chapter 5:
Rama seems almost creepy - Clarke compares it to a tomb; quiet and deserted as if it is a haunted house from a horror movie when the protagonists first enter.
Again the high tech of its creators is stressed. How well engineered must the emergency air lock be if it can still be so easily operated after the ship has been possibly deserted for so long?

chapter 6:
The archeaology of the Med has really caught my interest. What a book that might have made in and of itself.

Yes, Moonwatcher, I also would think that the collision might have been responsible for the draining of the basin?

I wonder what kind of climate changes that might have led to? Not just the impact itself, but the loss of a good sized sea so close to some major deserts?

Nothing good, I would suspect!
I was trying to figure out how many planets were represented at the committee meeting. Sounds like the Moon and Mars have been colonized? With mentions of Venus and Mercury?
