# What person alive today, will be remembered 1000 years from now? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 12, 2011, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402 "2011-08-12T01:04:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![ajdebosco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@ajdebosco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ajdebosco)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/201 "2011-08-24T15:38:20Z")
Plus, a whole bunch of folks truly believed 1000 AD was the end of times for good ol’ planet earth, so the Dark Ages were quite stark in terms of preserving anything for posterity. If it hadn’t been for a group of Irish Monks working to painstakingly write down everything they could, we might not have any records that survived that period. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/202 "2011-08-24T16:26:07Z")
Wonder if Tim Berners-Lee will be 2511’s Gutenberg. ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/203 "2011-08-24T17:23:49Z")
I’m in the Tim Berners-Lee camp. And if we can include the semi-recently dead, I’ll add Pope John Paul II and Mother Theresa. It seems very occidental, but I think some form of English will persist, even if it’s about as common as Latin is today. And I believe that the way antibiotics are dished out in Asia that an antibiotic-resistant plague (even THE plague) will wipe out huge numbers of people due to sheer overcrowding. My thoughts are that the fairly sparsely populated countries will take over (Canada, the US, and Australia). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/204 "2011-08-24T17:41:24Z")
Someone is going to get credit for the internet/computers/et cetera; it’s too early to say just who. (Sergei Brin & Larry Page? Berners-Lee? Bill Gates?) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/205 "2011-08-24T17:53:52Z")
Sergei Brin and Larry Page? Not a chance. They didn’t invent the search engine; they just made a better one. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/206 "2011-08-24T18:01:14Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Sergei Brin and Larry Page? Not a chance. They didn’t invent the search engine; they just made a better one. weird thought… would zuckerburg be credited as the inventor of social media even though friendster/myspace came first? and that AOL IM and MSNmessenger before that? would the inventor of social media even be remembered? it will certainly have staying power. ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/207 "2011-08-24T23:56:43Z")
> [@Tom\_Scud](#): > > Someone is going to get credit for the internet/computers/et cetera; it’s too early to say just who. (Sergei Brin & Larry Page? Berners-Lee? Bill Gates?) You left out the _ **real** _ inventor of the “internet”… Al Gore! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/208 "2011-08-25T00:26:08Z")
> [@JBDivmstr](#): > > You left out the _ **real** _ inventor of the “internet”… Al Gore! :rolleyes: Off-topic, outdated and wrong. Knock the first one off. There’s not much I can do about the other two. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/209 "2011-08-25T00:28:25Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Off-topic, outdated and wrong. Knock the first one off. There’s not much I can do about the other two. How is speculation that Al Gore may be remembered in 1000 years as the inventor of the internet off topic? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/210 "2011-08-25T00:31:58Z")
If you think that’s what he meant, I have a [del]bridge[/del] subprime mortgage to sell you. ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/211 "2011-08-25T01:00:55Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Off-topic, outdated and wrong. Knock the first one off. There’s not much I can do about the other two. Duly noted. My apologies. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/212 "2011-08-25T12:14:07Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Sergei Brin and Larry Page? Not a chance. They didn’t invent the search engine; they just made a better one. So? Edison didn’t invent the light bulb, either. You don’t have to be first at something to be indelibly linked to it. ---
**Author:** ![thelabdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@thelabdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelabdude)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/213 "2011-08-25T17:00:03Z")
I can’t think of anybody alive now that has changed the course of the world and will be widely remembered 1000 years for now. Now if Ahmadinejad succeeds in destroying the Great Satan and imposing a long lasting world caliphate, he would be. Possibly if we elect a president that manages to halt America’s decline and restore us to greatness, maybe. I don’t see that person among the current candidates. Many mentioned so far will be in the storage media of time, but not in the minds of the common people. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/214 "2011-08-25T18:09:29Z")
> [@Namkcalb](#): > > I doubt he’ll be remembered. > > The current one is known for his tireless political activism for the tibetan people, but now that the tibetan exiles started democratically appointing leaders, they’ll also get much of the limelight. > > Besides, there is an up-and-coming superpower which has no problem with writing him out of history. I doubt very much he’ll be remembered all over the world, but by Buddhists in that area of the world he will be, if Buddhism exists, of course. > [@Peremensoe](#): > > It’s also a question of significance–what people will _care_ about. > > Most of the suggestions in the thread suggest that we have a very inflated sense of our own time’s importance, or else an inadequate grasp of just how long a thousand years is. > > When nominating cultural/creative figures, consider this: you are proposing that someone of our times will be two and a half _times_ as enduring, to the people of the 31st century, as Shakespeare is to us. I think most people are aware that hardly anyone at all will be remembered, but they’re considering who’s got the best chance, as a thought experiment. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/215 "2011-08-25T18:59:57Z")
> [@aerodave](#): > > So? Edison didn’t invent the light bulb, either. > > You don’t have to be first at something to be indelibly linked to it. In this vein, I have a couple suggestions of people who aren’t famous YET, but may become famous as people look nostalgically back to the past and ask “who invented \_\_\_\_\_\_\_, this revolutionary thing that has changed history forever since.” **Philo Farnsworth** (not alive today, but would be 105 if he hadn’t died - so humor me), inventor of the first electronic television (he didn’t invent the first TV per se, but as you pointed out, that isn’t a requirement for noteriety). He could be an inspiration because of a few things. 1) Television (visual media in general) has changed media distribution fundamentally, just as Guttenberg’s printing press did hundreds of years ago. 2) He invented as a teenager, which will encourage teachers to use him as an example of how anyone can achieve great things. 3) He invented LOTS of different things that contributed greatly in many different ways throughout the 20th century. I hadn’t even heard of his name until I just now googled “inventor of the television”, but after reading a little about him, it’s a wonder that he isn’t ultra-famous now. Give it a few hundred years to percolate and we’ll see if history gives him the props he deserves. I believe television (and its future derivatives) will still be around in the year 3000 and his name will stand the test of time. **Tim Berners-Lee** will probably go down as the creator of the internet. I think this is a great choice people have brought up here so far. Again, not technically/entirely accurate as being solely responsible… but humans have an affinity for crediting only one (or two sometimes) individuals for major, earth-shattering accomplishments. The internet and world wide web as we know it may not be around in the year 3000, but something that has grown out of it most certainly will be and people will want to give credit to someone. **Freeman Dyson** , another name I saw brought up here, will most likely be a very common name (Dyson) anyway, as I believe that Dyson Trees will most likely be a reality by then, and perhaps even Dyson Spheres. It’s so hard to predict the rate of technological advancement since we are really still in the infancy of it, but if any of his sci-fi predictions come true then count on lots of things getting named after him. He probably has a good chance of getting some SI Unit named after him as well once he dies. He isn’t going to be the INVENTOR of these things, but I think his name will get attached as he was the first to popularize them and has the math and physics credentials to be taken seriously. \*\*J Robert Oppenheimer \*\* (he would be 107 if alive today, I know I’m stretching here but bear with me please) will almost certainly be commonly remembered as the father of the atomic age. As I believe atomic energy will be incredibly pervasive in the year 3000, he will be a common household name. People will probably be giving him credit for all sorts of nuclear stuff he never really had anything to do with. Fusion energy will be THE MAIN power source in the year 3000, and even though some very famous scientist(s) alive today will create the first viable fusion power plant, Oppenheimer will be conflated as the founder of all things atomic and given the credit. And just to comment on a few of the other loosely-related to the OP debates going on here… **Adolf Hitler** will almost certainly be remembered as well as Atilla the Hun, Alexander the Great, etc… in the sense that people will know his name but be aware of VERY few of the details of what he did or why he was famous. People will probably know he was bad, but that’s it. \*\*Obama \*\*will almost certainly be completely forgotten by the year 3000. I am an Obama fan and supporter, but come on. I don’t believe ANY historic US president has \*worldwide \*name recognition even now, let alone in the year 3000. How many common blokes in China, Poland, or Indonesia could tell you who the first president of the US was, or would even recognize the name Franklin Delano Roosevelt or Abraham Lincoln? I may be way off base here, but no single US president has changed the world in a fundamental way that will cement his name into mankind’s collective concsiousness. I’m not really sure any living/ruling politician today will be memorable 3000 years from now. There just really isn’t a lot of earth-shattering stuff going on politically that can be attributed to just one name. The globe is changing profoundly but can that change be attached to just one name? I’m skeptical. \*\*Yuri Gagarin \*\* (would be 77 if alive today, not so much a stretch this time!) is an excellent choice, as humanity will probably be deeply involved in space exploration, and he is an obvious choice. He also died in service so he’s a hero, which only helps his case. I actually think that **Neil Armstrong** also has a strong chance at being well remembered, as humans had long fantasized about going to the moon and exploring its surface rather than the more general “outer space.” People who are most likely alive today but have not yet achieved the greatness that will solidify their immortality in the minds of the humans of the year 3000: **First person to walk on Mars**. This was a good choice brought up by other posters on this topic, but I wanted to add my own spin on WHY this name will be famous. This person will probably be a woman, chosen for political reasons, and will be famous for being the first human to set foot on another planet in our solar system. the fact that she is a woman will be a huge positive role model and boost to people everywhere. She will be an instant celebrity. Universities will be named after her. After decades of absolutely no famous astronauts, she will re-invigorate the imagination of humanity. I have little doubt that she is alive today, but she is probably very young. **Creator of the first human-level artificial intelligence**. I believe we are really close to achieving this goal (within the next 50-70 years). This won’t be an android with human qualities, but a big mainframe, like HAL. Artificial intelligence will be hugely pervasive in the future, and I believe the creator will be cemented into the minds of humans forever. Ok, that’s enough for now! I hope you enjoyed my ramblings/musings. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/216 "2011-08-25T20:01:52Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > People who are most likely alive today but have not yet achieved the greatness that will solidify their immortality in the minds of the humans of the year 3000: > > **First person to walk on Mars**. This was a good choice brought up by other posters on this topic, but I wanted to add my own spin on WHY this name will be famous. This person will probably be a woman, chosen for political reasons, and will be famous for being the first human to set foot on another planet in our solar system. the fact that she is a woman will be a huge positive role model and boost to people everywhere. She will be an instant celebrity. Universities will be named after her. After decades of absolutely no famous astronauts, she will re-invigorate the imagination of humanity. I have little doubt that she is alive today, but she is probably very young. I have strong doubts that our first Martian is alive yet. I doubt a human will set foot on that rock this side of 2050. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/217 "2011-08-25T22:12:09Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > I have strong doubts that our first Martian is alive yet. I doubt a human will set foot on that rock this side of 2050. I’m not sure what reason there is to go to Mars at all at the moment, and I suspect that if we ever do go there, it will be because of a major paradigm shift of some sort, either technologically or culturally. It’s possible that the people behind that shift will be remembered even more that the first person on Mars. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402/218 "2011-08-26T13:23:43Z")
> [@aerodave](#): > > So? Edison didn’t invent the light bulb, either. > > You don’t have to be first at something to be indelibly linked to it. In this vein, I have a couple suggestions of people who aren’t famous YET, but may become famous as people look nostalgically back to the past and ask “who invented \_\_\_\_\_\_\_, this revolutionary thing that has changed history forever since.” **Philo Farnsworth** (not alive today, but would be 105 if he hadn’t died - so humor me), inventor of the first electronic television (he didn’t invent the first TV per se, but as you pointed out, that isn’t a requirement for noteriety). He could be an inspiration because of a few things. 1) Television (visual media in general) has changed media distribution fundamentally, just as Guttenberg’s printing press did hundreds of years ago. 2) He invented as a teenager, which will encourage teachers to use him as an example of how anyone can achieve great things. 3) He invented LOTS of different things that contributed greatly in many different ways throughout the 20th century. I hadn’t even heard of his name until I just now googled “inventor of the television”, but after reading a little about him, it’s a wonder that he isn’t ultra-famous now. Give it a few hundred years to percolate and we’ll see if history gives him the props he deserves. I believe television (and its future derivatives) will still be around in the year 3000 and his name will stand the test of time. **Tim Berners-Lee** will probably go down as the creator of the internet. I think this is a great choice people have brought up here so far. Again, not technically/entirely accurate as being solely responsible… but humans have an affinity for crediting only one (or two sometimes) individuals for major, earth-shattering accomplishments. The internet and world wide web as we know it may not be around in the year 3000, but something that has grown out of it most certainly will be and people will want to give credit to someone. **Freeman Dyson** , another name I saw brought up here, will most likely be a very common name (Dyson) anyway, as I believe that Dyson Trees will most likely be a reality by then, and perhaps even Dyson Spheres. It’s so hard to predict the rate of technological advancement since we are really still in the infancy of it, but if any of his sci-fi predictions come true then count on lots of things getting named after him. He probably has a good chance of getting some SI Unit named after him as well once he dies. He isn’t going to be the INVENTOR of these things, but I think his name will get attached as he was the first to popularize them and has the math and physics credentials to be taken seriously. \*\*J Robert Oppenheimer \*\* (he would be 107 if alive today, I know I’m stretching here but bear with me please) will almost certainly be commonly remembered as the father of the atomic age. As I believe atomic energy will be incredibly pervasive in the year 3000, he will be a common household name. People will probably be giving him credit for all sorts of nuclear stuff he never really had anything to do with. Fusion energy will be THE MAIN power source in the year 3000, and even though some very famous scientist(s) alive today will create the first viable fusion power plant, Oppenheimer will be conflated as the founder of all things atomic and given the credit. And just to comment on a few of the other loosely-related to the OP debates going on here… **Adolf Hitler** will almost certainly be remembered as well as Atilla the Hun, Alexander the Great, etc… in the sense that people will know his name but be aware of VERY few of the details of what he did or why he was famous. People will probably know he was bad, but that’s it. \*\*Obama \*\*will almost certainly be completely forgotten by the year 3000. I am an Obama fan and supporter, but come on. I don’t believe ANY historic US president has \*worldwide \*name recognition even now, let alone in the year 3000. How many common blokes in China, Poland, or Indonesia could tell you who the first president of the US was, or would even recognize the name Franklin Delano Roosevelt or Abraham Lincoln? I may be way off base here, but no single US president has changed the world in a fundamental way that will cement his name into mankind’s collective concsiousness. I’m not really sure any living/ruling politician today will be memorable 3000 years from now. There just really isn’t a lot of earth-shattering stuff going on politically that can be attributed to just one name. The globe is changing profoundly but can that change be attached to just one name? I’m skeptical. \*\*Yuri Gagarin \*\* (would be 77 if alive today, not so much a stretch this time!) is an excellent choice, as humanity will probably be deeply involved in space exploration, and he is an obvious choice. He also died in service so he’s a hero, which only helps his case. I actually think that **Neil Armstrong** also has a strong chance at being well remembered, as humans had long fantasized about going to the moon and exploring its surface rather than the more general “outer space.” People who are most likely alive today but have not yet achieved the greatness that will solidify their immortality in the minds of the humans of the year 3000: **First person to walk on Mars**. This was a good choice brought up by other posters on this topic, but I wanted to add my own spin on WHY this name will be famous. This person will probably be a woman, chosen for political reasons, and will be famous for being the first human to set foot on another planet in our solar system. the fact that she is a woman will be a huge positive role model and boost to people everywhere. She will be an instant celebrity. Universities will be named after her. After decades of absolutely no famous astronauts, she will re-invigorate the imagination of humanity. I have little doubt that she is alive today, but she is probably very young. **Creator of the first human-level artificial intelligence**. I believe we are really close to achieving this goal (within the next 50-70 years). This won’t be an android with human qualities, but a big mainframe, like HAL. Artificial intelligence will be hugely pervasive in the future, and I believe the creator will be cemented into the minds of humans forever. Ok, that’s enough for now! I hope you enjoyed my ramblings/musings. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-person-alive-today-will-be-remembered-1000-years-from-now/592402.md?page=10)