6 ms·

Ask HN: What is your favorite thought experiment?

7 points by PascLeRasc 11y ago

PascLeRasc 11y ago
Personally, I think Newcomb's Paradox is really interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcomb%27s_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcomb%27s_paradox
- PepeGomez 11y ago
  That's only called a paradox becasue some people refuse to accept the obvious solution.
alphydan 11y ago
Einstein's thought experiment on simultaneity illustrated with a train (simultaneous, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity1.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity1.svg), (not simultaneous, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity2.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity2.svg)
willstepp 11y ago
This is meditative and not scientific, but still a thought experiment: To consider, who am I between two thoughts?
bediger4000 11y ago
Imagine Pinocchio at rest. Suddenly, Pinocchio says "My nose is growing!" What happens next?
- shermanyo 11y ago
  > Imagine Pinocchio at rest. Not sure why, but pictured a spherical Pinocchio in a vacuum :P
  - cabbeer 11y ago
    Like the inside of a whale?
- ljk 11y ago
  i'd think his nose would still grow because he lied when he said it
  - Zikes 11y ago
    Yeah, perhaps change the line to "My nose will now grow."
Nadya 11y ago
Not so much a thought experiment - but trying to grasp the Library of Babel. Somewhere on the pages is your entire life story, already written. Waiting to be discovered. The story of your birth, every variation of death. Every success. Every failure. Just a meaningless collection of words waiting to be discovered, only given meaning once found. https://libraryofbabel.info/ https://libraryofbabel.info/ Even my post already existed: https://libraryofbabel.info/bookmark.cgi?vdayie_ifpawv163 https://libraryofbabel.info/bookmark.cgi?vdayie_ifpawv163
- PepeGomez 11y ago
  What is that?
  - iyn 11y ago
    http://flavorwire.com/515783/brooklyn-author-recreates-borges-library-of-babel-as-infinite-website http://flavorwire.com/515783/brooklyn-author-recreates-borge... http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/07/23/the-library-of-babel-as-seen-from-within/ http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/07/23/the-library-of...
gull 11y ago
What is the one thing that could reverse an entrenched system, and how could you build a prototype in the least amount of time. Preferably, something people think is too much work, while it actually takes two days.

7 points by PascLeRasc 11y ago

Personally, I think Newcomb's Paradox is really interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcomb%27s_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcomb%27s_paradox

PepeGomez 11y ago
That's only called a paradox becasue some people refuse to accept the obvious solution.

alphydan 11y ago

Einstein's thought experiment on simultaneity illustrated with a train (simultaneous, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity1.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity1.svg), (not simultaneous, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity2.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Traincar_Relativity2.svg)

willstepp 11y ago

This is meditative and not scientific, but still a thought experiment: To consider, who am I between two thoughts?

bediger4000 11y ago

Imagine Pinocchio at rest. Suddenly, Pinocchio says "My nose is growing!" What happens next?

shermanyo 11y ago
> Imagine Pinocchio at rest. Not sure why, but pictured a spherical Pinocchio in a vacuum :P
- cabbeer 11y ago
  Like the inside of a whale?
ljk 11y ago
i'd think his nose would still grow because he lied when he said it
- Zikes 11y ago
  Yeah, perhaps change the line to "My nose will now grow."

Nadya 11y ago

Not so much a thought experiment - but trying to grasp the Library of Babel. Somewhere on the pages is your entire life story, already written. Waiting to be discovered. The story of your birth, every variation of death. Every success. Every failure. Just a meaningless collection of words waiting to be discovered, only given meaning once found. https://libraryofbabel.info/ https://libraryofbabel.info/ Even my post already existed: https://libraryofbabel.info/bookmark.cgi?vdayie_ifpawv163 https://libraryofbabel.info/bookmark.cgi?vdayie_ifpawv163

PepeGomez 11y ago
What is that?
- iyn 11y ago
  http://flavorwire.com/515783/brooklyn-author-recreates-borges-library-of-babel-as-infinite-website http://flavorwire.com/515783/brooklyn-author-recreates-borge... http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/07/23/the-library-of-babel-as-seen-from-within/ http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/07/23/the-library-of...

gull 11y ago

What is the one thing that could reverse an entrenched system, and how could you build a prototype in the least amount of time. Preferably, something people think is too much work, while it actually takes two days.