communicating with the future

[innerSpaceman]

This reminds me of the attempt at extraterrestrial communication that went sailing (slowly) to the stars with the Voyager spacecraft.


The thing that bugs me is why they think the "universal" symbol for radiation will still spell "radiation" in the far-flung future. Why not a symbol of the atom, with comic-book energy waves coming from it? Pictograms are, I believe, the most reliable communicators.

[Moonliner]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

This reminds me of the attempt at extraterrestrial communication that went sailing (slowly) to the stars with the Voyager spacecraft.

Not to quibble, but that was NOT an attempt to converse with ET. It was an attempt to legitimize the concept that intelligent extraterristials might exist in the eye of the scientific establishment. A very controversial idea back then. Dr. Sagan was using it as a publicity campaign to promote/legitimize SETI not to chit-chat with ET.