Time layer

Google Earth is sorta cool. It is like you're there (on earth), which presumably you're not if you're looking at a freaking virtual simulation of the earth. Effing silly right? But what would be cool is if you could be places where you aren't (I know, Paris, tevs)...but what I really mean is places when you aren't. EG the past.

So I'm thinking somebody should use SketchUp or other modeling type things to create the entire past of the world. Everyone could do their area of expertise. You do the shipping industry in SF in the 1910's and someone else will do the Roman empire's eastern battles. But like, link it on a time line. And animate the good parts. Couldn't imagine a better history lesson than to set the world to 1802 and just spin it around and see what each of the big cities was doing then, who was at war, who hadn't even met the western world.

Imagine if you really fleshed this out and had this massive coverage of world events. Then you might actually remember what the Brittans were doing while the Egyptians were building those pointy palaces. And at the same time you could watch herd of bison roaming the plains unhindered. And sure it never existed that way, but like it existed more that way than it did in whatever horribly inaccurate way you're remembering it now.