PROGRAMME KEO: A UNIVERSAL
PROJECT THAT IS AT THE CROSSROADS OF ART, TECHNOLOGY, HUMANISM AND DREAMS
ELECTED AS Project of the 21ST century by UNESCO
All the messages, without undergoing any censorship, shall be put aboard the winged satellite KEO, constructed and launched into orbit such that it returns to Earth intact in 500 centuries.
The world-wide collection
of messages, that is already underway since several months, will continue
until the end of December 2002.
Once KEO is launched into space, a copy of the entire assortment of
messages will be preserved on Earth. After having been made anonymous,
all the messages shall be made freely available to all (under certain
protocols). By reading these messages, each one of us can take a peek
into the thoughts, ideas, aspirations and dreams of a village chief
in Africa, of a young girl in love, of a homeless vagabond, of a wise
old man in Japan, of a young executive in Europe, of a child living
in the slums
.
With the emergence of this new vision towards the human community of the 21st century, KEO aspires to create a world that is more humane.
In addition to our messages, KEO will also carry archaeological gifts that are laden with symbols and information destined for our great grandchildren. Our future descendants will thus be recipients of all the knowledge procured by the Man of the 21st century. They shall also be witnesses of his cultural diversity
KEO is a project that is free from all political, religious and commercial influence. KEO is being realized thanks to the generous offers of its partners who are each contributing to its creation from the heart of their profession.
The list of partners includes the European Spatial Industries, the UNESCO, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, etc
In keeping with the glorious human creations that flag the history
of humanity, KEO will be penned down in the same league as that of the
Pyramids of Egypt and the Great Wall of China, as a universal masterpiece
that is the porter of the collective memory of the inhabitants of the
21st century
inhabitants, who wish to address themselves
to their future descendants
inhabitants, who wish to ponder on
their lives and on the destiny of their species.
Communication Management:
Florence Bazenet - fbazenet@keo.org
Video images and CD-ROMs of computer generated pictures that
are free of rights are available on request.
CONTENTS
I -KEO: THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL GIFT OF THE
FUTURE
1-
Its objectives
2-
The birth
of the idea
II -KEO: THE
ODYSSEY OF THE SOUVENIRS OF THE MAN OF THE 21ST CENTURY
ACROSS TIME AND SPACE
1-
KEOs
long journey
2-
The archaeological
gifts that accompany our messages
3-
The decoding
of the archaeological gifts by our descendants
4-
KEOs
choice to return to Earth in 50,000 years
III -KEO: A UNIVERSAL
APPEAL FOR MESSAGES
1-
What
does writing your message for KEO imply?
2-
How to
send your message to KEO
IV -KEO: AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL
GIFT FOR OUR FARAWAY
DESCENDANTS
V -KEO: A PRESENT FOR
THE PEOPLE OF TODAY
VI -KEO AND THE SCHOOLS
VII - KEO: ITS TECHNICAL
FEASIBILITY AND CREATION
VIII -KEO: its
principles of working and its partners
1-
The philosophy
of its creation
2-
KEOs
partners as of today
3-
Why have
they chosen to contribute to KEO?
IX -KEO: exhibitions
and conferences
X - KEO: frequently
asked questions
XI - KEO: KEOS CREATOR
I KEO, THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL
The KEO project
aims at:
¨ offering every person on Earth with the same space
of liberty so that he can write his message for his future descendants;
¨ making each
person express, his thoughts and his hopes through the medium of dreams
and mystique;
¨ collecting all the written messages and presenting
them as a collective work of art, representative of the human community
of the 21st century;
¨ making all the messages anonymous and sharing them
amongst ourselves so that we can build a world that is more humane.
Several thousands of messages, coming from over 181 countries and written in more than 60 languages, have already been received by KEO. All continents and age groups are represented through these messages proving that the metaphor of KEO goes beyond all frontiers and cultures. This emphasizes on the profound and collective desire that exists amongst human beings; the wish to leave a part of their life and their enriching experiences for posterity.
In 50,000 years, the KEO project aims at:
¨ transmitting all
the messages and experiences that the men, women and children of today
have addressed to our descendants; like a majestic fresco, representative
of the human community at the start of the 21st century, our
future great grandchildren may discover their roots...roots of their ancestors.
I- 2- KEO: THE BIRTH OF THE IDEA
KEO is the reaction of a French artist and
scientist, Jean-Marc Philippe, in response to the contemporary world.
In one of his recent conferences, Jean-Marc
Philippe elucidates that:
We
live in a world today that is dominated by contradictions; at times splendid
and at times dismal: splendid and marvelous some days because of the twinkling
stars, the beauty of the Earth and the nature, the progress of our knowledge,
skills and technology and our capacity to love and give
..dismal
and sad some days because of the wars, the murders, the pollution, the
disparity between the rich and the poor, the disparity in the levels of
our knowledge, the injustice, the torture
.
..And yet however, we are a species that are exceptionally
talented and gifted who are beginning to realize how small and delicate
the Earth is. Even though we form only 0.4% of the entire animal biomass
and that we find ourselves in the position of a guarantor and a manager
of this planet, we have matched powers with the forces of nature and are
able to dictate their destiny and ours
.
We
live in a world today where man has, for various reasons, forgotten to
reflect on his actions: problems in daily life, work pressure, keen competition,
scattered information, the necessity to earn his livelihood
sufficient
reasons to give us the impression that the cacophony we hear
in the world today is because we are aimlessly drifting about
.I
have therefore looked for a metaphor that can be shared by everybody without
any distinction of culture, religion and age
a metaphor that incites
each one of us to spend some moments in reflection, free from the anxieties
of daily life
..a metaphor that incites us not only to go beyond
our span of life and time, but also to take into consideration the duration
of the line of evolution of our species.
.
..From
here was born the idea of sending into space a satellite that will return
to Earth, safe and sound, carrying all our messages, texts, poems and
questions
..but a satellite that will return only after a long
passage of time
.From
here was born the idea to ask each one to go deep within himself and write,
in the 4 pages offered to him, his thoughts on matters that are closest to his heart
..
.From
here was born the idea to share our messages, to try and know each other,
to try and learn who we are, and to realize that we are first brothers
and sisters belonging to the same human species and that we belong to
a big human family; the fact that we are each representatives of this
huge human community is actually our most treasured wealth
From
here was born KEO, a universal invitation to reflect, an invitation to
learn more about each other, an invitation to dream about the world and
the destiny of our human species
II - KEO: THE ODYSSEY OF THE SOUVENIRS OF THE MAN OF THE 21ST CENTURY
ACROSS TIME AND SPACE
I- 1- KEOs LONG JOURNEY
The KEO satellite
Fruit of the European Spatial Industry, KEO will be injected into orbit at the end of 2003.
KEO will be injected into a circular or elliptical orbit situated at an altitude of several thousands of kilometers (the exact technical details will be disclosed during the next press conference scheduled to take place in the fourth quarter of 2002).
KEOs flight: the winged satellite
End 2003, the winged satellite KEO shall depart for a long journey around our planet. It shall return, safe and sound, after some 50,000 years, to deliver all the messages that we have addressed for our descendants (each person on Earth, small, powerful, weak or rich has 4 pages of liberty to send his message: all messages, without undergoing any censorship shall be embarked aboard KEO).
Folded in the cap of the rocket during the launch, KEOs wings, shall function once the satellite is in orbit thanks to the sublimation of the small naphthalene spheres that shall melt under the heat of the sun. Henceforth, the wings will beat in rhythm to KEOs passage under the Earths shadow and its exposure to the suns rays. With a suitable optic telescope it will be possible to record KEOs flight as it flutters its wings over its orbit.
After a couple of years in orbit, KEOs unprotected wings will be shed, leaving the core sphere to continue its journey alone in space. Each day, during its long voyage around the Earth, KEOs orbit will gradually decay bringing the satellite closer and closer to its native land.
As KEO approaches the end of its long journey, its momentum will be checked by the dense layers of the Earths atmosphere as it descends below 120 kilometers in altitude. It will then enter the final and critical phase of its return flight.
Some 20 minutes before landing, KEO will announce its arrival to our future descendants in the form of a shooting star, emitting sparks of radiant light that will be brighter than those of a natural star. Their luminosity will be continuous and their intensity will be strong.
Some 2 minutes before it lands on the soil, KEOs titanium and tungsten shields will disintegrate under the effect of the heat accumulated during its passage across the layers of the dense atmosphere. Its carbon thermal shield will heat up to 2800°Celcius. KEO will be equipped to resist this phenomenon and will thus trigger off an ionization that shall release a steam of minute and illuminated particles.
Our future descendants will witness a flash of artificial northern lights in the sky, a strong glow, like a signal ..they will be alerted of KEOs return.
In KEOs core body, the temperature of the archaeological tokens
addressed to our future generations will not exceed 450°Celcius. They
will thus remain intact.
II - 2- The archaeological gifts that accompany
our messages
In order
to attract every human being amongst us towards the path of reflection,
KEO aims to be a symbolic spectacle.
The name KEO is the result of three successive
phonemes, (k), (e) and (o). These are the three most frequently used phonemes
across the 100 most widely spoken languages of today. The name KEO can
be pronounced by all human vocal cords and thus represents a symbol of
unity between mankind. Moreover, as proof of its neutrality and universal
appeal, the name bears no cultural or mythological references, past or
present.
When KEO will return to native Earth, free from its protective shields, it will appear as a small titanium sphere engraved with an image of present-day Earth.
This surface engraving will inform our descendants that the strange object fallen from the sky is meant for them. The sphere will depict the present contours of the Earths seas and continents that would have changed over the passage of time due to the climatic variations and the movement of tectonic plates.
Intrigued by the landing of this strange object, KEOs discoverers will be curious to see its contents. They will thus learn about the archaeological gifts that are addressed to them.
Some of the presents will be easily distinguishable by the naked eye, whereas certain will have to be decoded.
Aboard KEO, our future descendants will find a glass plate engraved with portraits of men, women and children. This mosaic of faces will represent the current diversity of the ethnic groups, which with time and interbreeding will have blended to form a kaleidoscope of uniform colors.
A sequence of double helix DNA unique to Homo Sapiens Sapiens as we exist today will also be engraved (would we too undergo genetic changes?).
As KEOs discoverers continue their exploration, they will come across a diamond with 4 inclusions made of tiny spheres of gold. The first sphere will hold a drop of water from our oceans, the second will contain a pinch of fertile soil and the third will enclose a sample of the air from the atmosphere surrounding us. More precious than the diamond itself are these terrestrial elements that, in their current composition, make life possible on Earth. The fourth sphere of gold will protect a small drop of human blood, chosen at random from among the different human groups, to symbolize our common genetic human signature.
In order to allow our future descendants to find out the launch date
of KEO, a second glass plate engraved with accurate astronomical data
will be installed. The data will show the position of the planets of the
solar system as on the launch date of KEO. Depending on the level of knowledge
attained by our future descendants, they will be able to calculate that
KEO was launched into orbit some 50,000 years ago (as the same planetary
configuration is only repeated every 200 million years).
Our knowledge: a contemporary
Library of Alexandria
Our descendants will then uncover a stack of engraved glass disks that will form a contemporary Library of Alexandria, a treasure chest of all our knowledge as it exists today: a catalogue of the flora and fauna, diversity of the arts, fundamental texts of our religions, geopolitical situations, economic agreements etc, all this will be exhibited by way of texts, pictures, video clippings and sound.
AND a huge fresco of messages from the people
of the 21st century
The most important gift of
them all is a second stack of engraved glass disks that will contain a
fresco of our messages; messages that every man, woman and child of the
21st century is invited to send to our future descendants.
In order to guide our descendants towards the significance of our messages, information immediately intelligible to the eye will be provided to them in the form of holograms and/or diagrams on each side of the glass disks. Around 200 drawings and diagrams shall be made available to them.
They will also come across signs representing some of the invariants used in the past by numerous civilizations such as those indicating water, houses, etc, accompanied by their translation into several languages.
They will also find a specific disk, engraved analogically (like an old vinyl record) at their disposal. Next to this they will find a tuning fork, a miniature horn, a record needle and a diagram showing how the disks must be rotated in order to extract their contents. As soon as the frequency emitted by the miniature horn corresponds with that of the tuning fork, our descendants will hear human voices speaking the principal languages of our days as well as melodies of the music of our times. The subsequent disk will contain exactly the same information but this time digitally coded and engraved. Our descendants will then have to begin their work of deciphering and decoding.
Like the discoverers of the Rosetta Stone, our descendants will learn that the glass disks enclose real meaning and not some esoteric symbols.
Their task will be all the more complex because, unlike the clearly visible engravings on the Rosetta stone, the DVD images and the micro-millimeter engravings encoding our alphabets will be imperceptible to the naked eye. However, we will furnish them with technical diagrams for constructing a DVD disk reader, which will enable them to access the visual representation of our messages. These plans will be presented to them in the form of diagrams engraved on the faces of several glass disks aboard KEO.
Often it has taken us some hundreds of years of research, perseverance and careful study to be able to decipher the scripts of the past.
Still today there are several languages which remain incomprehensible.
Others required several years of disciplined study while some were transmitted
to us over the centuries.
Will traces of our current high-tech world survive the passage of 50,000 years or will they disappear like the ancient Egyptian civilization? We cannot tell. How much time will our future generations take to decode the information saved on the glass disks? One day or a thousand years? We will never know.
KEO, the Archaeological Bird of the Future,
beneath its unusual appearance as a carrier of dreams and utopia, is a
metaphor of artistic and technological creation and a symbol of individual introspection. It forces each one
of us to evaluate ourselves in a new light, to reflect on the different
aspects of life and on the destiny of our species.
By offering us the opportunity to question
ourselves on a personal level, KEO invites us to rediscover the person
next door; who may at times seem so different because of his rich cultural
diversity and may at times seem so similar because he belongs to the same
human family. KEO enables us to realize that we are each passerbys
on planet Earth and that we should be proud of that.
II - 4- KEOS CHOICE TO RETURN TO EARTH IN
50,000 YEARS
KEO has chosen to
return to Earth in 50,000 years because of several reasons:
¨ In order to evoke
in each one of us a feeling that we need to take a moment to stop and
think, to focus on a fixed point, to enjoy the moments of exaltation and
silence
.
¨ To allow us
to think and question ourselves differently, to permit us to define our
expectations and our most profound aspirations.
¨ To spark off
a personal, sensitive and unusual reflection within each one of us, such that in our hearts, imagination,
awareness, intimate convictions, dreams and intuitions supersede the sense
of reason.
¨ To permit each
one, through his actions and messages, to be able to exert an influence
on his epoch and on the collective future destiny of mankind.
¨ To induce us
each to believe that we are all brothers and sisters of the same human
family and that our most valuable wealth is the sense of belonging to
this community which all of us represent.
¨ To allow each
one to position himself on the ladder of evolution by reminding him that:
- the human species came into existence some 5 million years ago,
- man invented his first tools at least 2.5 million years back,
- he tamed fire some 500,000 years ago,
- the sepultures emerged 100,000 years ago (a true indication of the emergence of metaphysical
thought),
¨ To
especially remind us that some 50,000 years ago, our ancestors created
their first drawings/ abstract signs on the walls of the Australian caves,
displaying our species ability to access symbolic thought.
This form of intelligence has allowed us to develop both our mathematical capability as well as our ability to reflect and ponder.
III - KEO: A UNIVERSAL APPEAL FOR MESSAGES
Each person on Earth has 4 pages of liberty to express himself, in the language of his choice, all that he wishes to transmit to his faraway descendants.
His message can be an expression of himself, of his way of life, of his dreams, of his hopes, of his revolts, of his aspirations as a habitant on planet Earth.
All the messages received, without undergoing any censorship, shall be embarked aboard KEO.
III-1-What does writing your message for KEO imply?
Due to the space-time duration of 50,000 years
that KEO invites us to confront, we are inspired to widen our personal,
cultural and traditional perspectives. KEO makes us question our emotions
and our misty interrogations with respect to how our descendants will
perceive our messages.
By writing his message to KEO, every individual
shall not only be in the position to freely speak ABOUT himself, but also
be simultaneously in the position to review himself in a new light.
Our faraway descendants shall also stand back
and review our thoughts. We have a certain responsibility towards these
descendants because our current and collective behavior shall determine
how they will be in 50,000 years! (will we change on the genetic
front and what consequences would that have on them? What kind of environment
shall we hand down to them?
).
Moreover, the reference of these essential
questions, always related to an unusual interpellation across the time
and the biological and genetic adventure of our species, corresponds to
life in general and to the different ways of thinking residing in the
human conscience: meaning of life, meaning of your life, meaning of death,
meaning of the individual and collective responsibilities, meaning of
the family, meaning of the human family, meaning of the species
responsibility towards himself, meaning of the species responsibility
towards other species
meaning of the species responsibility
towards his own mother planet.
These last questions are the most intriguing
because although the human species represents only 0.4% of the animal
biomass on Earth, it is responsible for our history thanks to its scientific,
technical and organizational competencies. It is the guarantor and manager
not only of the quality of its individual and collective development,
but also of the future of the planet, especially that which concerns the
maintenance of the physico-chemical conditions that reign on its surface
and permit the evolution of life.
Thus,
he who writes his message to KEO can only be lead to ponder, even though
these reflections are not consciously expressed.
III- 2- How to send
your message to KEO
Messages to KEO can be addressed through the Internet by logging on to the site www.keo.org or by sending them by post.
The site keo.org, one of our major communication tools,
has received world-wide recognition. In 1999, it won the Prix Ars Electronica
and a special prize from the Jury of the Clic dor awarded by IBM,
Yahoo, CB News and Colt. Since the past two years the KEO website has
been mentioned on the pages of the worldbestsites and has also been referred
to as the hotsite by USA Today, etc
Procedure for sending your message to KEO
© By the Internet: www.keo.org on the link Your Message
© By post: Programme KEO, BP 100, 75262 Paris Cedex 06,
France.
You
have the liberty from 1 line to 4
A4 sized pages (6000 characters). In order to allow our faraway descendants
to know you better, please specify:
A project that welcomes everybody to participate free
of cost, KEO provides you with the liberty of expression. All the messages,
without undergoing any censorship, shall be put aboard the satellite.
The closing date for receiving the messages will be announced in the
press and on the Internet through the KEO website.
Under
the veil of anonymity, the messages received by KEO will be published
and/or made available for free consultation after the launch of KEO
in 2003.
IV
KEO: AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL GIFT FOR OUR FARAWAY DESCENDANTS
Imagine the surprise, interest and curiosity that we would experience if we were to receive detailed messages from the habitants of the Lascaux caves .these messages that contained excerpts of their morals, their way of life, their anxieties, their metaphysical horizons
Imagine what they could tell us about their relation with their : Friends? Enemies? With their fellow creatures? Mutual aid or war?
Imagine that we got the answer to the question about why did these inhabitants feel the need (?), the necessity (?) to represent the scenes that we see today at the bottom of the caves and moreover who were the people who drew them: priests, mislead or brilliant artists?
Imagine still further, that these people left behind a collection of their vocabulary.
Imagine that they explained to us what love meant to them and how they lived it Imagine again, that they elucidated the rules of their societies, their ultimate aims in life their rapport with Nature their worst fears,
Imagine now, how astonished our faraway descendants shall be when they receive as a gift, all the messages penned down by every man, woman and child of our planet that they enter our world, learn about our morals, dwell into our religion, be it animist or monotheist, study our laws, our GATT agreements, discover our culture from that of the pigmy with a bow and arrow to that of an executive manager equipped with a mobile phone.
Imagine also that the safest place to stock all this knowledge and to send all our messages is, the space.
Until now only the powerful (Pharaohs, rich merchants, jurists, saints, poets, ) have been able to leave behind the fruits of their thoughts. Imagine that now all of us, right from the 100,000 people who constructed the Grand Pyramids to the soldiers in the army of Gengis Khan, can hand down our experiences to our future successors Our perspective towards History would certainly not be the same
Further, imagine our descendants touched, perhaps; impatient, without doubt; and dazzled, certainly, by the idea that all the men of this day had the same space of liberty to express their message like a postcard, like a missive, like a souvenir of themselves, like a simple expression of emotions
Thus, through KEO we present a gift of posthumous friendship and can we dare say, a gift of love, to our future great grandchildren.
Would our descendants be curious about the contents of the messages? Would they find their roots? Would they recognize us? What kind of planet would we have left behind for them? Would our technological civilizations have survived the span of 50,000 years? We cannot predict anything.
The only certain fact is that KEOs dimensions are
historic and that each person is invited to participate free of cost in
this grand festival to mark his presence in the human community.
V - KEO: A PRESENT FOR THE PEOPLE OF TODAY
Sharing KEOs messages amongst ourselves
Once KEO is launched into orbit around planet Earth (by Arianespace, end of 2003), the entire assortment of messages-made anonymous- with a copy preserved on Earth, shall be freely accessible to everybody on the Internet (according to certain protocols not yet defined, to avoid any non-ethical utilization).
Like a thumb impression, each human expression is unique. Thus, each message, irrespective of its content, be it a breath of hope, a verse of poetry or a moment from routine life is precious.
What would each person do with his four pages of liberty that allow him to leave an impact on todays world? What important things does he have to transmit? What would he like to hand over to posterity?
Through this invitation to share each others message, each of us can question the words of another on the KEO site. Thus for the first time in history, each person can share the thoughts of another, especially those of people who generally go unheard.
What did you say? you the chief of the Savanna, you a child from the slums, you the patriarch, you the mother of a family, you the young girl in love, you the unemployed young lad, you the Nobel Prize winner, you the renowned poet
Sharing our doubts, preoccupations and expectations, could lead to a new desire to discover and interact with other people, to collectively ponder about our future and to reflect on our responsibilities towards tomorrows generation.
A new image of the human community at the start of the 21st
century
Just as our descendants will learn about our messages (would they discover their roots? Would they recognize us?), we too can have access to the entire collection of the messages from 2004 onwards with the help of tools and methods of automatic language processing treatments.
The spatial-temporal invitation to write your messages, where emotions and dreams transcend the individual and the return of a satellite in 50,000 years are fundamental elements that shall ensure the quality of the messages destined to be the object of sociological analyses.
In the attempt to answer the most basic
questions of mankind, who are we, what can we expect from ourselves
and what kind of future do we want to build together? KEO aims to
be the catalyst to ignite the global fire of comprehensive and active
awareness where each person, like an actor, will play his individual role.
Foundation KEO
After the launch of KEO, Foundation
KEO will be created to pursue the enriching work of individual and collective
reflection generated by the collection of messages from people all over
the world.
The work of Foundation KEO
will involve concrete actions dedicated to promoting the new collective
consciousness that recognizes its responsibility towards the human species
and the future generations of our planet and towards the forces of nature.
It aims at bringing about a collective reaction towards our destiny and
towards our aspiration for the future at a time when man is able to match
powers with the forces of nature and change the course of his destiny.
VI - KEO and the schools
Gradually as information on KEO spread around the world, several teachers approached it as a fantastic study material that allowed them to undertake interdisciplinary pedagogic steps with their students. They were able to approach scientific, technological, societal, humanistic and philosophical questions with their students in an innovated way, adapted to all levels of education.
Drawing from the experiences developed by teachers belonging to the domains of culture and language and diverse levels of education, it was decided to create a KEO Educational Kit.
This Kit is a response to those teachers who would like to conduct an educational programme on KEO with their students and to inform those teachers who are not yet aware about KEOs educational values.
Thanks to the partnership established with the Education Offices of the Reunion Islands and the financial support of a local company GTIE, the KEO Educational Kits were distributed in large numbers amongst all the educational institutions across the island in March 2002. Currently we are in the process of repeating this same operation in France.
On our website, www.keo.org, there is a special column on KEOMAG, the magazine which provides news about KEOs developments around the world, dedicated to relating all the different international pedagogic experiences conducted around KEO. All teachers are invited to share and enrich their diverse educational experiences on the KEO discussion forum.
KEO, a unique educational tool:
KEO has been recognized as an exceptional pedagogic tool because it allows every professor, irrespective of his stream and level of teaching to undertake interdisciplinary innovative educational steps with his students. This is achieved by:
© helping the students to understand the world of today by questioning
themselves differently;
© encouraging their reflection on the human societies and
on theirs in particular;
© developing their capacities for critical analysis on the
subjects of the society;
© molding the young people as
future citizens of the world, making them
aware that they are already ancestors of their great grandchildren and
that they have a responsible role
to play;
© juxtaposing the marvelous and the questions of the society:
showing their reflections through dreams and interrogations;
© showing them that art, beauty and poetry can have their
place right besides science, technology and social debates.
Situated at the
crossroads of science, technology, art, humanism
and dreams, KEO spontaneously addresses itself to the curiosity and
enthusiasm of students from all ages.
Going beyond the
realms of academics, KEO often becomes the topic of family discussions.
Why do the teachers play a dominating role
in disseminating information on KEO?
- Because they inform their students about the existence
of the KEO project and give them the opportunity to participate in a collective,
universal and historic project that leads everyone to the path of reflection;
- Because they can carry out educational operations
with their students using KEO as the theme.
What does the KEO Educational Kit contain?
- An educational guide, conceived with the experiences of several professors which elucidates on the technical feats of the satellite, the archaeological gifts that it carries and various pedagogic ideas for the professors. It also contains replies to the frequently asked questions and a model of the form to be filled while sending your message by post.
- A CD Rom, that contains exhaustive information on KEO: press package, KEOs Values Chart, the KEO educational guide, KEOs pictures and images, KEO postcard, KEO mini-exhibition, KEO posters
This CD Rom is an essential element of the Educational Kit. All the images contained in the CD Rom are free from rights and can be used by all the teachers to enhance their class project on KEO. They can also edit and photocopy the different elements contained in the CD Rom.
- Five KEO posters, destined to be displayed in the most visited areas of the school so that KEOs message reaches out to the maximum number of students and teachers. This will further highlight the global commitment of the entire teaching team.
- One KEO video cassette, produced by the students of the Robert Doisneau de Corbeil (91) School containing all the computer graphics on KEO along with a 7 minute film on KEOs odyssey.
Twenty KEO postcards, containing a reminder of the information that needs to be provided while sending ones message by post.
How can one obtain a KEO Educational Kit?
We are in the process of finding partners who would be willing to financially
help us in producing these kits, so that we can distribute them, free
of cost, to a large number of teachers. In the meanwhile, the electronic
version of the educational guide and the KEO video can be downloaded from
the KEO website free of cost.
Experiences of certain professors who undertook
a KEO class project with their students
(
) To all the
teachers from across the globe - KEO represents a beautiful experience
that you must live through with your students. You shall not see them
in the same light
and they neither!
Chemistry Professor
Montreal
(
) KEO has taught
the students how to dream.
It was much easier for me
to teach the students about acrostics and geography using KEO as the theme
because the children felt that they were participating in an ambitious
project; something that is true and magical at the same time (my message
shall travel in an Arian rocket!). The class was so involved in the project,
that when I went for appraisals last week, I was told Goodbye,
continue to make your students dream! (
).
Professor of the schools
CE2 Reunion Island
I am writing to you
to let you know how much my students and me have been influenced by the
KEO project
so much that we are going to work on it as our technical
project for the next 3 months (
). I find the concept of your project
absolutely brilliant and am proud to be able to promote it amongst the
people around me (
).
English teacher
Quebec Canada
The KEO project is a
success. We support you 100%. My colleagues and me really appreciate the
power of expression it gives to the deprived students. In todays
world we ignore these poor students (
). We thank people like you
who bring some sympathy and good faith in this cruel world (
). Thanks
you, you who have shown us light at the end of a dark tunnel.
A group of teachers at
Clermont-Ferrant France
Hello, I am a trainee
teacher at the Arc-en-ciel School of St. Julie at Quebec. I would like
to receive a KEO Educational Kit so that I can conduct a KEO class project
with my students. I believe that it presents the students with a unique
opportunity to write intelligently
..
Trainee Teacher- Quebec-Canada
Hello, I am a teacher
in a school at the outskirts of Strasbourg. I would like to make my students
participate in the KEO project. (
). I thank you for providing us
with this fantastic writing tool that we hope shall add some more positive
enthusiasm to an already lively class (hmmmm
).
Teacher Strasbourg
France
Hello, it is with great
pleasure and pride that I have enrolled myself as a keolover.
I consider it an honor to be able to participate in this Icarus
dream. I sent my message this evening itself and it is titled Love
Love. I am a professor of Philosophy and would like to integrate
your site in my academic curriculum for January 2002, titled The
human being. I would like my students to be able to refer to it
while they analyze the different dimensions of the human being. I have
a classroom equipped with an Internet connection at my disposal. I am
glad to have discovered your site and I sincerely hope that it shall receive
a positive welcome from the students, thus leading to a beautiful pedagogic
adventure.
Professor of Philosophy
Canada
VII - KEO:
ITS TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY AND CREATION
1992/1994:
Conception of the project
By the end of 1994, the KEO project was totally conceived and described
in all its arborescence. The liveload
would always remain below 280°Celecius which would enable KEO to resist
the hostile environment in space during the 50,000 years and also ensure
that the satellite returns intact to planet Earth in 500 centuries, subject
only to the laws of ballistics.
It was also necessary to
provide sufficient memory space aboard KEO so that each of the six million
inhabitants of Earth would have 4 pages of liberty at their disposal.
1995/1997:
Demonstration of KEOs technical feasibility
After two years of studies conducted by Aerospatiale, Supaero, KEOs first technical feasibility demonstration was carried out in June 1997. Moreover, corresponding studies were presented at the 48th International Astronomical Congress (Turin, October 1997, abstract no: IAA-97-IAA.8.2.07) before the industries and global agencies developing spatial technology.
It was decided that KEOs mass shall be 200 kg.
1998:
Demonstration of the durability of KEOs memory supports
In July1998, an experiment was conducted at the Grand Accelerator of Heavy Ions of GANIL (CNRS/CEA Caen) that proved the durability of KEOs memory supports and all the information engraved on them.
The experiment consisted of irradiating the glass supports containing information identical to that carried by KEO by a flux of particles equivalent to the cosmic radiation endured during the period of 50,000 years. The experiment also verified whether the glass supports and the information engraved on them shall remain intact when KEO returns to Earth.
(Study report GANIL/ GARI/ CIRILN/ ref.MT.J 03/98).
This report was communicated during the 49th International Astronomical Congress held in October 1998 at Melbourne (Abstract no: IAA-98-IAA.8.2.07).
1997/1999:
Optimization of the first technical studies: reduction of the mass and
dimensions
In order to respect the demands laid down by Arianespace and not to change the restrictions of KEOs initial liveload, complementary studies were conducted by the engineers of Aerospatiale Matra. This lead to a new technical definition for KEO whereby, its mass would be less than 100 kg and its dimensions would allow it to be launched as a secondary satellite aboard any rocket belonging to the Ariane family.
2000:
New technical data
As a result of new technical advancement, the technical partners of KEO declared that the glass disks would be enable to resist a temperature of 480° Celsius.
2001/2002:
KEOs final technical definition
In order to be compatible with the new data that lead to a reduction in KEOs mass, the engineers of CNES, EADS, Arianespace and SupAero needed to redefine the new technical dimensions of KEO (putting into place the intelligent techniques, these dimensions will not be made public).
Result of the spatial European industry,
KEO is a jewel amongst the existing technologies. KEO is a passive satellite
that will be sent to space only to return to Earth after a period of 50,000
years thanks to the laws of ballistics (planetary, lunar and solar attractions),
the pressure of solar radiation and the breaking of the terrestrial atmosphere.
Its dimensions and mass are compatible with the different launch rockets
of the Arianespace family.
Today, KEO has two possible launch
dates.
Complementary
Technical explications
The materials
with which KEO is constructed
The materials with which KEO shall be constructed, namely, aluminum, titanium, tungsten, glass, carbon/carbon, ablative materials, metallic foam, have been selected because of their capacity to resist the test of time and extreme conditions in space.
KEOs
protective shields
Several protective shields shall envelope KEO and its archaeological gifts to ensure that KEOs liveload shall remain intact even after 50,000 years.
Anti-meteoric and anti-human debris shields: constituted by metallic substance and separated by vacuum, these shields will dissipate energy of micrometeorites in the solid angles, that are all the more open and that cannot harm KEOs liveload.
Anti-cosmic ray shields: comprised of titanium, tungsten and aluminum these shields will protect KEOs core body from cosmic radiation.
Thermal shields: made from ablative and insulating material, they guarantee that the temperature in KEOs core body shall not exceed 480° C.
Anti-shock shields: constituted from metallic foam, these shields will enable KEO to absorb the shock during its return to Earth at a speed that can reach 130 meters per second.
Shield that guarantees against sinking: fabricated from titanium, chosen because of its ductility, this shield will guarantee KEOs floating by forming a spherical envelope if KEO makes a sea landing (the density of KEOs liveload will be less than 1).
KEOs
orbit
KEO has two choices. Since KEOs mass was recently lightened, KEO may be injected into an elliptical orbit or into a circular one with a range of several thousand kilometers.
KEOs
position in the parent rocket
Respecting the rules for a secondary passenger, KEO can be placed in different ways in the cone of the rocket developed by Arianespace: either a fixture on the flat form, or a fixture on the pole depending on the kind of mission.
Today, KEOs dimensions are such that they take into account all
the constraints related to its launch by several types of missions. With
its wings spread out, its total span will be 9 m, its body diameter shall
be less than 80 cm and its total mass will be less than 100 kg. KEO will
be electronically neutral in order to avoid any disturbance to the principal
satellite.
All technical information related to KEO along with its launch date
will be provided to you in our next press conference scheduled for the
fourth quarter on this year.
(date not yet decided)
VIII - KEO: its principles of working and
its partners
VIII-
1 The philosophy of its creation
In order
to respect the universal values that are fundamental to KEO and to be
welcomed by all persons belonging to the existing human community, Programme
KEO is a non profit organization, in accordance with the 1901 French Law.
KEOs goals are not influenced by any commercial,
religious or political benefit.
KEO is a
project that is supported by its numerous partners who are renowned for
their professional excellence. They are offering their expertise and competencies
to KEO free of charge.
To this
day, the objectives of the project have been realized solely through the
benevolent contributions made by its many partners and well wishers. Keeping
this in mind, KEO can truly be viewed as a gift from the people
of today to the people of tomorrow where every form of expert assistance
is offered without any charge or fee. Only the Project Co-ordination Team
of Programme KEO, composed of experienced professionals, receive some
financial support to effectively pursue their different missions.
Thus, Programme
KEO being an ethically transparent organization can avoid all criticism
regarding better usage of resources for achieving other objectives such
as humanitarian goals.
VIII -2-
KEOs partners as of today
Technical feasibility study - Definition of the technical organization
Arianespace and Starsem
Agreement
in principle to launch KEO as a secondary satellite
CEA
Cosmic radiation resistance tests
Development of shape memory alloy junctions
Construction of micro-inclusions for the archaeological gifts
CNES
Study in launching compatibility
EADS
Final definition of the dimensions of KEO
Ecole des Mines de ParisIntespace
Flight conformity and wing deployment tests
Sup'Aero
Contribution towards the technical feasibility study and building of wings
Plasmon (ex Toolex and ex Digipress)
Engraving of messages on glass disks
International Space University
Technical expertise at our disposal for the functioning of the project
Providing network
International Olympic Committee
Moral endorsement
FIDH (International Federation of Human Rights League)
Providing their international network for the collection of messages from across the globe
LDH (Human Rights League)
Providing
their network for the collection of messages from across the globe
Promotion of KEO through exhibitions and participation of all the French embassies world-wide
Civilization Museum, Quebec
Organizing a KEO prestige exhibition sprawled across 1000m2 (from 8th September, 2001 to 9th January 2003)
Louvre Museum
Lending of 51 original works of art to enrich the KEO exhibition, Prelude to KEOs flight, held at the Civilization Museum, Quebec, organized as part of the French Season in Quebec.
UNESCO: UNESCO 2000 Partnerships for the 21st Century
Assistance in the research of the 6000 languages spoken in the world as content for the Contemporary Library of Alexandria.
BaBeL@STaL
Design conception and execution of the first and second website www.keo.org
Carré NoirCreation of the KEO logo
Groupe Baton Rouge
Conception, realization and fabrication of all the communication supports
GTIE
Financial support for duplicating the communication supports distributed at the Reunion Island
Kaos
Creation of the name KEO
Orange (Command and Hutch)
Financial support for the communication campaign in India in September 2002
Sipa Press
Loaning of non-copyright images
SNA
Creation and duplication of the CD Rom
Videonet
Supply of
betcams
D)
Communication Channels
Creation of an exhibition KEOs prelude to flight and organization its presentation abroad
Radio France Internationale
(RFI)
Regular coverage of the project in 18 languages
Histoire (the thematic channel on cable and TPS)
Regular coverage of the project
Education Offices at the Reunion Island
Circulation of the KEO educational kit to all the academic institutes present in the Reunion Island.
Sceince Reunion
Assistance in KEOs promotion across the Reunion Island.
Touristra
Promotion of KEO through its network of holiday villages
Hosting the site www.keo.org and the domain keo.org
Lingway, Solutions in language processing
Provision of techniques and softwares for linguistic analysis
F)
Support for the Project Co-ordination Team
VediorBis/ Expectra
Delegation of expertise (3 people)
Air France
Air Transport
Provision of premises for the office of the Project Co-ordination Team
Marsh
Consultancy in Space Insurances
EFEC
Accounting services
Cabinet Laurent Cornon
Professional legal services
Gom Propreté
Maintenance of the KEO premises
ImprimAnd Co
Printing of documents
JM Bruneau
Office and equipment supplies
Klein~Goddard & Associés
Professional legal services
Installation
of telephonic and computer cables
VIII- 3-WHY HAVE THEY CHOSEN TO CONTRIBUTE TO KEO:
SOME
EXTRACTS DISPLAYING THE MOTIVATION OF KEOS PARTNERS
Patrick TEGEDOR, past Director of Human Resource
Development, Aerospatiale
In May 1995, while I was Director of Human Resource
Development at the Aerospatiale Group I met Jean-Marc PHILIPPE on this
project which was not yet named KEO, and I understood immediately what
a project such as this could offer to all those who actively participate
in it.
1.
For
the persons in the organization:
Each one of us has a hobby, an activity that we enjoy
doing (sports, flying at an air club, community work
) and why should
we not dedicate some of our free time to a project that is as beautiful
and as grand as this? At least, it was necessary for me to encourage those
people who were interested in working on this project at an individual
level. KEO allows each individual, who so desires, to blossom and grow
with such a marvelous project.
2.
For
the image of the enterprise
Be it through publicity, advertising, patronage or prestigious
actions, the enterprise must always exhibit an image of force, strength,
optimism and appeal before its target audience who are the authorities,
the financial institutions, the clients, the general public, its own employees,
..KEO with all its universal and humanistic splendor will
be a fantastic vehicle for the enterprise.
3.
For
displaying our know-how
KEO needs technical skills, competencies and precise
knowledge in certain fields. And our enterprise possesses an excellent
level of know-how in these subjects- calculation of the path of the satellite,
launch into space, return through the high layers of the atmosphere, development
of difficult material, integration of a satellite,
..
KEO will be a display window of our know-how.
4.
For
the integration in the enterprise:
Aerospatiale, thanks to its multiple activities and organizations,
would request contributions from many entities belonging to the same group,
who would together contribute to a common action. This has become even
more possible with EADS. KEO would be a true integrator and a common project
in such a big company.
To recapitulate, one could say that the above 4 points
concern the following persons:
point 1: The Director of Human Resource Development and
The Branch Manager
point 2: The Communication Manager
point 3: The Technical and Industrial Director and The
Commercial Director
point 4: The General Manager
One can clearly see that the entire company benefits
from KEO!
Jean-Louis GOUBIN, Communication
Manager, ARIANESPACE
« ROCKETS
FLY,
SATELLITES
FLY,
ARIAN
FLIES,
KEO
.WILL
FLY,
ARIANESPACE,
the first spatial transporter, supports the experimental challenge that
symbolizes KEO, its objective and its mission charged with hope, adventure
and eternity.
ARIANESPACE
wishes to go beyond its daily rigorous work of technical and commercial
performance by participating in this endeavor to bond with the men and
women of our planet through relationships, exchanges and interaction.
The
force of ARIANESPACE lies in its ability to forge towards the future,
strive towards excellence and then merge with the infinite space.
Together
with KEO, ARIANE, supporter of the activities of the 21st century,
will carry the testimony of an epoch, the flame of the civilizations,
the confidence of millions of human beings that live on our old EARTH,
to the extreme frontiers of tomorrow and the day after.
Philippe FEINSILBER, Chief Executive Officer,
BABEL@STAL
[BaBel@StaL] has chosen to help project KEO because
the entire company was not only impressed by the project but also by the
team that promotes it. We witnessed an enthusiasm, an investment and a
professionalism that matched ours, thus permitting us to liberally express
ourselves. From the technical aspect, the site and the Internet construction
of KEO had been a passionate problem
in terms of managing multilingual messages. The communication logic of
the project, based on its meaning and originality, has the
goal of promoting the dispatch of messages and the word of mouth
communication through the Internet.
Jean-Pierre TROTTIER, Director, Center of Materials P.M. Fourt de lEcole
des Mines of Paris
Like many encounters that happen by chance,
I once met in 1995, the creator of KEO. The creations of Jean-Marc Philippe
combine the most advanced domains of technology and in particular those
of materials. Thus it was most logical for the Center of Materials of
the Ecole des Mines of Paris to join hands with KEO.
The artistic and technical originality of the project,
its humanitarian content, and its cultural universality have immediately
sparked off a curious interest amongst the students and researchers that
are generally involved in utilitarian work. They have been
equally impressed by the benevolent participation of all the universities
and the industrial partners.
In a society that is increasingly becoming dependant
on technology, where paradoxically the number of young European people
pursuing scientific studies is declining, a project such as KEO can reorient
this trend which is damaging the future.
I
have been very interested by this project which harmoniously combines
new technologies, art, humanism and education (
). I hope that following
the example of the ESA, the entire European spatial community will reunite
around KEO. This will showcase our competencies at an international level.
I congratulate you once again for having conceived this beautiful project
that provides our citizens with a new image of the space
It is with great pleasure that I confirm the IFHRs participation
as partners in the launch of the KEO satellite.
The philosophical, universal and optimistic dimension
of your initiative has seduced the entire IFHR team and it is essential
that we associate our organization and the universal Declaration of Human
Rights with the messages that KEO will transmit to our faraway descendants.
We thus assure KEOs promotion through the 105 organizations that
are members of the IFHR and ask each one of them to send in their message
such that KEO can be the porter of the essential values that found the
actions of our organization (
).
Jean-Louis MARCE, Chief Executive Officer,
INTESPACE
This fusion of art and technology which is the
essence of the project KEO, the archaeological bird of the future, and
most certainly its humanitarian dimension are the two aspects of this
project that impressed me immediately.
Nothing can be more sublime than participating in this adventure.
The work of INTESPACE is to reproduce the same hostile
environment that any space object may encounter during its launch and
its life on orbit. Thus it was only natural that INTESPACE participates
in this adventure by executing several weeks of trial of the environment
that would allow KEO to accomplish its mission of 50,000 years.
For a technological company like INTESPACE, this association
represents an opportunity to give the technicians, which we are, the chance
to transcend our work in some sort and to federate our efforts. Thus we
can develop our know-how as a test center by effectuating environmental,
mechanical, thermal and electronic trials on the satellite KEO so that
it can realize its missions.
By this voluntary action, we would also like to display that despite the severe conditions that exist in reality in the commercial world to which we have to adapt, there is always some space for dreams and humanity in our adventure.
Ivan GAVRILOFF, Director, KAOS
KEO
is a project that incarnates poetry and humanity. Rare are the occasions
available to an enterprise to offer its services generously and free of
charge. Moreover, how can one possibly not surrender to the extremely
polite requests of Jean-Marc Philippe?
Normier
Bernard, Chief Executive Officer, LINGWAY
The
universal symbolism of the KEO project can only but fascinate a computer
engineer-linguist: undoubtedly this is the first time that we see a collection
of several millions of messages coming from across the globe, all replying
to the same question, originating from diverse cultures, nationalities,
written in all languages possible.. This unique corpus will be the best
representation that we can ever imagine of what are the values, the hopes
and the fears of the human community today. Only a project like KEO can
gather such content to transmit to our future generations,
who without doubt would analyze and interpret it in order to know us better
and this is what we ourselves must do today.
P. Loridant, Senetor, MAIRIE DES ULIS
It
was in September 1999, at the time of selecting the theme of our forum
for Plastic Arts that I had the
opportunity to meet Jean-Marc PHILIPPE and the chance to know about the
KEO project.
For
a city situated in the outskirts, 25 km from PARIS, administratively created
in 1997 on the old ZUP, it was a challenge to launch the creation and
the realization of an exhibition that blended the arts and the sciences.
Moreover,
its humanistic philosophy replies appropriately to the concerns of the
elected local and the member of Parliament that I
am:
everything
converges towards the same intimate and collective preoccupation of putting
together all these pieces of the puzzle of our human, political, social
and cultural life.
Who
is the person who has never dreamed of or dared to dream of leaving behind
a legacy for his descendants? It is having faith in eternal moments!
Philippe
Vienot, Director Space Department, MARSH
Just
one meeting with Jean-Marc Philippe, creator of the KEO project, confirmed
our decision to offer our support
to KEO. Several aspects of the projects concept have enchanted us.
First
and foremost, at a symbolic level, this winged sphere whose wings beat
to stimulate its flight, then separate, leaving the sphere alone to pursue its journey silently across its orbit
for 50,000 years before returning to Earth amidst luminosity and lightin
order to transmit the memories of the 21st century to our faraway
descendants, is the carrier of a very beautiful facet of our dreams.
On
a more practical note, the quality of the partners that Jean-Marc Philippe
has succeeded in associating KEO with to make the project a reality, proves
the credibility and the seriousness of his initiative and we are motivated
to join the partners that have already given their stamp of approval to
KEO.
And
finally, for MARSH, global leader in insurance brokerage, being associated
with KEO, with all its humanistic and generous ambitions, that reach out
to all the generations to come, and clearly targeting the future, seemed
especially adapted and well suited, because MARSH conceives its collaboration
with its clients and partners in a global way that promises to be long
term.
Thierry
Audric, Vice Director of
the General Direction for International Cooperation and Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes
to be associated with this KEO project by finding the possibility to project
before a huge public an image of the French high technology at the service
of a mesmerizing artistic idea.
The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs had thus decided to organize an exhibition
on this project as part of the French presidency at the European Union.
Moreover,
it has encouraged the French embassies abroad to associate themselves
with this project by being KEOs correspondents for the collection
of messages. Once each embassy has adapted this association to its country
and its possibilities, it will allow us to create a cultural and scientific
animation of quality (
).
Patrick KARABETIAN, President, SOKATEL
Time is never lost. It is dedicated to others.
It
is the charisma and passion of Jean Marc Philippe, creator of KEO, that
has lead us to participate in this wonderful adventure across time. How
could Sokatel, specializing in telecommunications and development of networks,
not embark on this first ever undertaken journey that also presents a human dimension?
We
confirm, with utmost honor, to pool in our experience and knowledge in
order to support KEOs realization.
Man
knows the world, not because he steals from it, but because he adds value
to it.
Christian GOURLAND, Director of the Department
for Vacations, TOURISTRA
There are some encounters in life that that make
you grow. There are some people who make you sit up and take notice of
things that are far and high. Jean-Marc Philippe is one of them and KEO
is an extension of our dreams. Long live KEO.
I remember very clearly that during the exhibition,
Science in Art, presented at UNESCO in May 1997, the KEO model
had captivated everybodys attention. According to me, the idea of
presenting an archaeological gift to our future descendants in the form
of a satellite into space, carrier of our messages, describing the situation
of our planet, seems very appropriate and timely. The mosaic of messages
originating from every strata of society will effectively provide an unedited
image of todays human community; by being accessible to all it will
permit us to define and react on our common destiny. I confirm
with great pleasure that UNESCO will associate itself
with this beautiful initiative to which I grant patronage of the Organization
(..)
Frédérick TIBERGHIEN, Chief Executive Officer,
VEDIORBIS
VediorBis and Expectra, subsidiaries of the
Vedior, group, quoted on the Amsterdam stock exchange, provide the most
exhaustive offers in the field of temporary placements and the recruitment
of experts in the French market. Keeping up with their policy of patronage,
and their image to appear as an innovative challenger, VediorBis and Expectra
have decided to be associated with Programme KEO. VediorBis and Expectra
wish to participate in this grand project of service to mankind by pooling
together all their competencies and their expertise in the field of human
resource development.
Individual expertise:
Nicolas BORDAS, Vice-President France, TBWA
Group and Chief Executive Officer, BDDP & Fils
KEO is a magical project. First and foremost, this
concept of Jean-Marc Philippe is a fantastic idea in the field of communications.
This idea anchors in our minds and stimulates in each one of us an increasing
awareness of consciousness towards humanity. It obliges us to go beyond
the realm of daily perception by forcing us to think of our faraway descendants
and not just the children of our children. KEO is thus a technological
project in the true sense of the term, which fuels the progress of service
with a cause that is universally human.
IX KEO: EXHIBITIONS AND CONFERENCES
National and international
press conference The Arch of Fraternity (Rooftop of the Arche de
la Défence) 9 July, 2002 11pm Paris France
Communication campaign for
KEO in India organized with the support of the French Embassy in India
and its network of Alliances Françaises
New Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Bombay- 1st
to 19th September, 2002
53rd International
Astronautical Congress, Houston - (USA) Presentation of
KEO on its educational aspects Session Space and Education-
10th to 19th October, 2002
8th September 2001-
9 January 2003 Prestige Exhibition KEO across 1000m2 in collaboration
with the Louvre Museum during the French Season at Quebec
City of Space,
Toulouse (France)
Science festival in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc
Presentation of KEO as a unique and uncommon project, guardian of the
memory of the XXIst centurys Humanity 10th May,
2002
Conference in partnership with
the Group of Inter-Religious dialogue
of the Reunion Island Saint-Peter of the Reunion (France)
Declaration of the signature of the partnership charter Invitation
to join the project KEO signed by both the Group of inter-religious
dialogue and Jean-Marc Philippe, creator of KEO - 7th March,
2002
Forum of Dialogues for the Earth
: Internationalization and long-lasting development : is ethics
the missing link? Lyon - 21st until
23rd February, 2002 (France)
Press conference
KEO in partnership with Education Offices of the Reunion Island and Science
Reunion- Saint -Denis of the Reunion (France)
Declaration of the partnership between KEO and the Education Offices of
the Reunion island and diffusion of the KEO educational kit in all schools
of the Reunion Island 11th February, 2002
General Assembly
of the SNEEL Congress Palace
(Paris) (France)
Presentation stand of KEO 24th January, 2002
Presentation of KEOs new developments and the 2002 communication
strategy 20th November, 2001
Center for Information
and Culture Yvan Yefremov Moscou (Russia)
4th 7th October, 2001 - Conference
« Anticipations and Progress » - Presentation of Programme KEO
52nd
International Astronautical Congress, Toulouse (France)
1st 5th October, 2001- Presentation
of Programme KEO that will concentrate on its communication strategy through
the Internet
Search for Extraterrestrial
Intelligence (S.E.T.I.), Toulouse (France)
30th September, 2001 Invitation to Jean-Marc Philippe
in the capacity of an expert on the subject
22nd 24th
June, 2001 - Presentation of Programme KEO in order to establish a collaboration
with the Pan African Postal Union
KEO was presented at the Reunion islands at the
initiative of G.T.I.E and its subsidiary company AXIANS with the support
of NRJ Reunion and the Scientific Committee of the Reunion (Reunion Island)
11th and 12th June, 2001
Conference
GTX, a Group X from Toulouse (France)
17th May, 2001 Presentation
of Programme KEO
The Mayor of Opoul
(66) dedicated a whole day to KEO at the Opoul Castle (France)
1st May, 2001
National
Day of French Speaking Communities in Assumption organized by the French
Embassy in Paraguay (Paraguay)
18th- 20th
Apri, 2001- Collection of messages
Yuris Night-The
World Space Party- 40th anniversary of the space travel of
Y.Gagarine (France)
12th April, 2001- Presentation of KEO to the actors
of the space world.
Science Festival
in Grahamstown thanks to the Cultural Department of the French Embassay
in Johannesburg (South Africa)
51st
International Astronautical Congress, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
2nd 6th October, 2000 Presentation
of KEO and its impact on the public
Universal Exhibition
2000, Hanover (Germany)
1st June -31st October, 2000 - KEO on
exhibition at the French Pavilion
Exhibition Prelude to KEOS flight, Hôtel de
Ville, Brussels (Belgium)
11th July-10th September, 2000 - Exhibition
to mark the French presidency of the European Union
Touring exhibition
Prelude to KEOS flight, Les Ulis (France)
Companions of the Night, Paris (France)
14th Apri,l 2000 - Presentation of KEO to the SDF
(homeless people)
Science exhales 2000, Paris (France)
15th January, 2000 - Presentation of KEO to school
children from the Hauts-de-Seine department
Museum of Science
and Industry, Manchester (Great Britain)
27th Novembe, 199930th January,
2000 - Exhibition dedicated to KEO
UNESCO, Paris (France)
26th 29th November, 1999 - Exhibition
of KEO: Partnerships of the 21st
Century
22nd 26th November, 1999 - Presentation
of KEO by the Town Council of Les Ulis
14th 20th November, 1999 Display of
the model of KEO on the stands of CNES
Science and Us, Fontenay-sous-Bois
(France)
21st 24th October, 1999 - Exhibition
at The Science Week
50th
International Astronautical Congress, Amsterdam (Netherlands)
4th 8th October, 1999 Exhibition
and scientific communication
Forum SMAU, Milan
(Italy)
30th September- 4th October, 1999 -
Centerpiece at the Universi Paralleli forum
4th 9th September, 1999 KEO was awarded
a prize for its site www.keo.org
UNISPACE, Vienna United Nations
General Conference / Peaceful Utilization of Outer Space
15th 21st July, 1999 - Presentation
at the educational workshops
Display of the model of KEO on the stands of CNES
Mission for the
celebration of the Year 2000, Toulouse (France)
29th May, 1999 Participation at the conference
Is the future in the sky ?
14th May, 1999 Conference at the inaugural
ceremony of the exhibition of KEO
The 20th
Meeting for Sponsorship, Paris (France)
5th 6th May, 1999 - Company
sponsorship, source of innovation for society: the KEO example
Exploradome, Paris (France)
19th 21st March, 1999, Internet
Fiesta: Discover the Internet with KEO
Congress of the
Digital Cities, Paris (France)
19th March, 1999 - Presentation of KEO to the members
of Parliament of the National Assembly
17th March, 1999 - Presentation of KEO
Science Festival Frontiers, Cavaillon (France)
26th 30th January, 1999 - Exhibition
and conference
International Festival
of Archeology, Bordeaux (France)
26th October-15th November, 1998 - Exhibition
and conference
24th October, 1998 Symposium
Association of Space
Explorers, Brussels (Belgium)
October, 1998 Presentation of KEO to the International
Community of Astronauts
49th
International Astronautical Congress, Melbourne (Australia)
28th September2nd October, 1998
Exhibition and scientific communication
City of Science
and Industry, Paris (France)
20th June 1st September, 1998
- Exhibition at the zone Explora, dedicated to the space
Science in celebration,
Paris (France)
11th October, 1997 Exhibition of KEO
48th
International Astronautical Congress, Turin (France)
5th 10th October, 1997 Exhibition
and scientific communication
Discovery Palace,
Paris (France)
May-October, 1997 - Exhibition
Fusion of Space
and Sky, Paris (France)
31st May-2nd June, 1997 - Exhibition
and conference
May 1997 - Exhibition
X KEO: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Jean-Marc Philippe, the creator of KEO replies to you:
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Why have you chosen the name KEO?
It
was necessary that the name of the project reflected its spirit of sharing
and exchange. This name had to be acceptable by all people irrespective
of their age or culture. Since
no such example of universality existed in our past or our local mythologies,
one partner came up with the idea to research the sounds (phonemes) common
to the most widely spoken languages today and to choose the ones that
are used most frequently: [k], [e], and [o]
..and hence was
born KEO, a name that is pronounceable by all cultures.
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Why have you chosen to send this
souvenir of humanity into space rather than to bury it under the
earth?
Space
appeals to the human imagination and KEO is addressed to the imagination
of each person. Moreover, if we would have decided to bury this Fresco
of Messages, we would have had to select a place, a country
whereas space belongs to everybody
or nobody.
KEO
will certainly encounter dangers in space but will be immune to any catastrophe
on Earth. In fact if any calamity
was to occur, KEO would indeed
play the role of a guardian of
this souvenir of humanity.
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Why 50,000 years?
50,000 years is the mirror date
to a milestone in the evolution of our species: the first traces of art
reveal the human capacity for abstract thought and symbolic expression.
50,000
years is a distance in time so compelling that it forces us to shed our
worries and daily routine and puts us each on an equal footing, inviting
us to bask in our thoughts, intuitions and deepest convictions
However
50,000 years only represent only 1% of the evolution of the human species
that have appeared on Earth some 5 million years ago.
It
is also the concept of time and distance that will give our treasures
a genuine archaeological value because it is very probable that definitive
traces of the activities of the Man of today will be in turn rediscovered
by the Man of tomorrow.
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What are the possible risks of
collision with meteorites and debris?
The
main risk for KEO is the possibility of a collision with micrometeorites
or space debris of human origin. This is the reason why the core of KEO
is protected by several layers of shields made from aluminum, titanium
and tungsten that are separated by a vacuum.
Nevertheless,
if the pollution of human origin in space continues to grow at its present
level over the next fifty years (+5% per annum), KEO would have practically
no chance of survival.
There
is no doubt however, that restrictive measures will be taken to prevent
this since space debris is not only endangering the operation of costly
military, scientific and commercial satellites, but more importantly threatening
the lives of astronauts in space shuttles and stations. Thus, the big spatial groups
like the NASA or the ESA are already developing programmes to clean
this debris. This is the reason why we consider this risk as non significant.
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an KEOs safe and sound return
to Earth in 50,000 years be guaranteed?
A technical feasibility study
carried out during the years 1996-1997 concluded that KEOs safe
and sound return to Earth in 50,000 years was possible. This means that
KEO has reasonable chances of attaining its objective of an interplanetary
mission being launched today. For this, KEO takes advantage of our present
day capabilities in precision design, technological mastery of capsule
re-entry and uses materials that have demonstrated their durability in
nature (eg. titanium, tungsten).
(For more information, you could
refer to the site, www.keo.org and download
3 pages in English that talk about the technical feasibility of the project
at the 48th International Astronautical Congress, Turin, October
1997.)
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Even if the satellite survives
in space for 50,000 years, how would we know that our messages are intact?
In
July 1998, the National Grand Accelerator of Heavy Ions (GANIL) conducted
an experiment whereby glass disks on which our messages will be engraved
were exposed to intensive radiation. The experiment showed that the disks
and their data remained intact even after they were exposed to an equivalent
amount of cosmic radiation that they will undergo in 50,000 years.
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How would our future descendants
be able to read our messages?
It
is evident that what is a must in our technology today -a
laser reader- will be absolutely obsolete in the future. However, due
to its volume and innate fragility, a DVD disk reader cannot be included
in KEOs payload. Therefore we are currently working on creating
diagrams bearing simple symbolic explanations to construct a DVD disk
reader in order to make it possible for our future descendants to access
the contents of the disks. Following
the example of the Rosetta Stone, this information will be repeatedly
made available to them such that it is clear and easy to decode.
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Do we need to pay anything to participate
in this project?
No.
KEO is an operation that is open to everybody free of cost.
In
order to make it possible for everybody to participate in this project,
we have managed to restrict the cost of individual participation to the
cost of an Internet connection or a postal stamp to send the message.
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When can we start sending in our messages?
You
can send your message right now, either via Internet through our site www.keo.org by
visiting the page titled Your Message or by post to: Programme
KEO, BP 100, 75262 Paris Cedex 06, FRANCE.
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Can we write what we please?
Yes.
All messages received by KEO will be sent aboard the satellite without
undergoing any censorship.
It
is upon each individual to decide what he wishes to write in his message.
The
only restrictions are the length of the messages that cannot exceed 6,000
characters or 4 A4 sized pages (so that each person has the right to contribute) and the obligation to
fill the information asked so that our future descendants know who is
the author of the message (name, sex, date of birth, nationality, country
of residence, maternal language, address, profession, hobbies and how
did you discover KEO).
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Can we also send drawings, photos,
sounds,
?
No, only written messages will be accepted. Drawings,
photos and sound are heavy consumers of disk memory and would not permit
each person living on this planet to express himself. Keeping in mind
the physical constraints of the memory space, a certain form of restriction
or censorship would have been necessary. This contradicts the spirit of
the project that is collectively open to everybody. However since images
and sound form an integral and important constituent of our times, they
will be represented in the Contemporary Library of Alexandria
, the encyclopedia of all the knowledge, habits and customs of the Man
of the 21st century.
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What about those people who are
illiterate?
KEO depends essentially on the
human solidarity to receive messages from those people who are illiterate.
We are currently working with
several international networks to publicize the project and to help in
the collection of messages.
When a child hears about KEO
at school, on television, in the library or at the dispensary, we hope
that he talks about this to his parents or his grand parents. If anybody
amongst them do not know how to write, dont you think that this
child would pen down their oral message?
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What about those people who do
not have access to the Internet?
If
you do not have your own Internet connection you may try and find it in
the neighborhood-at a friends place, at a cyber cafe, at the library,
at school or at the city hall. Or you may address your message by regular
post at: Programme KEO, BP 100, 75262 Paris Cedex 06, FRANCE.
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In which language will the messages be preserved?
The
messages will be stored in the authors original language, the language
that he has chosen to express himself.
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Can we consult the content of the
messages?
Yes,
all the messages, after being made anonymous, will be made available for consultation. We ourselves
are looking for a wide coverage and readership of the messages. We believe
that without a real exchange of messages between us, KEO will never be
able to completely attain its goal.
In
fact even though KEO constitutes a formidable gift for the future generations,
its real interest lies in the impact it will have on us today.
Slowly
and gradually as the messages arrive they will be stocked in secured databases
which will be made accessible via the Internet after the launch of KEO during the year 2003. Each
person can thus inquire about the human community that exists in Africa,
America, Australia, Asia and Europe
..
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
How is this project being financed?
Thus, Programme KEO being an
ethically transparent organization can avoid all criticism regarding better
usage of resources for other objectives such as humanitarian goals.
Only the Project Co-ordination
Team of Programme KEO that works full time to manage the different activities
and participants has to find ways of financing its daily operations.
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What energy resources will KEO
utilize?
KEO
does not have its own energy. It is a passive satellite which means that
it does not contain any energy sources or active instrumentation on board.
Once injected into the orbit, it is only subject to the laws of nature
(ballistic forces, terrestrial, lunar and planetary attraction, pressure
from solar radiation and breaking due to the Earths residual atmosphere),
that will be responsible for its long journey of 50,000 years before it
returns to its native soil.
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·
Can we communicate with KEO during
its flight?
No,
because KEO is a passive satellite that cannot be contacted once it is
launched into its orbit. Since it will be orbiting around 1,800 kilometers
above the Earth it will be possible to view its flight with the help of
powerful optic telescopes. On
the other hand to survive 50,000 years KEO has to be made up of stable
materials alone: interactive materials like batteries which would have
permitted us to communicate with it, would have in return endangered its
life due to their unpredictable decomposition.
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·
Why does KEO have wings?
Purely
for symbolic reasons KEO is adorned with two big wings. This image will appeal to the human imagination
as the mythical figure of a bird that is the messenger of the people of
the 21st century.
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If KEO is a passive satellite,
how can it flutter its wings?
To allow its wings to flutter, KEO uses a leading-edge technology
shape memory alloys. These are metallic alloys that are able
to assume different shapes according to different temperature ranges and
are able to revert to their original shapes each time they are brought
back under their original temperature.
In this case, the difference
in temperature between shadow and sunlight is exploited, so that during
its orbit around Earth, KEO will spread its wings when it is touched by
the suns rays and fold them when it re-enters the Earths shadow.
Therefore, no form of energy is needed to make KEOs wings function.
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How will the information forming
the Contemporary Library of Alexandria be chosen?
A
multicultural, multidisciplinary and multidimensional « Committee
of Learned People » has been assigned with the responsibility to
classify all the information, both geopolitical and cultural (translating
our habits and customs) of the people of the 21st century for
the benefit of our future descendants.
XI THE CREATOR OF KEO
JEAN-MARC
PHILIPPE
Scientific university education
Specialist in internal geophysics,
decided during his thesis (external geophysics) to extend rational knowledge
to Art.
Artistic
Activities:
1967 to 1984: Painter
His paintings express the spiritual
vacuum of the techno-cultural western societies: translation of his revolt
and his interrogations. Around forty exhibitions (collective and/or individual)
displayed at Paris: Galerie Alexandre Iolas (1974), Galeri Attali (1976),
One Man Show FIAC Grand Palais - Paris (1981), Musée dArt
Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1983), Centre George Pompidou (1984, 1989),
Since 1980:
Multi-technology and multimedia artist
The traditional artistic equipments
like brushes and colors slowly disappeared from his palette to give place
to modern new technologies, that he exploited for expressing his artistic
imagination; developed novel and creative tools to reply to his needs.
Initiator
of the relation between art-science-technologies
Pioneer of analogical and digital images
Conceived his own
electronic circuits to produce analogical images that he created during
the years 1975/80 ( Walk
in the madness of Vincent,
Variations in Bénins masks
).- Proposed the first
double holograms as a reply to the project Chapel of the Meditation popularized
through the media. - Built
bridges between art and complementary sciences (physics, physiology, acoustic,
sculpture) to produce Sonorous
environment and interactive and enslaved visuals.
Pioneer of the relation between Art and Shape memory
alloys
Finalized a new facet
of metallic materials, shape memory forms (Nickel/Titanium)
in California with a world leader in technology (1985/1989). These were
destined to produce concepts of Evolutionary
Sculptures to Shape Memory Alloys: the Totem of the Future, the Circle
of Life, the Door
to two Infinities. These sculptures, although totally metallic,
evolve in form with the transition from night to day, from season to season,
after the metallic material has been taught about the predetermined
forms.
Co-founder of spatial art
The first few foundations were set in the years 1975/80
describing several principles for creating artificial and luminous phenomenon
in space. These were the fruit of reflection, laser beams or emission
of electrons that could be totally visible from the planet behind a background
of firmament or during day light. Confirmed and elaborated upon in Paris,
Boston (MIT), San Francisco, Tokyo
the most renowned concept amongst
them is the Celestial Wheel,
the project Venus+
EsArt
Messages from man
to the universe (1986/87)
Conceived and produced
the operation Messages from
Man to the Universe. An operation which involved collecting
messages from the French population and its overseas territories for a
period of seven months through the Minitel. More than 10,000 messages
were emitted from the Radio Telescope at Nancy on the 26th
of January, 1987 towards the heart of the galaxy. They shall reach the
galaxy in 30,000 years and will definitively leave our galaxy in 100,000
years. (an operation supported by the international scientific community).
The sphere of Mars (1992/2003)
Initiated and produced
the programme The Sphere
of Mars: evolutionary sculptures made from shape memory alloys
destined to be symbolically deposited to Planet Mars, during a scientific
interplanetary mission (the launch is to be confirmed on the Italio-American
mission NASA/ASI 2003).
KEO (1994/2003)
KEO (1994/2003)
Initiated and developed
the concept of KEO
that involves launching a satellite into orbit destined to return to Earth
in 50,000 years. The satellite will carry with it messages that the people
of today would like to transmit to their future great grandchildren.
Prizes and
international recognition:
Winner of the ISAT
NEW HORIZON AWARD 1987 Leonardo Berkeley USA.
Prize awarded for the junction Art/ Shape Memory Alloys and
the production of the first evolutionary sculpture made from shape memory
alloys, nickel/titanium the Totem of the Future- produced
in the San Francisco bay.
Winner of the TROPHY
FAUST 1987 Toulouse (attributed for the junction Art/
Shape Memory Alloys).
Winner of the CLIC
DOR 1998 Paris. Special jury prize awarded to the
site, www.keo.org. (best artistic project, best site).
Winner of the PRIX
ARS ELECTRONICA 1999 Linz (Austria). Prize awarded for the best
project that links Art and Internet.
Winner
of PRIX AIR ET ESPACE 2000
Megève (France).
Relation
with institutes
Member of the European Academy of Science, Art and Literature
Paris (since 1983).
Participates in several
reflections and international colloquiums, related to questions with perspectives;
was lead to propose numerous global actions. One of the initiators of
the creation of Global Ethical
Committee for the Peaceful Utilization of Space (UNESCO, ESA, 1986),
of the project Royalties/Garden/Earth
(UNESCO 1986), co-initiator of the Global
ethical committee for the utilization of science and techniques
(1987) whose discussion was taken over by UNESCO and the Organization
for Human Rights in October, 1994 at Trieste.
Member of the international
society for art, science and technology Berkeley, USA (since 1987).
Advisor at the city
of science and industry Paris (1980/85)
Is responsible for
the presence of the junction Art/ Technology at the City of Science and
Industry.
Official French representative at international
conferences
European Conference
of Philosophy Athens 1985, Second Franco-Japanese Cultural Summit
Arc and Senans 1985../
Consultant, advice and expertise for non-governmental
organizations.
Publications
and books
Around twenty articles and communications
Mainly in the reviews:
SPIRALI, AUTREMENT, LEONARDO in
relation with the junction of Art/Sciences/Technologies and its theoretical
and practical implications.
Books (co-author)
Computer Technology and Artistic Creation:
the Non-human Brains - Editions Denoël Paris 1971
Mathematics and Art Editions SPIRALI Milan 1984
The Immaterial Editions AUTREMENT
Paris 1986
Science and Sense: interdisciplinary research Editions
Du Mail Paris 1994
Science and the Metamorphism of Art
Collection The New Diderot Encyclopedia
PUF 1994
Lectures,
conferences, congresses
Founding member of CETEC (European Center
of Technoculture) University Paris-Dauphine
Lectures and conferences at the University
of Sorbonne, Paris-Dauphine, Jussieu, Stanford, Louvain
From 1980 to 1990, participated in several international
congresses and colloquiums related to the theme Art, Science, Technology as
well as to the reflection on the articulation of Art,
Science, Economy.
Lives in
Paris
Email: jmphilippe@keo.org