The Guardian reports that likely hoaxers claim to have found an 800-year-old mobile phone made out of clay. The “phone” buttons have ancient cuneiform characters, and the model looks a lot like an old Nokia phone. Apparently the idea is that someone made the phone out of clay 800 years ago because time-travelers or aliens showed them one.
So as a result we are seeing clickbait today suggesting this proves time travel exists… in response, we have:
3 Questions That Arise From This Story
- As Microsoft now owns Nokia mobile, is Microsoft responsible for this hoax? We can’t think of anyone else imagining someone in the future would use a Nokia/Microsoft phone using an ancient language nobody cares about.
- If your kids cover the top of your old typewriter in Play-doh, and your dog buries the resulting Play-doh keyboard replica in the backyard, does that prove time travel is real? Answer: not unless the dog goes back in time a few hours and erases dumb news stories about 800-year-old clay phones and uses the clay typewriter to type a real news story.*
- “Can you hear me now?” If by now, you mean “2016” the answer is no, we can’t hear you from the future from a phone made of clay. But apparently the news media can hear and publish your story, so congratulations!
*If so, you have a smart journalist dog. We suggest renaming him “Anderson Pooper.”
