News Summary

The Clock of the Long Now, a 10,000-year timepiece designed to encourage long-term thinking, is progressing with significant backing from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Located in a remote Texas mountain, the clock is the brainchild of Danny Hillis, a computer scientist who co-founded the Long Now Foundation in 1996. The project is both a philosophical and engineering challenge, using materials like titanium and stainless steel to ensure it lasts for millennia. Bezos has reportedly committed $42 million to the project, although this has not been officially confirmed. The clock aims to tick once a year, chime every century, and unveil a cuckoo each millennium. Although the final version of the clock is under construction, a prototype can be seen at the Science Museum in London. The remote location of the clock is intended to protect it and make visits a ‘pilgrimage,’ according to Bezos. The project hopes to inspire solutions to long-term global issues by encouraging a shift away from short-term thinking.