With apologies to Edgar Rice Burroughs…

John Carter, grizzled veteran of the informatics wars, woke up from a restful night bivouacked beneath a down comforter in the nearby Hilton. He had only one goal that morning, a quest that he would complete at any cost: the search for a good caffe latte. Glancing at the sidewalk he was confronted by a strange sight, a series of brass arcs etched into the concrete. Looking about for clues, he espied a carefully lettered sign reading “American Geophysical Union.” He returned to contemplation of the mysterious traceries in the pavement and eventually realized that the strange symbols represented the orbits of the planets! Triangulating carefully, he realized that he was nearly standing on the planet Mars. What race of graying, bespectacled men might have laid these symbols for anyone to see? Would our world ever see their likes again?