i'd be the only peasant with an iPhone
I would simply wait out the various smallpox, measles, rubella epidemics, avoid common well water, show the survivors how to sterilize their water and eradicate cholera in their tiny hamlet and then be revered as an immortal god.
at that point, I'll either be burned at the stake for warlockery, or granted land and title--then quickly work my way onto conquering the whole of existence as the throngs of believers follow me into battle after battle, happily sacrificing themselves at my immortal and omniscient bidding.
hell you just convinced me to want to go back in time just to worship you
As for metalurgy, do any of you know how to forge metal?
How about find its ore or process the ore into metal?
1500AD Huh??
I would warn them about the birth of a guy that is set for the year 0AD. He is gonna be visited by three wise dudes.
Kill him and spare the next 2000 years alot of backward bullshit.
Seriosly with out religion we would have been reaching the stars by now
Best idea of the thread.I'd combine my knowledge of music of that time (I studied that back in college Music History) with today's and I'd become a musician. At least I'd eat. Maybe.
Hmm, there's also the high probability that I, like most people of this era, carry a bunch of nasties that we carry immunities to that would lay waste to populations without the hereditary immunity, and perhaps vice versa (there may be bugs that abound back then that have long since dropped off of the immunity radar that would seriously affect or kill me).
I would think the actual musicians from that period were highly skilled.Best idea of the thread.
Someone with good musical skills would have it easy if they can get in with a decent sized church.
Just play all the stuff you learned as a kid and you'd be world famous. And every year for centuries there would be Princess Ida festivals held all over the world where people would worship your music. (although as a female you would have to find some guy and let him take all the credit)
Displace Nostradamus as a great prophet. Write down a bunch of prophecies to predict the future with uncanny accuracy. For centuries afterwards the academics wll try to explain away the uncanny accuracy of your predictions.
This is easy. Invent human flight. All you need is this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_air_balloon
That and your knowledge of aerodynamics is all you would need.
Right, but you have to understand how much music has advanced since 1500.I would think the actual musicians from that period were highly skilled.
If they weren't awesome as their craft, they starved.
How would you capitalize on your current knowledge if you were taken back to the 1500s (or whatever time period you want)?
- You can't take books or electronics back with you (just the knowledge in your head)
- Be careful, you might be labeled a heretic and burned
Do you know enough science, mathematics, economics, medicine, etc to live richly?
Do you know enough to rule the world?
Even if you know certain things, can you prove them to the locals?
If you know medicine, chemistry, engineering, etc, are the materials available for you to use?
Is the terminology the same back then as it is today?
These are the questions I ask myself when I am bored.
I am sure this has been discussed here before, but it's fun to discuss these things.
Definitely something to do with wenches, and my knowledge of birth control. I think I know enough first aid/basic medicine to save some lives and make some money. I know enough electricity to whip up something to amaze the common folk so I would absolutely be a god.
How would you capitalize on your current knowledge if you were taken back to the 1500s (or whatever time period you want)?
- You can't take books or electronics back with you (just the knowledge in your head)
- Be careful, you might be labeled a heretic and burned
Do you know enough science, mathematics, economics, medicine, etc to live richly?
Do you know enough to rule the world?
Even if you know certain things, can you prove them to the locals?
If you know medicine, chemistry, engineering, etc, are the materials available for you to use?
Is the terminology the same back then as it is today?
These are the questions I ask myself when I am bored.
I am sure this has been discussed here before, but it's fun to discuss these things.
1500AD Huh??
I would warn them about the birth of a guy that is set for the year 0AD. He is gonna be visited by three wise dudes.
Kill him and spare the next 2000 years alot of backward bullshit.
Seriosly with out religion we would have been reaching the stars by now
Make your way to California, pan some Gold, bury it, get back into Time Machine and return to the Present, Profit.
you are all kidding yourselves, not a single one of you would last a week without your cellphone, car, internets.. not to mention heat, electricity, running water
i would wager that most of us here would immediately be mistaken for nobility for these reasons:
1. most noticeable would be our cleanliness. the peasantry of the time only bathing very seldomly would be utterly filthy. only the wealthy would be able to afford the luxury of regular bathing. we would also smell vastly better than just about everyone.
2. assuming the average atoter is slightly overweight, myself included, it would be evident that we had access to abundant food sources, something not true of the poor.
3. our grooming (haircut, clean shaven or trimmed, clean short fingernails/toenails) would also indicate access to a luxurious lifestyle.
4. our teeth similarly would indicate a luxurious lifestyle.
5. i don't know the average atot age but, myself being 40, i would have lived beyond the average life expectancy of the time indicating again a pampered life.
i would probably try to parlay these characteristics and my schooling into an academic career or even a position as a noble for a local royalty figure.
