Official BBO Hijacked Thread Thread

[helene_t]

Good question, jjbrr. I have puzzled with a similar though experiment. Suppose everyone were killed in a meteor impact or nuclear strike or w/e except for a few thousand people, most of whom were from isolated tribes in new guinea or the amazon, but also a few tech college wizzkids.

 

My first thought was about providing them with a basic science curicullum. Newton's laws, basic atomic theory, basic chemistry, acid/base theory, evolutionary biology, calculus.

 

But giving it some further thought it would probably be better to teach the how to advance to next stage in their technology history. Teaching hunters-gatherers to grow grain, teaching stone age people to make bronze etc.

 

The thing is, abstract knowledge which is not relevant to their technology may degenerate. The next generation may not be interested in learning about science at all but rather spend their energy on learning to make better bows and arrows. The scientific curicullum may get lost, or degenerate into mysticism.

 

So if we are talking about a couple of hundred years I could teach them to make plastics, or to generate electricity from a Volta column. Pasteurization is a good example, too.

[jjbrr]

Also, before the nits get me, I realize some of the things I listed are more than a couple hundred years old. But you get the idea of what I'm trying to say.

 

I think I agree that general science would go a long, long way. Presumably you could find the smartest people from X years ago, clue them in on the stuff we've discovered and let them get the ball rolling from there.

 

The idea to teach them whatever it was they discovered naturally on their own is interesting. But how much do you personally know about growing grains, Helene? About making bronze? I wouldn't be much help there. I don't think I'd be much help anywhere.

[helene_t]

lol true, I could tell them about the the latests transgenic crops but they would need to know which wild grass seeds to put in the soil at what time of the year and where to find suitable guano and I would have no clue :)

 

Maybe better if we teach them to play multi-landy and 4-way transfers.

[PhantomSac]

They already knew about alcohol...I guess I could teach them card combos that's about it!

 

On second thought I could pwn them in poker games.

[jjbrr]

I could offer them astronomy, I suppose. To build a crude telescope isn't so challenging and I'm sure telling them how old the Earth is and theories about the Universe and what not would do a lot to avoid all those geocentric ideas that people believed.

[PhantomSac]

I could offer them astronomy, I suppose. To build a crude telescope isn't so challenging and I'm sure telling them how old the Earth is and theories about the Universe and what not would do a lot to avoid all those geocentric ideas that people believed.

Serious risk that they'd kill you if you did stuff like this, although I guess it depends how far back you go. I guess you could claim to be sent by god, but they might think youre a warlock or something.

[Aberlour10]

hmmm I could travel in the year 1348 just before the Big Death has begun in Europe. I would be not able to give them penicillin, but I could tell them detailed in which ways the infection goes around, and what to do against it in the field of hygenics....the pandemic could be stopped I think...but how would it affect following history of the XIV and XV century if the european population would not be decimated? The wars would bring maybe much more victims as they real did, the famines could be much bigger,,,etc etc..its a hard job to play GOD.

[jjbrr]

I  could offer them astronomy, I suppose. To build a crude telescope isn't so challenging and I'm sure telling them how old the Earth is and theories about the Universe and what not would do a lot to avoid all those geocentric ideas that people believed.

Serious risk that they'd kill you if you did stuff like this, although I guess it depends how far back you go. I guess you could claim to be sent by god, but they might think youre a warlock or something.

Well obviously there's the risk that going back in time and interacting with people would be dangerous because they'd think you're some sort of Dumbledore or something.

 

But passing on the information to smart, rational people who would use the information for scientific purposes is more interesting to think about.

[PhantomSac]

hmmm I could travel in the year 1348 just before the Big Death has begun in Europe. I would be not able to give them penicillin, but I could tell them detailed in which ways the infection goes around, and what to do against it in the field of hygenics....the pandemic could be stopped I think...but how would it affect following history of the XIV and XV century if the european population would not be decimated? The wars would bring maybe much more victims as they real did, the famines could be much bigger,,,etc etc..its a hard job to play GOD.

Ya I also think you might get insta killed if you did not do this correctly, and quickly forgotten. You'd probably have to ease into it and build it up slowly for years.

 

Anyone ever think that not changing anything would be best? I wonder sometimes if people were happier back then, and if our quality of life really hasn't gone up, just our perceived quality of life. Maybe the real play would be to hinder technology lol.

[Al_U_Card]

It depends on how fast I could run....lol

[PhantomSac]

But passing on the information to smart, rational people who would use the information for scientific purposes is more interesting to think about.

Yeah I see what you're saying, I just wonder if it's necessarily true or if we just think it is. I always have the feeling that people were happier then, I'm not sure why. Happiness is just such a relative thing and so hard to grasp (for me anyways).

 

edit: on the other hand maybe we could teach them to freebase! lol

[jjbrr]

its a hard job to play GOD.

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/3867/cooljesus.jpg

[jjbrr]

edit: on the other hand maybe we could teach them to freebase! lol

I read this quickly and thought it said "frisbees" and thought you were really onto something. Happiness is a floating disc.

[PhantomSac]

Norway third in medal count at the olympics so far? LOL, population of like 5 million, and they are the best at EVERYTHING. So freaking sick, what a country.

[hotShot]

Norway third in medal count at the olympics so far? LOL, population of like 5 million, and they are the best at EVERYTHING. So freaking sick, what a country.

They live in the snow, what do you expect?

[PhantomSac]

Norway third in medal count at the olympics so far? LOL, population of like 5 million, and they are the best at EVERYTHING. So freaking sick, what a country.

They live in the snow, what do you expect?

They also have the best chess player, 3 of the best 10 bridge players in the world, a junior bridge team that won a gold medal recently on top of the best winter athletes, and they have a basically tiny population. It is just unreal how good Norway is at everything for it's size.

[jdonn]

Norway third in medal count at the olympics so far? LOL, population of like 5 million, and they are the best at EVERYTHING. So freaking sick, what a country.

They live in the snow, what do you expect?

They also have the best chess player, 3 of the best 10 bridge players in the world, a junior bridge team that won a gold medal recently on top of the best winter athletes, and they have a basically tiny population. It is just unreal how good Norway is at everything for it's size.

Snow activities and indoor activities, two things that probably coorelate very strongly with how much snow they get. I bet they do a lot worse in the summer olympics!

 

Btw, country that does worst in olympic medals per capita? India :P

[PhantomSac]

Norway third in medal count at the olympics so far? LOL, population of like 5 million, and they are the best at EVERYTHING. So freaking sick, what a country.

They live in the snow, what do you expect?

They also have the best chess player, 3 of the best 10 bridge players in the world, a junior bridge team that won a gold medal recently on top of the best winter athletes, and they have a basically tiny population. It is just unreal how good Norway is at everything for it's size.

Snow activities and indoor activities, two things that probably coorelate very strongly with how much snow they get. I bet they do a lot worse in the summer olympics!

Yeah I mean I agree that they rate to be more likely than normal to be good at those things because of their climate, but their ratio of people who are great at these things to their population is just insane. It is completely disproportionate, more than just their climate could explain.

 

I just read their wiki page, they also seem to be the richest country in the world by many measures, with a very stable economy and a lot of industries. I suppose this wealth affords them the luxury of being able to become very strong at things like bridge and skiing, as well as good technology and stuff like free education etc.

 

Still Norway seems like a remarkable country.

[bid_em_up]

But passing on the information to smart, rational people who would use the information for scientific purposes is more interesting to think about.

Not a Star Trek fan?

 

I'm inclined to believe that its Prime Directive was a good idea.

[jjbrr]

But passing on the information to smart, rational people who would use the information for scientific purposes is more interesting to think about.

Not a Star Trek fan?

 

I'm inclined to believe that its Prime Directive was a good idea.

I'm not really, but I wiki'd the Prime Directive and it is pretty interesting.

 

In the philosophical view of Star Trek, no matter how well intentioned the more advanced peoples are, interaction between advanced technology and a more primitive society is invariably destructive.

 

This seems to mirror jlall's apprehensions.

[Aberlour10]

I just read their wiki page, they also seem to be the richest country in the world by many measures, with a very stable economy and a lot of industries.

 

They became the big oil gift, did note waste a barrel from it...invested that income very very smart over the past decades and... they are best prepared for the time "after oil" with inland development and xxxx billions invested all over the world. This is the whole story.

[PassedOut]

I just read their wiki page, they also seem to be the richest country in the world by many measures, with a very stable economy and a lot of industries.

 

They became the big oil gift, did note waste a barrel from it...invested that income very very smart over the past decades and... they are best prepared for the time "after oil" with inland development and xxxx billions invested all over the world. This is the whole story.

Yes, it's wonderful to see how the Norwegians have made use of their oil money. When you visit there (the beauty of the place is remarkable) you see very many productive, prosperous people, and almost no one flaunting ostentatious wealth. Norway makes quite a contast with what you see in other countries rich with oil.

[Fluffy]

I've wasted my time often thinking about the travel to the past thing (and the apocalypsis thing helene mentioned as well), and I felt more or les as jjbrr, I knwo many things, but none of them would be useful just by myself.

 

I though about using this kind of history in a role-playing game to see what others would come to.

 

I know a lot of mathematics, wich I could teach to smart people who would listen and could spread the word, and some mechanics and physics, that would be enough to change history, but I doubt I could make many machines to work in my lifetime.

 

If you travelled farther to the past things in middle age things could get ugly. First of all you are not a Noble, so people won't listen to you whatever you tell them. Even knowing big disasters (like naval battles for Spain), I could hardly get anyone high enough to believe me. And I if not taking enough care someone would send me to Inquisition or some such :). And then , there are no schools to teach people, so things are gonna get tough just to survive.

[mike777]

But passing on the information to smart, rational people who would use the information for scientific purposes is more interesting to think about.

Not a Star Trek fan?

 

I'm inclined to believe that its Prime Directive was a good idea.

I'm not really, but I wiki'd the Prime Directive and it is pretty interesting.

 

In the philosophical view of Star Trek, no matter how well intentioned the more advanced peoples are, interaction between advanced technology and a more primitive society is invariably destructive.

 

This seems to mirror jlall's apprehensions.

Of course in real life you can pass all the rules you want but out in deep space the prime directive is ignored all the time.

 

You come across nice aliens and they are hurting/in great pain...you just walk away and say let them die.

 

This is basically the issue of every Star Trek episode or do you say what the heck I am Kirk and that green alien is cute!. :)

[mike777]

I've wasted my time often thinking about the travel to the past thing (and the apocalypsis thing helene mentioned as well), and I felt more or les as jjbrr, I knwo many things, but none of them would be useful just by myself.

 

I though about using this kind of history in a role-playing game to see what others would come to.

 

I know a lot of mathematics, wich I could teach to smart people who would listen and could spread the word, and some mechanics and physics, that would be enough to change history, but I doubt I could make many machines to work in my lifetime.

 

If you travelled farther to the past things in middle age things could get ugly. First of all you are not a Noble, so people won't listen to you whatever you tell them. Even knowing big disasters (like naval battles for Spain), I could hardly get anyone high enough to believe me. And I if not taking enough care someone would send me to Inquisition or some such :). And then , there are no schools to teach people, so things are gonna get tough just to survive.

In Spain you have an out.

 

Become a monk, join/create something along the lines of the Jesuits, work within the system, make a difference at the margins.

:)