   If you were transported back to the middle ages
  Imagine you were transformed back to the dark middle ages, say the year 1000, or why not, the Roman time.You have nothing at all there except your knowledge of this modern time.Do you think you'd be able to use your knowledge to build things like an electrical generator, a light, etc...? How would you get all the required materials, like copper, wolfram, material to make a magnet from, etc... and how would you turn the copper into copper wire? Do you think you could be able to build a car? Or other cool things they didn't have back then :)   
  It depends. I'd probably be transported there with the cellphone and iPod in my pockets, which would make me some sort of god to them. Even without that, with my rudimentary knowledge I could at least tell them how to build things and they could go off and build them for me, provided they didn't consider me insane and kill me.But I'd probably just take up some sort of craft; maybe iron forging.   ;  Good idea, create Global Warming 1000 years early to see if we really will die from it [grin].   ;  The Romans were pretty sophisticated, we could probably learn a thing or two from them if we could go back to their time.As for the early middle ages... IIRC the roman catholic church's influence was strongest around that time, so I'd keep my mouth shut for fear of being labeled a heretic. There's also the problem that due to specialization of labor most of us are not technically equipped with the knowledge to build something like a power generator. But if you have the general idea, and if you can go back (causality violation?), and if you can meet up with thinkers from the local age, and if you can provide them with a push in the right direction, then something interesting might happen. That's a lot of if's tho :D   ;Quote:Original post by RavuyaIt depends. I'd probably be transported there with the cellphone and iPod in my pockets, which would make me some sort of god to them. Even without that, with my rudimentary knowledge I could at least tell them how to build things and they could go off and build them for me, provided they didn't consider me insane and kill me.But I'd probably just take up some sort of craft; maybe iron forging.Depending on "where" you were transported, they MIGHT think your some sort of warlock and slaughter you.   ;  I've given this sort of thing some thought.  I don't think I'd be able to pull off the "Connecticut Yankee" maneuver and have them building match factories and firearms.  I'd probably just start a few fights, get my butt kicked, then live in a hut giving strange mystical predictions like, "The Goths are gonna kick you in the teeth, fools," and "Lead is actually quite bad for you."   ;  ignoring langauge barriers, I would spend the rest of my life carving out my own little kingdom, based around developing an early industrial revolution, and most importantly, very early use of simple radio for military communications and make weapons of mass medeival destruction. Being able to build things like aircraft, even pre WWI aircraft, with a simple morse code wireless would turn the tide of any war at that point, for atleast 200 years, if not longer. The key would be controling who knows actual details of things, if you could keep only very loyal people knowing how guns and wireless works, there is simply no way someone else could come along and best you.*Edit* now, if I could bring a few textbooks with me, things would be even better!   ;  I probably could teach those Romans how to multiply properly. (as opposed to this)   ;Quote:Original post by DiodorI probably could teach those Romans how to multiply properly. (as opposed to this)I think we should send you straight on to the Summerians to teach them the first thing about numbers. No more base6base10 or whatever strangeness.   ;  I'd probably have to teach them English first, wouldn't I?Finally, a chance to get rid of that annoying American spelling of "colour" through cultural domination.   