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1500 questions
183
votes
19 answers
Russian Dolls - How do they reproduce?
Warning picture showing dissected Russian Doll
My theory
I believe that Russian Dolls reproduce asexually. They are born pregnant. At the time of birth, the outer doll dies. What is now the outer doll grows until it reaches full size at which…
chasly - supports Monica
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181
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35 answers
You are an advanced AI that controls a smart house. How do you kill your master?
Disclaimer: I have edited this question quite heavily to clear up the initial confusion about its scope and intent.
Sometime in the near future, there have been some innovative inventions in the internet of things-department, and now we have some…
MoritzLost
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180
votes
32 answers
What is the least "world changing" reason why the government would pay for you to keep a llama during your 44th year of life?
I want to make a short story about an Earth just like ours, except it's commonly accepted that at the age of 43, the government allows people to have a llama in their house. The government pays for the llama and the food during that year and that…
Jaden Travnik
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179
votes
11 answers
Why fill a dungeon with puzzles?
While exploring a dwarven/dwemer ruin in Skyrim, it occurred to me that the puzzle I was solving made no sense: a series of levers accessible from the direction of the entrance that each caused a wall of spikes to give way to the next lever.
This…
Frostfyre
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171
votes
8 answers
Anatomically Correct Strange Women In Ponds Distributing Swords
Chaos plagues the land. In the West, the King in Orange blusters and bloviates endlessly in barely comprehensible gibberish. Perhaps he is attempting to call forth the Elder Gods? In the East, the Queen of Mayflies glowers menacingly and shakes a…
nullpointer
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169
votes
26 answers
Can a substance be more lethal in smaller doses?
Yes, I realize this question is a bit ridiculous, and there are no cases of it in reality (that I can find), but with a bit of truth twisting, could it theoretically be possible?
In my fantasy world I want a poison, which has an antidote - that…
NathanSullivan
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165
votes
17 answers
Would a bear cavalry be feasible?
Over the course of history humanity rode several kinds of animals to war: horses, camels and elephants being the most common. However, bears are not amongst them.
So I was wondering, if they could be properly domesticated and/or trained, would bears…
Thomas Jacobs
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162
votes
42 answers
If time travel is possible in the future, no matter how distant, why haven't they come back to tell us?
In a world where time travel is possible, but has not been invented yet, would travelers from the future come back to prove it exists?
Surely, they would bring that technology back in time to let the people of the past use it?
I have four…
Aric
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159
votes
14 answers
How to best upgrade your Towel for military combat?
Often your Towel is something which is very useful to carry around with you, especially in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy where you are taught to upgrade your Towel by, say, reinforcing the stitches in your Towel, or soaking a corner of it…
user10622
156
votes
21 answers
What is the minimum human population necessary for a sustainable colony?
How many humans are needed in order to sustain and grow a steady population in a habitable area? Assume resources are adequate and the environment is favorable.
To further refine this question, let's assume this is an early spacefaring technology…
Maximillian
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155
votes
34 answers
The AI that fails to be evil
A recurring theme is how an artificial intelligence built with completely reasonable and positive goals instead does great harm to the world.
However, I'm now thinking about the reverse: A supervillain builds an AI specifically to make people's…
celtschk
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154
votes
34 answers
You can control a Demon by knowing its True Name, but why?
The power of True Names over demons is unbelievable:
A Lamashtu demon can drain you of your blood in under 5 seconds, blend into shadows, and travel at the speed of darkness. Yet it will crumple like a wet napkin, if only you know its True…
Serban Tanasa
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154
votes
39 answers
What single change would have given the best chance for the Axis to win World War 2?
A common topic in alternate history fiction works is what would have happened if a major war had been won by the other side. These usually focus on the events after the war, and the change itself is not depicted realistically: it's either not…
vsz
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151
votes
23 answers
How to take down the internet?
The internet is a mesh or "net" of computers, all constantly establishing and re-establishing connections with each other. For this reason, only temporarily do servers go down, before they are back up and running again (i.e. "This server is…
Quiquȅ
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150
votes
25 answers
Santa is Satan, but why?
Santa is Satan, after all the clue is right there in the name.
But why?
What reason would the font of all evil and the generally unpleasant one have to pretend to be a jolly fat man and give away presents to make people happy for one day each…
Tim B
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