The New Seven Wonders Of The World

[Sambert]

If I had to list a NEW Seven Wonders, Macchu Pichu, Angkor Wat and the Great Wall of China wouldn't figure - awesome though they all are. Stonehenge shouldn't feature on any list where the word "new" is involved.

The use of the word "new" is in my view referring to the revision of wonders, rather than the inclusion of modern or post modern innovations or projects. There are of course a number of modern lists (that include your Channel Tunnel) though this endeavour is essentially about popularisation and participation in revisioning a list of wonders.

 

[Famine]

Doesn't make much sense though. The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World are no less wondrous after they've been destroyed. Replacing them with similar-vintage constructions isn't particularly wise - in fact I can guarantee that not one person I know can actually name the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

They usually get "the pyramids" (actually the Great Pyramid at Giza), the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and maybe the Colossus of Rhodes. The odd one will get the Pharos of Alexandria. The other 3... Nope.

 

[Sharky.]

in fact I can guarantee that not one person I know can actually name the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

They usually get "the pyramids" (actually the Great Pyramid at Giza), the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and maybe the Colossus of Rhodes. The odd one will get the Pharos of Alexandria. The other 3... Nope.

The Mausoleum thingy, er... um... still, I know five

 

[McLaren]

Those were scaffolding to support the road deck before the suspension cables were attached. That bridge was a marvel because the road deck added at each end of the bridge and then "pushed" out to meet the supports in the middle. The French did quite the innovation on this one.

I'd also add that a wonder is exactly that. If we witness something being built it shouldn't be considered a wonder...as in the Eiffel Tower or the Statue of Liberty. I do really wonder about the Great Pyramids and Stonehenge



You got that right!

Burj Dubai...The Building of all buildings...or at least for now!

I'm not sure how big, but the Burj Dubai is supposed to have another tower built with it, however, this one Dubai is not letting the specifications out.

 

[McLaren]

Do you guys realize the tallest structure on Earth is a TV tower in rural North Dakota?

And the second tallest is... a different TV tower in rural North Dakota?

Props to *McLaren* for choosing Neuschwanstein! 👍

I just remembered my father and uncle talking about it years ago. I wanted to make a trip to see it about 2 years ago, but I had no idea where in Germany it was. All I could get was, "'Tis in the mts." Really....

 

[Sambert]

Doesn't make much sense though. The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World are no less wondrous after they've been destroyed. Replacing them with similar-vintage constructions isn't particularly wise - in fact I can guarantee that not one person I know can actually name the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Ah, though it makes perfect sense in that the list is essentially a guide to 'must see' places. Although some folk would choose to marvel at modern feats of engineering, you'll find that most tourists are keen to visit iconic sites (unsurprising that historical marvels are considered to be more iconic, more mysterious etc.)

The Hanging Gardens may well have been wondrous, though the revisioning is all about connecting wonders with contemporary society- a patch of Iraqi desert or a dark fume filled tunnel doesn't really fit the bill...

 

[YSSMAN]

They usually get "the pyramids" (actually the Great Pyramid at Giza), the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and maybe the Colossus of Rhodes. The odd one will get the Pharos of Alexandria. The other 3... Nope.

Now that I think about it, I've always had trouble with the last three. I normally remember the statue of Zeus in addition to those already listed, but it is indeed the mausoleum and the temple of Artemus that get me almost every time.

The wikipedia lists these others as possible Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages:

* Stonehenge
* Colosseum
* Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa
* Great Wall of China
* Porcelain Tower of Nanjing
* Hagia Sophia
* Leaning Tower of Pisa

Other sites that have been mentioned include:

* Cairo Citadel
* Ely Cathedral
* Taj Mahal
* Cluny Abbey

Another list was done in the '90s by the American Society of Civil Engineers:

- Channel Tunnel: Strait of Dover, Europe
- CN Tower: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Empire State Building: New York, New York, USA
- Golden Gate Bridge: Golden Gate Strait, north of San Francisco, California, USA
- Itaipu Dam: Paraná River, South America
- Delta Works: Netherlands, Europe
- Panama Canal: Isthmus of Panama, Central America

Then there is the list that ABC/USA Today did last year...

1 Potala Palace: Lhasa, Tibet
2 Old City of Jerusalem: Israel
3 Polar ice caps: Polar regions
4 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Monument: Hawaii, United States
5 Internet: N/A
6 Mayan ruins: Yucatán Peninsula, Mesoamerica
7 Great Migration of Serengeti and Masai Mara: Kenya and Tanzania
8 Grand Canyon (viewer-chosen "eighth wonder"): Arizona, United States

So yeah, seems like everyone is a little different...

 

[Famine]

"Internet"...

I like that...

 

[TB]

Do you guys realize the tallest structure on Earth is a TV tower in rural North Dakota?

And the second tallest is... a different TV tower in rural North Dakota?

Both of which are less than an hour away from my house.

KVLY

KXJB

BTW, they are both owned by the same company.

 

[1X83Z]

I just remembered my father and uncle talking about it years ago. I wanted to make a trip to see it about 2 years ago, but I had no idea where in Germany it was. All I could get was, "'Tis in the mts." Really....

I wouldn't mind seeing it one day, and I'm not a huge fan of world travel. In photos it just looks so unbelievably breathtaking. To me, much more so than anything else on this list (even though it's far from the greatest feat on this list).

Both of which are less than an hour away from my house.

KVLY

KXJB

BTW, they are both owned by the same company.

I submit that they be wonders of the world. It's funny - people know what the tallest free-standing structure is (CN Tower) and the tallest building is (Taipei 101) but people are completely shocked to learn that the tallest structure ON EARTH sits outside a town of less than 100 inhabitants in one of the least-densely populated states. It's spectacular.

 

[TB]

I submit that they be wonders of the world. It's funny - people know what the tallest free-standing structure is (CN Tower) and the tallest building is (Taipei 101) but people are completely shocked to learn that the tallest structure ON EARTH sits outside a town of less than 100 inhabitants in one of the least-densely populated states. It's spectacular.

And why does it need to be that tall? Because they are two of the main television stations (NBC and CBS, respectively) and serve a viewing audience within a radius of approximately 85 miles. Again, due to the fact that there are a bunch of small farm towns around, but none of which can support their own TV stations.

I was there once years ago. I might have to go again, after ND thaws out in the Spring, of course.

 

[Philly]

Thrust SSC is a car which travels at the speed of sound. Four times. It took 60 years from the internal combustion engine to get a plane to Mach 1 and, just 40 years later, here we can do it in a car. A frickin' car.

Thrust SSC is not a car. Sure it drives on the ground. That is an airplane built to travel on land.

My suggestion:

bu

gat

ti

vey

ron.

 

[Slicks]

Kansei International Airport couldn't be built in existing space. So the Japanese found a novel solution to human overcrowding. They built a whole island for it. They built. An island. Nuff said.

Aaaand... It's sinking. Slowly. Fat lot of good a runway will do when it's underwater. I'm sure you could fit alot of people on the roof of the terminal, though.
Oh, did I mention the cost of the airport so far is $15 billion, 40% over budget? And losing $550 million a year.
So let's recap. $15b Airport. It's doing two things of interest: Sinking, and losing money while doing so.
Other than the costs involved, it doesn't seem that wondrous to me.

 

[Touring Mars]

So far, according to the GTP users who have voted (44 so far), the new Seven Wonders of the World would be...

1. The Great Wall of China (China) - 39/44
2. The Pyramids of Giza (Egypt) - 35/44
3= Stonehenge (United Kingdom) - 28/44
3= The Collosseum, Rome (Italy) - 28/44
5. Macchu Pichu (Peru) - 21/44
6. Statues of Easter Island (Chile) - 20/44
7. The Acropolis (Greece) - 19/44

 

[niky]

Ancient or not, the Great Wall deserves that kudos.

I voted Macchu Pichu... not because of any inherent greatness of engineering, but just because it's so gosh-darned scenic.

I agree that Wonders shouldn't just refer to feats or cheats of engineering, but they should be breathtaking and inspiring. I've never thought of a cylinder of steel and glass as inspiring, considering there are thousands of other cylinders and rectangles of similar height out there, and a few dozen that are almost as tall.

Stonehenge... beh.

My list (from what was mentioned in this thread):

-Great Wall (still tremendously impressive)
-Macchu Pichu (because it's pretty)
-Statue of Liberty (simply because it is iconic... a symbol of America... well, either this or Mount Rushmore, but giant stone thingies have been done before)
-Arrecibo (good call, Famine... both a technological wonder and an architectural one)

-That damn bridge:

-Sydney Opera House (again, iconic)
-Taj Mahal (ditto)

-------

Technological Wonders?

Definitely
-Saturn V
-The Internet (take your pick)
-Amongst cars? McLaren F1... but I could be prejudiced... the NSX, maybe?... but honestly, the Ford Model T... revolutionized the industry of making transportation devices.
-"Little Boy"
-Television Broadcasting... the TV.
-The Printing Press.
-The Light Bulb.

 

[Famine]

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Aaaand... It's sinking. Slowly. Fat lot of good a runway will do when it's underwater. I'm sure you could fit alot of people on the roof of the terminal, though.
Oh, did I mention the cost of the airport so far is $15 billion, 40% over budget? And losing $550 million a year.
So let's recap. $15b Airport. It's doing two things of interest: Sinking, and losing money while doing so.
Other than the costs involved, it doesn't seem that wondrous to me.

The UK would spectacularly fail to build a football stadium or parliamentary building for that much, with similar end results.

 

[GT4_Rule]

I voted for Great Wall of China. Truly amazing piece by itself.

 

[Touring Mars]

What about your other six choices?? You could have picked up to 7... 💡

Nevermind... you can always for your favourite seven in the actual competition, website link is in Post #1

 

[Speedy Samurai]

I have been to the Kiyomizu temple in Japan, and although it was quite breathtaking and awesome, I don't consider it in the same league as other items on the list.

 

[Philly]

Last night I watched a wierd show about aliens. It was about how many of the ancient wonders were build by aliens as science experiments. Yeah. It was really wierd.

Wonders:

Apollo program? Other space stuff?
Powered Flight?
Manhattan project?
Roman empire? (just a thought)
Longevity?
Human Geonome project?
SETI?

I'm sure we could come up with a huge list.

 

[Danoff]

Results have been announced. I managed 3 out of 7.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TRAVEL/07/06/seven.wonders/index.html

 

[McLaren]

Do you guys realize the tallest structure on Earth is a TV tower in rural North Dakota?

And the second tallest is... a different TV tower in rural North Dakota?

Props to *McLaren* for choosing Neuschwanstein! 👍

Actually Doug, the second tallest structure ever is the Petronius Platform at 2,001.3 feet behind the KVLY tower (2,037.4 ft). Before 1991 though, the tallest structure ever was the Warsaw Radio Tower at 2,120 ft. until it's collapse. The rest of the tower just sits and rots these days.

As for Burj, here's some current pics. It's projected the at least 1 or 2 more floors may have been completed since July 1st, making it almost as tall as the Taipei 101.

End of June/Beginning of July pictures.

 

[livemusic]

Results have been announced. I managed 3 out of 7.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TRAVEL/07/06/seven.wonders/index.html

This was meaningless to me. Over here there were ads on tv with the latest Big Brother Brasil winner asking for votes to the Christ Redeemer.

So this was mostly about the more populated countries getting the most votes for their "wonders".

 

[Omnis]

Even as someone with italian heritage, I am somewhat baffled by the decision to include the Colosseum when the Pyramids of Giza aren't even on the list.

That's like Mount Rushmore compared to Madison Square Garden.

 

[Serge.D]

Great Wall of China.


Niagara Falls.


Panama Canal.


Sidney Opera House.


http://profile.imageshack.us/camerabuy.php?model=Canon+EOS+350D+DIGITAL&make=Canon Taj Mahal.

 

[Famine]

Actually Doug, the second tallest structure ever is the Petronius Platform at 2,001.3 feet behind the KVLY tower (2,037.4 ft).

Nope. The three tallest structures on Earth are all TV masts in the USA.

KVLY/KTHI TV Mast (North Dakota) - 2063ft
KXJB Tower (North Dakota) - 2060ft
KXTV/KOVR Tower (California) - 2049ft

In fact, 28 of the 30 tallest structures EVER are TV masts in the USA - the others being the Warsaw Radio Mast (2118ft) and the Petronius Platform which is an oil-drilling platform - though this is only 240ft tall, as the rest of it is underwater.


Technically the tallest man-made structure - though a bit of a reach - is the Kola Superdeep Borehole, which is 7.6 miles tall.

 

[Danoff]

Yea I don't think it counts as "tallest" if you got to use gravity to build it instead of fighting it. Tallest has to be measured from local ground height and go upward.

 

[Famine]

Yea I don't think it counts as "tallest" if you got to use gravity to build it instead of fighting it. Tallest has to be measured from local ground height and go upward.

Which boots out the Petronius Platform straight off the bat.

 

[McLaren]

Nope. The three tallest structures on Earth are all TV masts in the USA.

KVLY/KTHI TV Mast (North Dakota) - 2063ft
KXJB Tower (North Dakota) - 2060ft
KXTV/KOVR Tower (California) - 2049ft

In fact, 28 of the 30 tallest structures EVER are TV masts in the USA - the others being the Warsaw Radio Mast (2118ft) and the Petronius Platform which is an oil-drilling platform - though this is only 240ft tall, as the rest of it is underwater.


Technically the tallest man-made structure - though a bit of a reach - is the Kola Superdeep Borehole, which is 7.6 miles tall.

Damn...screw Wikipedia, then. I'll just start using Faminedia.

 

[SimRaceDriver]

For this to be an 'accurate list', then the organizers of the poll should have defined the word "New"....as to me, the word 'New' incorporates 20th/21st technology. (1800 & Beyond)

However, since this was not taken into consideration at the time the poll was initiated, then IMHO, for as great an achievement as building the Great Wall of China, the Panama Canal, English Channel, Sydney Opera House, Leaning Tower of Pisa, Etc, Etc., one must look at the sheer beauty of what "Mother Nature", or should I say "God", created in the Grand Canyon!

Not a single person who has ever seen it can walk away not admiring the sheer beauty of such a spectacle and I truly believe should forever be considered a "Wonder of the World!"

Honestly, for me, when I think of 'wonder', I think of something that when I see it, I instantly think to myself:

"Holy ****king sh**!" "This exists on planet earth!"

Thus, for a list of 'new wonders of the world' to be truly identified, someone needs to set the definitions of both 'new' (how many years old is it 100? 1,000) and 'wonder' (man-made or not?)

And when one defines "wonder", then what precedence do we as a society use to determine such a monument? Height? Width?

What about 'iconic value', or 'importance factor'...
Meaning, does the reference to the specific 'wonder' invoke instant recognization, such as the "Golden Gate Bridge" (I'm sure more people, when asked, would place this bridge in the state of California, then those who could place the location of "Mount Rushmore") or the overall importance of said wonder to society as a whole stand out?

As it stands now, the list of "7 NEW Wonders of the World" has not been properly defined, thus in my opinion, the list is inconclusive.


BUT...This is just my opinion!


SRD:

PS: Hopefully I didn't confuse anyone by what I was trying to say...