5 ms·

I'm not sure I would have the goal of the "modern world" in mind if transported to a pristine planet! Millions of people want the technology but not the stress

by knz 10y ago

I'm not sure I would have the goal of the "modern world" in mind if transported to a pristine planet! Millions of people want the technology but not the stress and pollution of the rat race. A small remote coastal settlement in a temperate climate with some technology to make life easier (fishing nets, agricultural tools) sounds ok! Of course the daily grind there is probably food production and medical issues.

Razengan 10y ago
My post was intended to be two questions: 1. What are the chances of any us surviving outside of human civilization if all technology was stripped from us, even if we had memorized all of humanity's combined knowledge? 2. How long would it take to replicate current technology from scratch, if all the research was already done for you, and you were basically immortal? By "from scratch" I mean skipping the creating-the-universe part, just starting without any preexisting tools other than what you may find in nature.
- Filligree 10y ago
  I've given some thought to #2, from the perspective of a mildly-transhuman child left by herself in a jungle (it's a novel..), and came to the unfortunate conclusion that... Maintenance is a killer. There comes a point, fairly early in technological development, where it's simply impossible for any single person to keep everything working and still have time to improve on the situation. That's true for even the most benign of environments. Hana, unfortunately, was stuck in a rather damp jungle. (And to preempt the possibly inevitable question, find it at https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/song-in-the-fog-da-capo-ar-tonelico-metroid-au-arpeggio-of-blue-steel.23154/ https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/song-in-the-fo.... Read if you feel like; I like to think it's cute.)

5 ms·

I'm not sure I would have the goal of the "modern world" in mind if transported to a pristine planet! Millions of people want the technology but not the stress

by knz 10y ago

Razengan 10y ago
My post was intended to be two questions: 1. What are the chances of any us surviving outside of human civilization if all technology was stripped from us, even if we had memorized all of humanity's combined knowledge? 2. How long would it take to replicate current technology from scratch, if all the research was already done for you, and you were basically immortal? By "from scratch" I mean skipping the creating-the-universe part, just starting without any preexisting tools other than what you may find in nature.
- Filligree 10y ago
  I've given some thought to #2, from the perspective of a mildly-transhuman child left by herself in a jungle (it's a novel..), and came to the unfortunate conclusion that... Maintenance is a killer. There comes a point, fairly early in technological development, where it's simply impossible for any single person to keep everything working and still have time to improve on the situation. That's true for even the most benign of environments. Hana, unfortunately, was stuck in a rather damp jungle. (And to preempt the possibly inevitable question, find it at https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/song-in-the-fog-da-capo-ar-tonelico-metroid-au-arpeggio-of-blue-steel.23154/ https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/song-in-the-fo.... Read if you feel like; I like to think it's cute.)