Posthuman Blues

Apparently some think there's a massive face at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. While I realize it's impossible to prove a negative, I'm personally satisfied that the Pacific "face" is naturally occurring and, moreover, not all that face-like. But it catches my interest because it helps provide a systematic way to gauge the archaeological merits of similar surface features, both on Earth and on Mars.

If the Pacific "face" is a simulacrum, as I'm betting it is, we can bring our understanding to bear on a number of supposed geoglyphs on the Martian surface. Like the vaguely defined likeness deep below the Pacific, most of the "faces" (and animal likenesses) on Mars are seen solely in profile. While this doesn't automatically discount them from the artificiality debate, it makes objective assessment surprisingly difficult; after all, our own planet is littered with asymmetric artificial formations that could easily pass for natural hills and mesas if not for extensive aerial and on-site analysis.

(Click here to see your host bravely clambering atop ancient Indian burial mounds.)