Also Sprach Zarathustra, anyone?

January 2, 2001 5:10 PM

Also Sprach Zarathustra, anyone? Does the arrival of a monolith in Seattle implicitly suggest that Microserfs are in need of an extra-terrestrial intelligence boost?
posted by holgate (25 comments total)

monoliths, monoliths, and noise.
posted by gluechunk at 5:34 PM on January 2, 2001

Wasn't the monolith black in the movie? Or was I just watching a bad print? The proportions look off, too. You can't just have any monolith there, y'know.
posted by aaron at 10:17 PM on January 2, 2001

I'm pretty sure the monolith is indeed supposed to be black. OTOH, the 1x4x9 proportions of the original monolith seem to be more-or-less closely followed by the Magnuson Park copy.
posted by youhas at 10:59 PM on January 2, 2001

Perhaps this fortells that Bill G. will be ejected into the vacuum of space by a sentient computer.
posted by thebigpoop at 11:08 PM on January 2, 2001

Not only is the monolith black, but it's surface is not supposed to reflect any light.
posted by riffola at 11:20 PM on January 2, 2001

measurements and other good chatter over at slashdot. and I must add, there was one heck of a party.
posted by jessamyn at 2:24 AM on January 3, 2001

This kicks ass. I wish I had thought of doing it.
posted by bondcliff at 5:40 AM on January 3, 2001

There's been a monolith in the Seattle area for years. It created my OS....

posted by jpoulos at 6:16 AM on January 3, 2001

What I can't understand is why the aliens chose Seattle of all places. If they had had any class, they surely would have parked the thing right outside of Katz's Deli in New York City. Celebrated for its excellent selection of deli meats, Katz's Deli is the perfect compliment to monoliths, both foreign and domestic.
posted by leo at 6:30 AM on January 3, 2001

I was *so* hoping *someone, somewhere* would pull this.

This is easily the coolest thing I've ever heard of.

Ever.
posted by baylink at 8:40 AM on January 3, 2001

You know...

I'd be willing to bet cash that this is the senior class project at MIT this year. I mean, it's not like they don't have a reputation for this sort of thing.
posted by baylink at 8:51 AM on January 3, 2001

Well.. it does and it does not reflect light, when it's spotted off Saturn, you see it shimmer and disappear, in other instances, it's just black.
posted by tiaka at 8:53 AM on January 3, 2001

It's really cool. After bludgeoning one of my pals with a femur, I danced insanely around this thing, and then flung the bone high into the air while celestial music heralded a new coming age. Hey . . . my computer just locked up . . .
posted by Skot at 8:59 AM on January 3, 2001

btw, it's gone
posted by gluechunk at 1:14 PM on January 3, 2001

That was the coolest bit of public art ever. Too bad. . .
posted by birgitte at 2:44 PM on January 3, 2001

Nah...making it disappear was just as cool, if not cooler than making it appear. What a delightful mystery. On the one hand, I never want to know who's responsible. On the other hand, I want to find out so I can marry them.
posted by frykitty at 4:58 PM on January 3, 2001

Did it stay long enough to attract any graffiti?
posted by davidgentle at 5:32 PM on January 3, 2001

I would be very very disappointed in my new home if anyone graffitied the monolith while it was in place.
posted by kindall at 8:12 PM on January 3, 2001

> Did it stay long enough to attract any graffiti?

Nah, but in 1971 it also mysteriously appeared, and lingered around long enought to attract four gents who needed to relieve themselves. :-)))


posted by webchick at 8:56 PM on January 3, 2001

But...[pregnant pause, anticipation]...what if it were...real?

posted by davidgentle at 11:00 PM on January 3, 2001

But...[pregnant pause, anticipation]...what if it were...real?

posted by davidgentle at 11:10 PM on January 3, 2001

It appears that this was not the first such monolith. Being rather new here I didn't know about the others.

I agree, I'd like it much better if there weren't a Web site about it. (For the same reason, I liked the mosque off I-75 just south of Toledo better before they put up the sign proclaiming it to be the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo or whatever. You're driving through cow country, round a curve and... a mosque! Glorious. I didn't even want to know who was responsible.)
posted by kindall at 11:19 PM on January 3, 2001

Cheezy? It has one of the better Jack Chick decon jobs I've seen.
posted by rodii at 8:15 AM on January 4, 2001

Sorry about the repeat posting. I suppose you cold argue that it's in tutne with the reappearance of the monolith. Or maybe it was a stupid mistake.
posted by davidgentle at 4:43 PM on January 4, 2001