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How do figure out how powerful I am, when my abilities far exceed my knowledge?


When traveling to an alternate Earth, how many generations would you have to breed with the natives to prevent inbreeding?How to safely knock someone outHow to safely capture someone when you have super-strengthHow to test a mutant to know all of his/her abilities?How can powerful telekinesis avoid violating Newton's 3rd Law?






.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__bot-mid-leaderboard:empty margin-bottom:0;








5












$begingroup$


I've just been transported into a world where I have god-like powers, they are near absolute as far as I can tell, at least I've yet to find their limits.



The guiding principle of my powers seems to be "if I understand it, I can use it."



I want to experiment and figure out the extent of them, but also figure out the physics of this universe to extend my powers (assume physics comparable to our own).



As a fresh graduate of college in a science discipline, I have a broad but not very deep understanding of chemistry, mechanical physics, relativity, quantum mechanics, etc.



What would be a well informed testing regiment? What are some of first experiments I should perform to form a solid basis? Optionally later, what shall be my magnum opus? The test that justifies all this time and effort, and what does its results tell me?



META: I am new to this community, I don't know if this questions fits within worldbuilding, if not where would be a better place for it? Or simply a more fitting variant for this community?










share|improve this question







New contributor



Tryer is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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$endgroup$









  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Yes, this seems to be a legitimate world-building question (at least to me). Should generate some interesting answers, too!
    $endgroup$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    What does "understand" mean? Does observing that things fall down when you drop them allow you to fly? Or do you need to understand how gravity warps spacetime for that? If your powers allow you to defy known physics, then your model of physics is manifestly incorrect - your powers paradoxically preclude the understanding you require to use them!
    $endgroup$
    – Nuclear Wang
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Thank you Zeiss, I'm happy to hear that! @NuclearWang, I think it would depend how I wanted to fly. If I used the aerospace knowledge that having more air pass under me than over me would create lift, I could fly. Seeing an apple fall may tell me that some force exists always pulling down, I don't think it'd let me control gravity because in newtonian physics gravity is just a force, I don't know what causes it, so I can't manipulate it. If I knew of spacetime warping, I then had the knowledge to affect gravity by affecting change in spacetime? Maybe? Either way I dig your paradox.
    $endgroup$
    – Tryer
    7 hours ago


















5












$begingroup$


I've just been transported into a world where I have god-like powers, they are near absolute as far as I can tell, at least I've yet to find their limits.



The guiding principle of my powers seems to be "if I understand it, I can use it."



I want to experiment and figure out the extent of them, but also figure out the physics of this universe to extend my powers (assume physics comparable to our own).



As a fresh graduate of college in a science discipline, I have a broad but not very deep understanding of chemistry, mechanical physics, relativity, quantum mechanics, etc.



What would be a well informed testing regiment? What are some of first experiments I should perform to form a solid basis? Optionally later, what shall be my magnum opus? The test that justifies all this time and effort, and what does its results tell me?



META: I am new to this community, I don't know if this questions fits within worldbuilding, if not where would be a better place for it? Or simply a more fitting variant for this community?










share|improve this question







New contributor



Tryer is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$









  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Yes, this seems to be a legitimate world-building question (at least to me). Should generate some interesting answers, too!
    $endgroup$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    What does "understand" mean? Does observing that things fall down when you drop them allow you to fly? Or do you need to understand how gravity warps spacetime for that? If your powers allow you to defy known physics, then your model of physics is manifestly incorrect - your powers paradoxically preclude the understanding you require to use them!
    $endgroup$
    – Nuclear Wang
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Thank you Zeiss, I'm happy to hear that! @NuclearWang, I think it would depend how I wanted to fly. If I used the aerospace knowledge that having more air pass under me than over me would create lift, I could fly. Seeing an apple fall may tell me that some force exists always pulling down, I don't think it'd let me control gravity because in newtonian physics gravity is just a force, I don't know what causes it, so I can't manipulate it. If I knew of spacetime warping, I then had the knowledge to affect gravity by affecting change in spacetime? Maybe? Either way I dig your paradox.
    $endgroup$
    – Tryer
    7 hours ago














5












5








5





$begingroup$


I've just been transported into a world where I have god-like powers, they are near absolute as far as I can tell, at least I've yet to find their limits.



The guiding principle of my powers seems to be "if I understand it, I can use it."



I want to experiment and figure out the extent of them, but also figure out the physics of this universe to extend my powers (assume physics comparable to our own).



As a fresh graduate of college in a science discipline, I have a broad but not very deep understanding of chemistry, mechanical physics, relativity, quantum mechanics, etc.



What would be a well informed testing regiment? What are some of first experiments I should perform to form a solid basis? Optionally later, what shall be my magnum opus? The test that justifies all this time and effort, and what does its results tell me?



META: I am new to this community, I don't know if this questions fits within worldbuilding, if not where would be a better place for it? Or simply a more fitting variant for this community?










share|improve this question







New contributor



Tryer is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$




I've just been transported into a world where I have god-like powers, they are near absolute as far as I can tell, at least I've yet to find their limits.



The guiding principle of my powers seems to be "if I understand it, I can use it."



I want to experiment and figure out the extent of them, but also figure out the physics of this universe to extend my powers (assume physics comparable to our own).



As a fresh graduate of college in a science discipline, I have a broad but not very deep understanding of chemistry, mechanical physics, relativity, quantum mechanics, etc.



What would be a well informed testing regiment? What are some of first experiments I should perform to form a solid basis? Optionally later, what shall be my magnum opus? The test that justifies all this time and effort, and what does its results tell me?



META: I am new to this community, I don't know if this questions fits within worldbuilding, if not where would be a better place for it? Or simply a more fitting variant for this community?







super-powers






share|improve this question







New contributor



Tryer is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.










share|improve this question







New contributor



Tryer is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.








share|improve this question




share|improve this question






New contributor



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asked 9 hours ago









TryerTryer

292 bronze badges




292 bronze badges




New contributor



Tryer is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.




New contributor




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Check out our Code of Conduct.












  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Yes, this seems to be a legitimate world-building question (at least to me). Should generate some interesting answers, too!
    $endgroup$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    What does "understand" mean? Does observing that things fall down when you drop them allow you to fly? Or do you need to understand how gravity warps spacetime for that? If your powers allow you to defy known physics, then your model of physics is manifestly incorrect - your powers paradoxically preclude the understanding you require to use them!
    $endgroup$
    – Nuclear Wang
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Thank you Zeiss, I'm happy to hear that! @NuclearWang, I think it would depend how I wanted to fly. If I used the aerospace knowledge that having more air pass under me than over me would create lift, I could fly. Seeing an apple fall may tell me that some force exists always pulling down, I don't think it'd let me control gravity because in newtonian physics gravity is just a force, I don't know what causes it, so I can't manipulate it. If I knew of spacetime warping, I then had the knowledge to affect gravity by affecting change in spacetime? Maybe? Either way I dig your paradox.
    $endgroup$
    – Tryer
    7 hours ago













  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Yes, this seems to be a legitimate world-building question (at least to me). Should generate some interesting answers, too!
    $endgroup$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    What does "understand" mean? Does observing that things fall down when you drop them allow you to fly? Or do you need to understand how gravity warps spacetime for that? If your powers allow you to defy known physics, then your model of physics is manifestly incorrect - your powers paradoxically preclude the understanding you require to use them!
    $endgroup$
    – Nuclear Wang
    9 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Thank you Zeiss, I'm happy to hear that! @NuclearWang, I think it would depend how I wanted to fly. If I used the aerospace knowledge that having more air pass under me than over me would create lift, I could fly. Seeing an apple fall may tell me that some force exists always pulling down, I don't think it'd let me control gravity because in newtonian physics gravity is just a force, I don't know what causes it, so I can't manipulate it. If I knew of spacetime warping, I then had the knowledge to affect gravity by affecting change in spacetime? Maybe? Either way I dig your paradox.
    $endgroup$
    – Tryer
    7 hours ago








2




2




$begingroup$
Yes, this seems to be a legitimate world-building question (at least to me). Should generate some interesting answers, too!
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
9 hours ago




$begingroup$
Yes, this seems to be a legitimate world-building question (at least to me). Should generate some interesting answers, too!
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
9 hours ago












$begingroup$
What does "understand" mean? Does observing that things fall down when you drop them allow you to fly? Or do you need to understand how gravity warps spacetime for that? If your powers allow you to defy known physics, then your model of physics is manifestly incorrect - your powers paradoxically preclude the understanding you require to use them!
$endgroup$
– Nuclear Wang
9 hours ago




$begingroup$
What does "understand" mean? Does observing that things fall down when you drop them allow you to fly? Or do you need to understand how gravity warps spacetime for that? If your powers allow you to defy known physics, then your model of physics is manifestly incorrect - your powers paradoxically preclude the understanding you require to use them!
$endgroup$
– Nuclear Wang
9 hours ago












$begingroup$
Thank you Zeiss, I'm happy to hear that! @NuclearWang, I think it would depend how I wanted to fly. If I used the aerospace knowledge that having more air pass under me than over me would create lift, I could fly. Seeing an apple fall may tell me that some force exists always pulling down, I don't think it'd let me control gravity because in newtonian physics gravity is just a force, I don't know what causes it, so I can't manipulate it. If I knew of spacetime warping, I then had the knowledge to affect gravity by affecting change in spacetime? Maybe? Either way I dig your paradox.
$endgroup$
– Tryer
7 hours ago





$begingroup$
Thank you Zeiss, I'm happy to hear that! @NuclearWang, I think it would depend how I wanted to fly. If I used the aerospace knowledge that having more air pass under me than over me would create lift, I could fly. Seeing an apple fall may tell me that some force exists always pulling down, I don't think it'd let me control gravity because in newtonian physics gravity is just a force, I don't know what causes it, so I can't manipulate it. If I knew of spacetime warping, I then had the knowledge to affect gravity by affecting change in spacetime? Maybe? Either way I dig your paradox.
$endgroup$
– Tryer
7 hours ago











4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















4












$begingroup$

Fortunately, you've given us a very important clue when it comes to figuring out the limitations of your new universe - it exist. This lets us apply logic from the fine-tuning problem.



All laws of nature stem from applications of the prior laws, for instance atomic interactions laws can simply be said to be a natural extension of the laws that create them in the first place, i.e. the Strong Nuclear Force and the Weak Nuclear Force. Right now, we've boiled the forces of the universe down to four fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force), and they're theoretically all unified in one force, the single unifying force (which is known as the 'Unified Field Theory').



Now, for a universe to have different laws from out universe, it needs to have a different Unified Field Theory - at which point the universe falls apart. Everything in our universe only works because of how finely tuned the forces are. If gravity was a magnitude stronger or weaker, we wouldn't have stable stars. If nuclear interactions worked differently, elemental atoms couldn't form or interact, depending on the forces. Any change to the Unified Field Theory means that the fundamental laws of the Universe now prohibit existence. That means since your universe exists, it now follows all the rules you know and love.



Is there another possibility? Yes. Since proving negatives is impossible, it's possible that another configuring of the Unified Field Theory could produce a workable universe. But that would be near-incomprehensible. Literally, we're designed to operate in a universe that obeys our laws, and a universe that obeys entirely different laws wouldn't be able to interact with you well. And, even in the event that you somehow could, you'd have to start from scratch. So, either you understand everything, or you understand nothing and are stuck doing everything from ground zero up.






share|improve this answer









$endgroup$






















    4












    $begingroup$

    This has a bit of a meta twist to it.



    "If I understand it, I can use it" is pretty much the rallying cry of engineers. Once science is understood, it is applied by the engineers. As such, if you undertake many engineering tasks, you can build up confidence that you understand "If I can understand it, I can use it." Yay recursion!



    Once that step is complete, you may wish to tackle understanding understanding. That's a monumentally challenging thing. Oddly enough, those who ascribe to "know thyself," have a strange tendency of arguing that anything they want to do is achievable. Food for thought.






    share|improve this answer









    $endgroup$






















      1












      $begingroup$

      First you need to verify the unaltered physics of your new home. Ideally, someone who does not have god-like powers should recreate Galileo's and Newton's experimental work (pendulums, centripetal force, etc.), while someone performs or researches the equivalent of Tycho Brahe's and Johannes Kepler's observational confirmation of orbital motion and a non-geocentric (or even non-heliocentric) universe.



      While that work is going on, you could give someone a jump start on the knowledge to recreate Maxwell's electromagnetic equations, along with Franklin's, Faraday's, and eventually Stinmetz and Tesla's work with electricity and magnetism.



      Starting from the knowledge base you describe, all of this should be accomplished (given a reasonable level of recruitment) in a matter of a few years.



      The real trick will be biology -- unless you understand biology better than our society, you can't extend your own life to god-like immortality. Better get the smart folks on that one.






      share|improve this answer









      $endgroup$














      • $begingroup$
        However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
        $endgroup$
        – VLAZ
        8 hours ago










      • $begingroup$
        @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
        $endgroup$
        – Zeiss Ikon
        7 hours ago


















      1












      $begingroup$

      Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality is mostly about this. For example in chapter 28 Harry uses his scientific understanding for partial Transfiguration, deemed hitherto impossible:




      "Fascinating," said Dumbledore. "It's exactly as he claimed. He simply
      Transfigured a part of the subject without Transfiguring the whole.
      You say it's really just a conceptual limitation, Harry?"



      "Yes," Harry said, "but a deep one, just knowing it had to be a
      conceptual limitation wasn't enough. I had to suppress the part of my
      mind that was making the error and think instead about the underlying
      reality that scientists figured out."







      share|improve this answer









      $endgroup$

















        Your Answer








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        4 Answers
        4






        active

        oldest

        votes








        4 Answers
        4






        active

        oldest

        votes









        active

        oldest

        votes






        active

        oldest

        votes









        4












        $begingroup$

        Fortunately, you've given us a very important clue when it comes to figuring out the limitations of your new universe - it exist. This lets us apply logic from the fine-tuning problem.



        All laws of nature stem from applications of the prior laws, for instance atomic interactions laws can simply be said to be a natural extension of the laws that create them in the first place, i.e. the Strong Nuclear Force and the Weak Nuclear Force. Right now, we've boiled the forces of the universe down to four fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force), and they're theoretically all unified in one force, the single unifying force (which is known as the 'Unified Field Theory').



        Now, for a universe to have different laws from out universe, it needs to have a different Unified Field Theory - at which point the universe falls apart. Everything in our universe only works because of how finely tuned the forces are. If gravity was a magnitude stronger or weaker, we wouldn't have stable stars. If nuclear interactions worked differently, elemental atoms couldn't form or interact, depending on the forces. Any change to the Unified Field Theory means that the fundamental laws of the Universe now prohibit existence. That means since your universe exists, it now follows all the rules you know and love.



        Is there another possibility? Yes. Since proving negatives is impossible, it's possible that another configuring of the Unified Field Theory could produce a workable universe. But that would be near-incomprehensible. Literally, we're designed to operate in a universe that obeys our laws, and a universe that obeys entirely different laws wouldn't be able to interact with you well. And, even in the event that you somehow could, you'd have to start from scratch. So, either you understand everything, or you understand nothing and are stuck doing everything from ground zero up.






        share|improve this answer









        $endgroup$



















          4












          $begingroup$

          Fortunately, you've given us a very important clue when it comes to figuring out the limitations of your new universe - it exist. This lets us apply logic from the fine-tuning problem.



          All laws of nature stem from applications of the prior laws, for instance atomic interactions laws can simply be said to be a natural extension of the laws that create them in the first place, i.e. the Strong Nuclear Force and the Weak Nuclear Force. Right now, we've boiled the forces of the universe down to four fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force), and they're theoretically all unified in one force, the single unifying force (which is known as the 'Unified Field Theory').



          Now, for a universe to have different laws from out universe, it needs to have a different Unified Field Theory - at which point the universe falls apart. Everything in our universe only works because of how finely tuned the forces are. If gravity was a magnitude stronger or weaker, we wouldn't have stable stars. If nuclear interactions worked differently, elemental atoms couldn't form or interact, depending on the forces. Any change to the Unified Field Theory means that the fundamental laws of the Universe now prohibit existence. That means since your universe exists, it now follows all the rules you know and love.



          Is there another possibility? Yes. Since proving negatives is impossible, it's possible that another configuring of the Unified Field Theory could produce a workable universe. But that would be near-incomprehensible. Literally, we're designed to operate in a universe that obeys our laws, and a universe that obeys entirely different laws wouldn't be able to interact with you well. And, even in the event that you somehow could, you'd have to start from scratch. So, either you understand everything, or you understand nothing and are stuck doing everything from ground zero up.






          share|improve this answer









          $endgroup$

















            4












            4








            4





            $begingroup$

            Fortunately, you've given us a very important clue when it comes to figuring out the limitations of your new universe - it exist. This lets us apply logic from the fine-tuning problem.



            All laws of nature stem from applications of the prior laws, for instance atomic interactions laws can simply be said to be a natural extension of the laws that create them in the first place, i.e. the Strong Nuclear Force and the Weak Nuclear Force. Right now, we've boiled the forces of the universe down to four fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force), and they're theoretically all unified in one force, the single unifying force (which is known as the 'Unified Field Theory').



            Now, for a universe to have different laws from out universe, it needs to have a different Unified Field Theory - at which point the universe falls apart. Everything in our universe only works because of how finely tuned the forces are. If gravity was a magnitude stronger or weaker, we wouldn't have stable stars. If nuclear interactions worked differently, elemental atoms couldn't form or interact, depending on the forces. Any change to the Unified Field Theory means that the fundamental laws of the Universe now prohibit existence. That means since your universe exists, it now follows all the rules you know and love.



            Is there another possibility? Yes. Since proving negatives is impossible, it's possible that another configuring of the Unified Field Theory could produce a workable universe. But that would be near-incomprehensible. Literally, we're designed to operate in a universe that obeys our laws, and a universe that obeys entirely different laws wouldn't be able to interact with you well. And, even in the event that you somehow could, you'd have to start from scratch. So, either you understand everything, or you understand nothing and are stuck doing everything from ground zero up.






            share|improve this answer









            $endgroup$



            Fortunately, you've given us a very important clue when it comes to figuring out the limitations of your new universe - it exist. This lets us apply logic from the fine-tuning problem.



            All laws of nature stem from applications of the prior laws, for instance atomic interactions laws can simply be said to be a natural extension of the laws that create them in the first place, i.e. the Strong Nuclear Force and the Weak Nuclear Force. Right now, we've boiled the forces of the universe down to four fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force), and they're theoretically all unified in one force, the single unifying force (which is known as the 'Unified Field Theory').



            Now, for a universe to have different laws from out universe, it needs to have a different Unified Field Theory - at which point the universe falls apart. Everything in our universe only works because of how finely tuned the forces are. If gravity was a magnitude stronger or weaker, we wouldn't have stable stars. If nuclear interactions worked differently, elemental atoms couldn't form or interact, depending on the forces. Any change to the Unified Field Theory means that the fundamental laws of the Universe now prohibit existence. That means since your universe exists, it now follows all the rules you know and love.



            Is there another possibility? Yes. Since proving negatives is impossible, it's possible that another configuring of the Unified Field Theory could produce a workable universe. But that would be near-incomprehensible. Literally, we're designed to operate in a universe that obeys our laws, and a universe that obeys entirely different laws wouldn't be able to interact with you well. And, even in the event that you somehow could, you'd have to start from scratch. So, either you understand everything, or you understand nothing and are stuck doing everything from ground zero up.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered 8 hours ago









            HalfthawedHalfthawed

            4,7114 silver badges24 bronze badges




            4,7114 silver badges24 bronze badges


























                4












                $begingroup$

                This has a bit of a meta twist to it.



                "If I understand it, I can use it" is pretty much the rallying cry of engineers. Once science is understood, it is applied by the engineers. As such, if you undertake many engineering tasks, you can build up confidence that you understand "If I can understand it, I can use it." Yay recursion!



                Once that step is complete, you may wish to tackle understanding understanding. That's a monumentally challenging thing. Oddly enough, those who ascribe to "know thyself," have a strange tendency of arguing that anything they want to do is achievable. Food for thought.






                share|improve this answer









                $endgroup$



















                  4












                  $begingroup$

                  This has a bit of a meta twist to it.



                  "If I understand it, I can use it" is pretty much the rallying cry of engineers. Once science is understood, it is applied by the engineers. As such, if you undertake many engineering tasks, you can build up confidence that you understand "If I can understand it, I can use it." Yay recursion!



                  Once that step is complete, you may wish to tackle understanding understanding. That's a monumentally challenging thing. Oddly enough, those who ascribe to "know thyself," have a strange tendency of arguing that anything they want to do is achievable. Food for thought.






                  share|improve this answer









                  $endgroup$

















                    4












                    4








                    4





                    $begingroup$

                    This has a bit of a meta twist to it.



                    "If I understand it, I can use it" is pretty much the rallying cry of engineers. Once science is understood, it is applied by the engineers. As such, if you undertake many engineering tasks, you can build up confidence that you understand "If I can understand it, I can use it." Yay recursion!



                    Once that step is complete, you may wish to tackle understanding understanding. That's a monumentally challenging thing. Oddly enough, those who ascribe to "know thyself," have a strange tendency of arguing that anything they want to do is achievable. Food for thought.






                    share|improve this answer









                    $endgroup$



                    This has a bit of a meta twist to it.



                    "If I understand it, I can use it" is pretty much the rallying cry of engineers. Once science is understood, it is applied by the engineers. As such, if you undertake many engineering tasks, you can build up confidence that you understand "If I can understand it, I can use it." Yay recursion!



                    Once that step is complete, you may wish to tackle understanding understanding. That's a monumentally challenging thing. Oddly enough, those who ascribe to "know thyself," have a strange tendency of arguing that anything they want to do is achievable. Food for thought.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered 7 hours ago









                    Cort AmmonCort Ammon

                    115k18 gold badges207 silver badges402 bronze badges




                    115k18 gold badges207 silver badges402 bronze badges
























                        1












                        $begingroup$

                        First you need to verify the unaltered physics of your new home. Ideally, someone who does not have god-like powers should recreate Galileo's and Newton's experimental work (pendulums, centripetal force, etc.), while someone performs or researches the equivalent of Tycho Brahe's and Johannes Kepler's observational confirmation of orbital motion and a non-geocentric (or even non-heliocentric) universe.



                        While that work is going on, you could give someone a jump start on the knowledge to recreate Maxwell's electromagnetic equations, along with Franklin's, Faraday's, and eventually Stinmetz and Tesla's work with electricity and magnetism.



                        Starting from the knowledge base you describe, all of this should be accomplished (given a reasonable level of recruitment) in a matter of a few years.



                        The real trick will be biology -- unless you understand biology better than our society, you can't extend your own life to god-like immortality. Better get the smart folks on that one.






                        share|improve this answer









                        $endgroup$














                        • $begingroup$
                          However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
                          $endgroup$
                          – VLAZ
                          8 hours ago










                        • $begingroup$
                          @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
                          $endgroup$
                          – Zeiss Ikon
                          7 hours ago















                        1












                        $begingroup$

                        First you need to verify the unaltered physics of your new home. Ideally, someone who does not have god-like powers should recreate Galileo's and Newton's experimental work (pendulums, centripetal force, etc.), while someone performs or researches the equivalent of Tycho Brahe's and Johannes Kepler's observational confirmation of orbital motion and a non-geocentric (or even non-heliocentric) universe.



                        While that work is going on, you could give someone a jump start on the knowledge to recreate Maxwell's electromagnetic equations, along with Franklin's, Faraday's, and eventually Stinmetz and Tesla's work with electricity and magnetism.



                        Starting from the knowledge base you describe, all of this should be accomplished (given a reasonable level of recruitment) in a matter of a few years.



                        The real trick will be biology -- unless you understand biology better than our society, you can't extend your own life to god-like immortality. Better get the smart folks on that one.






                        share|improve this answer









                        $endgroup$














                        • $begingroup$
                          However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
                          $endgroup$
                          – VLAZ
                          8 hours ago










                        • $begingroup$
                          @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
                          $endgroup$
                          – Zeiss Ikon
                          7 hours ago













                        1












                        1








                        1





                        $begingroup$

                        First you need to verify the unaltered physics of your new home. Ideally, someone who does not have god-like powers should recreate Galileo's and Newton's experimental work (pendulums, centripetal force, etc.), while someone performs or researches the equivalent of Tycho Brahe's and Johannes Kepler's observational confirmation of orbital motion and a non-geocentric (or even non-heliocentric) universe.



                        While that work is going on, you could give someone a jump start on the knowledge to recreate Maxwell's electromagnetic equations, along with Franklin's, Faraday's, and eventually Stinmetz and Tesla's work with electricity and magnetism.



                        Starting from the knowledge base you describe, all of this should be accomplished (given a reasonable level of recruitment) in a matter of a few years.



                        The real trick will be biology -- unless you understand biology better than our society, you can't extend your own life to god-like immortality. Better get the smart folks on that one.






                        share|improve this answer









                        $endgroup$



                        First you need to verify the unaltered physics of your new home. Ideally, someone who does not have god-like powers should recreate Galileo's and Newton's experimental work (pendulums, centripetal force, etc.), while someone performs or researches the equivalent of Tycho Brahe's and Johannes Kepler's observational confirmation of orbital motion and a non-geocentric (or even non-heliocentric) universe.



                        While that work is going on, you could give someone a jump start on the knowledge to recreate Maxwell's electromagnetic equations, along with Franklin's, Faraday's, and eventually Stinmetz and Tesla's work with electricity and magnetism.



                        Starting from the knowledge base you describe, all of this should be accomplished (given a reasonable level of recruitment) in a matter of a few years.



                        The real trick will be biology -- unless you understand biology better than our society, you can't extend your own life to god-like immortality. Better get the smart folks on that one.







                        share|improve this answer












                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer










                        answered 9 hours ago









                        Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon

                        8,65615 silver badges39 bronze badges




                        8,65615 silver badges39 bronze badges














                        • $begingroup$
                          However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
                          $endgroup$
                          – VLAZ
                          8 hours ago










                        • $begingroup$
                          @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
                          $endgroup$
                          – Zeiss Ikon
                          7 hours ago
















                        • $begingroup$
                          However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
                          $endgroup$
                          – VLAZ
                          8 hours ago










                        • $begingroup$
                          @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
                          $endgroup$
                          – Zeiss Ikon
                          7 hours ago















                        $begingroup$
                        However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
                        $endgroup$
                        – VLAZ
                        8 hours ago




                        $begingroup$
                        However, would it be possible to reach the tech...I mean god singularity by trying to understand intelligence and how the mind works? Just get philosophers to try and really nail down how the brain works. Any time you understand something about it, you can influence it and improve it. So, you can improve your philosophers. Repeat. Eventually, with enough understanding of the brain, you should be able to create a mind that can understand more than you but then also be able to explain everything to you. So, it's a perpetual self-improvement feeding back all knowledge to you.
                        $endgroup$
                        – VLAZ
                        8 hours ago












                        $begingroup$
                        @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
                        $endgroup$
                        – Zeiss Ikon
                        7 hours ago




                        $begingroup$
                        @VLAZ Sounds to me like you're saying it's turtles all the way down...
                        $endgroup$
                        – Zeiss Ikon
                        7 hours ago











                        1












                        $begingroup$

                        Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality is mostly about this. For example in chapter 28 Harry uses his scientific understanding for partial Transfiguration, deemed hitherto impossible:




                        "Fascinating," said Dumbledore. "It's exactly as he claimed. He simply
                        Transfigured a part of the subject without Transfiguring the whole.
                        You say it's really just a conceptual limitation, Harry?"



                        "Yes," Harry said, "but a deep one, just knowing it had to be a
                        conceptual limitation wasn't enough. I had to suppress the part of my
                        mind that was making the error and think instead about the underlying
                        reality that scientists figured out."







                        share|improve this answer









                        $endgroup$



















                          1












                          $begingroup$

                          Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality is mostly about this. For example in chapter 28 Harry uses his scientific understanding for partial Transfiguration, deemed hitherto impossible:




                          "Fascinating," said Dumbledore. "It's exactly as he claimed. He simply
                          Transfigured a part of the subject without Transfiguring the whole.
                          You say it's really just a conceptual limitation, Harry?"



                          "Yes," Harry said, "but a deep one, just knowing it had to be a
                          conceptual limitation wasn't enough. I had to suppress the part of my
                          mind that was making the error and think instead about the underlying
                          reality that scientists figured out."







                          share|improve this answer









                          $endgroup$

















                            1












                            1








                            1





                            $begingroup$

                            Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality is mostly about this. For example in chapter 28 Harry uses his scientific understanding for partial Transfiguration, deemed hitherto impossible:




                            "Fascinating," said Dumbledore. "It's exactly as he claimed. He simply
                            Transfigured a part of the subject without Transfiguring the whole.
                            You say it's really just a conceptual limitation, Harry?"



                            "Yes," Harry said, "but a deep one, just knowing it had to be a
                            conceptual limitation wasn't enough. I had to suppress the part of my
                            mind that was making the error and think instead about the underlying
                            reality that scientists figured out."







                            share|improve this answer









                            $endgroup$



                            Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality is mostly about this. For example in chapter 28 Harry uses his scientific understanding for partial Transfiguration, deemed hitherto impossible:




                            "Fascinating," said Dumbledore. "It's exactly as he claimed. He simply
                            Transfigured a part of the subject without Transfiguring the whole.
                            You say it's really just a conceptual limitation, Harry?"



                            "Yes," Harry said, "but a deep one, just knowing it had to be a
                            conceptual limitation wasn't enough. I had to suppress the part of my
                            mind that was making the error and think instead about the underlying
                            reality that scientists figured out."








                            share|improve this answer












                            share|improve this answer



                            share|improve this answer










                            answered 7 hours ago









                            JurajJuraj

                            7472 silver badges6 bronze badges




                            7472 silver badges6 bronze badges























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