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1500 questions
117
votes
8 answers
How far back in time would English be understandable to a modern speaker?
As we all know, language in England has changed massively over the centuries.
How far back would someone be able to travel in time and still have a basic understanding of what most people are saying?
The person going back in time is around 30…
Terry
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115
votes
12 answers
How long would it take to create a Windows 1.0 capable machine from complete scratch?
I've been thinking about this concept for a while and have not been able to figure out what could be a plausible answer. It seemed appropriate for my first question on this website.
Imagine an experiment where a group of approximately 20 humans are…
Mano Gilissen
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114
votes
27 answers
Who is spreading the rumour that Santa isn't real?
Let's assume for a moment that Santa does truly exist in some form or other, however unlikely it may be. We can safely assume that he lives at the North Pole, provides children on the nice list with free toys every year, and generally brings…
Mike.C.Ford
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113
votes
22 answers
How can a race of eldritch abominations help humanity?
A society of your typical beings from beyond the veil of reality have recently encountered the bounderies of the realm humans call home. They studied our universe, via their own incomprehensible equivalent to what we call science and eventually…
AngelPray
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113
votes
11 answers
Would planets be cubic in my "cuboverse"?
Summary
The main idea behind the "cuboverse" is that spacetime distances are measured by (something close to) the sup norm or infinity norm. Under this norm, spheres (the set of points at a fixed distance from an origin) are the same as cubes, hence…
pregunton
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112
votes
32 answers
Why would a staff increase the magic power of a mage?
Similarly to the question How would it make sense that spellbooks or grimoires teach only one spell? I was thinking about typical RPG games and how to design the magic system therein.
While thinking about this topic I came across the fact that…
Secespitus
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111
votes
18 answers
Truth Stone: Effects on the justice system, and criminal world
The setting is the medieval ages, vaguely European. No magic exists except what is explicitly stated in the question. The judicial system is similar to historic examples, with the head-of-state directly overseeing cases of sufficient magnitude to…
Ranger
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110
votes
27 answers
Would relatively primitive people really confuse technology with magic?
It's common for people to say that if a time traveler or an alien displayed advanced technology to ancient or medieval people, that they'd assume it was magic, and either worship him as a god or burn him as a witch.
But if aliens visited the Earth…
Jay
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110
votes
11 answers
This sword is forged from meteorite iron - but how is that any good?
You know the common trope in fantasy. Meteorite iron is amazing.
My armor is made of sky iron, made for me. A bear's armor is his soul, just as your daemon is your soul. You might as well take him away" – indicating Pantalaimon – "and replace him…
Mołot
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109
votes
26 answers
How to survive the heat death of the universe?
The eventual heat death of the universe is an awful time to be alive considering you wouldn't have long left after the last star finally fades away.
In this scenario there is a small group of about a dozen human survivors who live in a colony on an…
Gorp
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109
votes
32 answers
If 120 experts in 12 different fields were sent back 10,000 years, could they recreate the 21st century in 100 years?
Ten experts (CEOs, professors) of each of the fields of math, physics, chemistry, economics, engineering, electrical engineering, CS, sociology, psychology, art, politics and education (120 total) are sent back in time to recreate the 21st century…
user2741831
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109
votes
19 answers
What mechanism can prevent super-healing heroes from accidentally budding?
We’re all familiar with the heroes that can’t die. Honey-badger (with the claws and the angry voice), Dreadpeel, that girl with the weird cheerleading obsession...
Basically they all have the same superpower: any one of their cells contains the…
Joe Bloggs
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109
votes
28 answers
How fast can I flood the Netherlands entirely and permanently?
I want the Netherlands to be flooded entirely, and I want the event to be of such a scale that it goes faster than hydroengineering can keep up with. This will mean that I need a sea level rise of about 330 meters, since the highest point in the…
Tinkeringbell
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108
votes
15 answers
If the Romans found one working steam engine would they have been able to copy and use it?
I Previously asked if the Romans could have built a steam engine to power a ship, which received a number of answers perhaps best summarised as “probably not but…”.
Assuming the Romans couldn’t have come up with the idea on their own, suppose that…
Slarty
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108
votes
24 answers
A believable place for your secret lair
In a modern, "western" country, where can I set my secret facility so that authorities won't find me for about 30 years?
The needed amount of area is relatively large, a bit less than 200 m2. The facility in itself is not particularly needy; it…
SilverCookies
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