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Community => Science and Technology => Topic started by: TigerHunter on September 08, 2012, 01:35:51 am

Title: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: TigerHunter on September 08, 2012, 01:35:51 am
Hello, I'm trying to find a series of interviews where scientists in their field were asked what they thought would be the most important thing for ancient peoples to know. I think one of them said that matter is made of atoms, other than that I don't remember anything about it.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, feel free to supply your own answer.

Mine would be: "Disease is caused by tiny creatures that are too small to see. You can avoid letting them into your body by washing yourself regularly, boiling water and cooking food, avoiding contact with sick people and their waste, and cleaning wounds with alcohol."
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: JohnE on September 08, 2012, 03:02:48 am
That was actually my first thought upon seeing the thread title.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: SpaceProg on September 08, 2012, 03:31:36 am
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  Do no harm, lest ye do what you will.   Love your neighbour as thyself.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Witchyjoshy on September 08, 2012, 03:36:58 am
I'd probably say something like...

"Trees are good.  They keep the planet healthy.  When you cut down a tree, plant another."

And implore them to keep that practice going down all the way to the modern age.

I wish I could tell them a second thing, but I can only tell them one thing :(
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Vypernight on September 08, 2012, 05:20:31 am
Shoot to kill anyone who approaches the Library of Alexandria with anything that can cause a fire. 
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Søren on September 08, 2012, 07:43:37 am
"your balls are showing"
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: DarkfireTaimatsu on September 08, 2012, 07:48:55 am
"Snape kills Dumbledore."
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Old Viking on September 08, 2012, 04:58:50 pm
Speak English.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Veras on September 09, 2012, 05:35:32 am
The scientific method and why it is important.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Cataclysm on September 09, 2012, 04:08:01 pm
Quote from: TigerHunter on September 08, 2012, 01:35:51 am
Hello, I'm trying to find a series of interviews where scientists in their field were asked what they thought would be the most important thing for ancient peoples to know. I think one of them said that matter is made of atoms, other than that I don't remember anything about it.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, feel free to supply your own answer.

Mine would be: "Disease is caused by tiny creatures that are too small to see. You can avoid letting them into your body by washing yourself regularly, boiling water and cooking food, avoiding contact with sick people and their waste, and cleaning wounds with alcohol."

I would tell them to get filthy as possible to build immunity.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: TigerHunter on September 09, 2012, 06:40:35 pm
Quote from: Lexikon on September 09, 2012, 04:08:01 pm
Quote from: TigerHunter on September 08, 2012, 01:35:51 am
Hello, I'm trying to find a series of interviews where scientists in their field were asked what they thought would be the most important thing for ancient peoples to know. I think one of them said that matter is made of atoms, other than that I don't remember anything about it.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, feel free to supply your own answer.

Mine would be: "Disease is caused by tiny creatures that are too small to see. You can avoid letting them into your body by washing yourself regularly, boiling water and cooking food, avoiding contact with sick people and their waste, and cleaning wounds with alcohol."

I would tell them to get filthy as possible to build immunity.
When they're young. The elderly should stay as clean as possible.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: R. U. Sirius on September 10, 2012, 09:48:05 am
I would tell them about meditation and non-violent problem solving.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Witchyjoshy on September 10, 2012, 06:26:06 pm
Quote from: Rupert Upton Sirius on September 10, 2012, 09:48:05 am
I would tell them about meditation and non-violent problem solving.

...I'd hope you'd also teach them the necessity of self-defense when necessary, because otherwise, they're gonna get curbstomped the moment the nearest tribe decides a violent takeover would be fun :P
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: davedan on September 10, 2012, 06:43:43 pm
How ancient are we talking?

The OP was good - I was going to tell about microbes and disinfectant.

Steam power.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: TigerHunter on September 10, 2012, 07:14:31 pm
Quote from: davedan on September 10, 2012, 06:43:43 pm
Steam power.
Funnily enough, the Greeks figured out steam power, they just never adapted it for practical use. One theory is that slave labor was so cheap and plentiful that steam wasn't practical for the time.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Art Vandelay on September 10, 2012, 10:16:37 pm
Quote from: TigerHunter on September 10, 2012, 07:14:31 pm
Quote from: davedan on September 10, 2012, 06:43:43 pm
Steam power.
Funnily enough, the Greeks figured out steam power, they just never adapted it for practical use. One theory is that slave labor was so cheap and plentiful that steam wasn't practical for the time.
As far as I recall, the ancient Greeks didn't know how to refine steel. You can't make a decent steam engine if you don't have any materials that can handle particularly high temperatures.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Cataclysm on September 11, 2012, 12:22:32 pm
Quote from: TigerHunter on September 09, 2012, 06:40:35 pm
Quote from: Lexikon on September 09, 2012, 04:08:01 pm
Quote from: TigerHunter on September 08, 2012, 01:35:51 am
Hello, I'm trying to find a series of interviews where scientists in their field were asked what they thought would be the most important thing for ancient peoples to know. I think one of them said that matter is made of atoms, other than that I don't remember anything about it.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, feel free to supply your own answer.

Mine would be: "Disease is caused by tiny creatures that are too small to see. You can avoid letting them into your body by washing yourself regularly, boiling water and cooking food, avoiding contact with sick people and their waste, and cleaning wounds with alcohol."

I would tell them to get filthy as possible to build immunity.
When they're young. The elderly should stay as clean as possible.

Good point. Also, I'd tell Native Americans to domesticate animals.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Meshakhad on September 11, 2012, 01:49:31 pm
Gonna go with the scientific method.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: R. U. Sirius on September 11, 2012, 01:50:33 pm
Quote from: Zachski on September 10, 2012, 06:26:06 pm
Quote from: Rupert Upton Sirius on September 10, 2012, 09:48:05 am
I would tell them about meditation and non-violent problem solving.

...I'd hope you'd also teach them the necessity of self-defense when necessary, because otherwise, they're gonna get curbstomped the moment the nearest tribe decides a violent takeover would be fun :P

Of course; I'm not an idiot. But there's a big difference between self-defense and endless cycles of blood feuds.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Fpqxz on September 11, 2012, 09:38:33 pm
It would depend on which ancient cultures you are talking about, and what geographical location they are in.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Osama bin Bambi on September 11, 2012, 10:36:34 pm
I'd probably tell them how the scientific method and logical argumentation works.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Cataclysm on September 12, 2012, 02:36:21 pm
Newton's laws
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Zygarde on September 12, 2012, 05:18:17 pm
I guess I would tell them that for the good of future generations don't hunt every animal you see into extinction.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Star Cluster on September 13, 2012, 08:49:00 am
The answer to any mystery you don't understand isn't "God did it."

Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Art Vandelay on September 13, 2012, 08:59:55 am
Assuming they actually do what I say, I'd tell them to gather as much wealth as they possibly can, ensure it's all in the form of cash by around 2008-2009 and then promptly dump the lot of it into my bank account.

Failing that, I'd just teach them a few songs of my choice and hope they see it as some sort of religious revelation. Just so archaeologists can discover some ancient civilisation whose holy men would sing "I am a dwarf and I'm digging a hole. Diggy diggy hole, I'm digging a hole" in praise of their gods.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Lt. Fred on September 14, 2012, 03:57:46 am
Ignore Aristotle.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Igor on September 14, 2012, 05:16:16 am
"Invest in laserdiscs" xD, that needs to have been more of a thing.

In all seriousness I'd probably go back to the early 20th century and give them semi-modern computer technology, see where we'd end up today if we could do then what we can do now, say, introduce a relatively modern computer in 1920, they get the internet by the 50s... where would it go from there?
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: QueenofHearts on September 14, 2012, 10:44:41 am
Trust me, Enron is a legit investment.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: RavynousHunter on September 14, 2012, 03:43:19 pm
"This is how lightning works.  Its not the work of gods, just physics."
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Witchyjoshy on September 14, 2012, 03:49:28 pm
Listen to Tesla, invest in his stuff.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Saturn500 on September 14, 2012, 04:54:41 pm
Quote from: Art Vandelay on September 13, 2012, 08:59:55 am
Failing that, I'd just teach them a few songs of my choice and hope they see it as some sort of religious revelation. Just so archaeologists can discover some ancient civilisation whose holy men would sing "I am a dwarf and I'm digging a hole. Diggy diggy hole, I'm digging a hole" in praise of their gods.

^This. All of this.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: wyvern999 on September 15, 2012, 08:08:01 pm
Don't vote conservative, never listen to the religious and everything else will be ok.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: R. U. Sirius on September 19, 2012, 09:48:19 am
To pre-Columbus Native Americans:

Never trust anyone who wears more than you do.
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: tygerarmy on September 21, 2012, 07:49:20 pm
Quote from: Rupert Upton Sirius on September 19, 2012, 09:48:19 am
To pre-Columbus Native Americans:

Never trust anyone who wears more than you do.

Kill anyone who looks like me. 
And keep written records of your history!
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: SimSim on September 21, 2012, 08:49:30 pm
This is my boom stick!
Title: Re: If you could tell the ancients one thing...
Post by: Saturn500 on September 21, 2012, 08:53:08 pm
This chant shall call forth the gods:

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