If you’re old, you might remember a Usenet group called “alt.pave.the.earth.” The fantasy of this group was simple — cover the world in asphalt.


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“With endless blacktop in every direction, there will be no restriction to your movement, and rocket-powered hypercars will whiz in all directions,” reads an archive of the original group. “We will be able to amuse ourselves with endless driving at incredible speeds while drinking beer and eating wonderfully juicy burgers.”


While the popularity of Usenet came and went, the dream of an ocean-free earth never really left the minds of internet users. And with today’s technology, one user on Twitter is questioning why we can’t just bite the bullet and begin the process, starting with the eastern United States.



Sure, the USA is not really in need of land, as anyone who has taken a road trip across the United States can tell you. Plus, the benefits of this plan are questionable. Cons: loss of natural wildlife, lots of coastal cities with no more coastline, the environmental devastation of actually building it, etc. Pros? More space to scoot around in your Land Rover. Not really a worthy trade here.


But to Twitter user @plemy11, this dream isn’t about practicality. It’s about the age-old scientific question of not *should* we do it, but *can* we do it? Some were quick to say that, no, it’s impossible — or at least, we really, really shouldn’t try.




However, others still dared to imagine.





A few users made reference to the many human-made islands of the United Arab Emirates, which are going great, I’m sure. Others mentioned seasteading, a concept in which people build island-shaped cruise ships on the ocean to pretend that they’ve somehow removed themselves from society (and to pay less in taxes, probably).


It’s unlikely that they’re going to pave over the ocean anytime soon. But just in case they do, it’s best to plan out your real estate speculation now — I’ve got dibs on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.