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Re:Arctic World Archive Adds Latest Data Deposit in Svalbard... by thaumasiotes on Saturday September 25, 2021 @05:18PM (#28656259)
> what is the data that is worth backing up in a really futureproof manner?

A futureproof encoding would have to be something like images at a scale visible to the naked eye engraved in a substance that cannot be corroded or destroyed. Stainless steel is probably fine for the material, but you run into limits on the amount of space (and steel) you're willing to devote to the project. And most information just can't be represented pictorially anyway, so the theoretical possibility of futureproof storage isn't even there.

Re:Arctic World Archive Adds Latest Data Deposit in Svalbard... by exporectomy on Sunday September 26, 2021 @04:25AM (#28659288)
I wonder if progressively shrinking the scale from human-visible to as small as we like would be a better way. After people see the obvious data, it would be clear that there's always more just out of sight and create the incentive to develop the technology to access it.

Stainless steel still corrodes, and even 316 can't even be used for many marine applications because of the salt water corroding it. Maybe fancier alloys are OK but for 1000s of years, it might pay to use something more history-tested.