Those who have vested almost their entire knowledgebase to digital media may well become the third-world nations of the future.

And besides, books are just nice to have, aren't they?

Carpe Diem folks!

Please visit the sponsor!
Please visit the sponsor!

Here is a PERMANENT link to this column


Rank This Aardvark Page

 

Change Font

Sci-Tech headlines

 


Features:

The EZ Battery Reconditioning scam

Beware The Alternative Energy Scammers

The Great "Run Your Car On Water" Scam

 

Recent Columns

Welcome, generation snowflake
I read a story on the tabloid site Stuff.co.nz this morning that made me feel more than a little cross...

Aussies get shafted
In what can only be described as an afront to the democratic process, Australia's parliament has...

The Gatwick drone returns?
Almost exactly six years ago, Gatwick airport in the UK was closed by what was reported to be a number of drones menacing the runway area...

Will our tech be any use in the wake of war?
Russia is manufacturing nuclear shelters at a high rate right now and Germany is...

Journalism? I don't think so
I recently tried to browse the news using a smartphone...

Western governments living in fear?
As I've reported in this column, a growing number of Western governments now seem to be increasingly...

Australia is F'd
It seems that Australian politicans have gone mad over censoring and restricting access to the internet...

Why is anyone surprised by this?
I live in a small New Zealand town called Tokoroa...

No nuclear war expected
I've been keeping a close eye on news reports now that the USA has allowed Ukraine to launch ATACMS at targets within Russia...

We can not fix this
Here in New Zealand we have a bit of a problem...