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| Design Features The shape of a pyramid was chosen because of its triangular shape. The triangle is currently accepted universally as an indication for caution or danger (http://www.worksafesask.ca/files/ont_iapa/safetysigns.html). It will be made out of granite because of its durability and ability to hold shape: “Granite has been extensively used as dimension stone and as flooring tiles in public and commercial buildings and monuments” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granite). Taking sediment formation and other natural occurrences into account, the pyramid will be about four meters high. This will prevent the sign from becoming covered as time passes and will also render it to be quite visible to all who approach the area.
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| The pyramid will be elevated on a platform made also of granite
with the year of construction embossed from it. The elevation
will give extra assurance that the symbol will not be missed and
the date will hopefully provide a sort of timeline for not only
the age of the pyramid, but also the half-life of the
radioactive material (people can deduce from the date of
construction how many more years it will be before the area
becomes safe again). The granite itself will be stained in a
phosphor material. This produces fluorescence (glowing during
absorption of radiation of another kind) or phosphorescence
(sustained glowing without further stimulus) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phosphor).
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| This feature will give the sign a glow and add to its
visibility, particularly at night. Additional traces of
radioactive material (Uranium and Plutonium) will be embedded
inside the pyramid, behind all the locations where the radiation
symbol is present. This is in case that if whoever encounters
the sign has some sort of a Geiger meter. With the help of the
meter they will be able to understand that harmful materials are
present on the site (assuming radiation is harmful to them). The
radioactive traces will also serve as a precaution in case that
those who encounter are not able to understand the meanings of
any of the symbols. By placing the traces of radiation
underneath all the radiation symbols we hope that they will be
able to associate the sign with the harmful rays being omitted
and get a better understanding of the dangers. There are a total
of three signs on the pyramid: main radiation warning, no
drilling warning and no drinking water sign. All of these will
be embossed out of the granite. Embossment provides depth and
texture so that if people who are visually impaired approach the
pyramid, they can feel the surface to get some sort of
indication as to what dangers lay ahead.
Each sign will be arranged on one of the four faces of the pyramid. The main radiation warning sign will be found on faces one and three (opposite sides of the pyramid). It is present twice to demonstrate that it carries the most important facet of information. The no drilling sign will be on face two and the no drinking water sign will be found on the fourth face of the pyramid. This ensures that the relationship of the three signs will be understood without the possibility of overcrowding the sign with the appearance of too many symbols. Because of the pyramid’s shape, people are encouraged to walk around the pyramid so that they may comprehend more of the sign as a whole. As for the positioning of the pyramids, we believe that the signs relatively large size will allow it to be seen form long distance. For this reason the distance between two pyramids will be approximately 200m. The signs will surround Yucca Mountain, landscape permitting. |
