If you were hit by lightning and zapped back in time 1500 years, what modern day stuff could you "invent" ?

Question

You've got no possessions or tools.

I can only think that perhaps I could make a telescope to impress the people of the day / earn some money. Maybe lol.

Actually Hydride I have no "motive" for asking this question.. other than to see what clever ideas others could think of.

I asked cause I read a short story called "The Man Who Came Early" - by Poul Anderson, about a GI based in Iceland in the 1950s, who gets struck by lightning and is sent back to Viking time in circa year 1000. He comes up with a few ideas, like the sailing boat. Unfortunately he has the "tools to make the tools to make the tools" problem.

Some interesting ideas here though.. such as penicillin, hot air balloon, printing press, and perhaps modernish building techniques.. if you have that skill. Thanks.

Answer 1

id invent a few things, 1st would be the printing press which would allow me to get the population literate,2nd would be the idea that the world wasnt the center of the univers and 3rd would be that the world was round and not flat and then get a crew to sail around it to proive my point. by proving the 3rd point it would question the doctrin that the church held at the time that the earth was at the center of the universe and seeing as the population of the world was becoming more literate by other means than the church my ideas would be more widely heard of. also finding the americas almost 1000 years before chris columbus would mean there would be numerouse oppertunities opened up to england that werent there before hand.

Answer 2

Awesome question. Had me thinking all day.

I tried to think of things that I could invent with the materials that would be available. Perhaps a primitive printing press, but I doubt there'd be much use for it circa 500 AD (or CE, if you prefer).

When it came to it, I think I couldn't invent many useful things because the materials wouldn't be available, or the need for manpower would be far too great. Or they simply wouldn't be useful. I suspect I could invent the pencil but it's the Dark Ages! No one can read!

I figured making "discoveries" might be a better idea. There was probably a primitive, intuitive idea of hygeine but, especially if I could distil alcohol, I could revolutionise infection control (can you tell I studied Biochemistry?). A primitive still wouldn't been too hard, especially using metal rather than glass. I imagine there could be someone who'd collaborate with me to make one! Alcohol kills bacteria.

Also, if I could get hold of the materials, a cure for cholera would be relatively easy to make. You basically need to keep giving the sufferer clean water with salts in until about three days later they'll be cholera free.

I'd have a go at inventing penicillin. Can't be too hard, eh?

Also, I think I'd have a few good recipe ideas. Thought I might invent a thing called a hamburger, and sell them off for a profit...

I'm not entirely sure how far I'd get until I was burned as a witch, though. It doesn't matter how many lives I'd saved, that sort of power makes people jealous!

Answer 3

Well... it would depends what sort of a person you are.

If you were around 40, handy with your hands and had some general knowledge about how things work, you could build a heck of a lot of things which were unknow then.

You could start by building the tools you need.
You could also consult with the scientists of the day and give them the idea and rough explanation of what we have today.

Building things is not hard. Coming up with the idea to invent them is the hard part.
If you took our knowledge back in 500
They probably would have a space shuttle in the air by 1000.

However, if you went back 1500 years with all this knowledge, you would be considered a witch and you would be burn at the stakes before having a chance to build anything.

Answer 4

Two answers for you here:

In the year 506 (2006-1500), I would "invent" assembly line processes, the concept of "credit and interest charges" to facilitate economic growth, the Welsh Bow, the steam engine, and modern cartographic representations of the world for use in war.

For society to gain and benefit from my wisdom, I would need to acquire the title of King or be appointed a high chancellor.

Answer 5

Motive of furiouspurposeuk question:
[1] Fascinated and / or feared by Lighting. { since in the world it is Lightning that kills more people than any other weather related calamity.}
[2] Furious and / or so much eager to know about the ancient period.
[3] By the same time the vibrant scientific temperament in his mind.
Supportive evidence for asking this question:
[4] hidden desire to earn quick money of course with some pretended "invention".
The logic is : projecting himself.
The answer for the question perhaps will be "COMPUTER"

Answer 6

You probably wouldnt get the chance. You'd be burnt at the stake or something as an "aygente of the devylle" if you suddenly appeared out of nowhere, in modern clothes and started making tools no one had ever seen before. Personally I'd invent gunpowder and some sort of gun with plenty of ammo, and get a bunch of heavies on my side, do a bit of conquering and exploit it for all it was worth. But I am a selfish b*****d...

Answer 7

nevertheless assuming no "WWE" benefit: Terry Funk. As I pronounced formerly, if he could not out-try against you he'd out-combat you. If he could not out-combat you, he'd out-"loopy" you. Bret Hart. Hate to work out Dynamite bypass away so quickly, however the Hitman could in basic terms out-try against him and make him faucet to the Sharpshooter. Sting. a sprint extra useful wrestler than Savage, i think of. Sting could win via submission to the Scorpion Deathlock. Chris Benoit. damn...what a tournament-up! Chris' power benefit may be the adaptation right here. Dean could at last faucet to the Crippler Crossface. Kurt perspective. As super as Owen grew to become into, so is Kurt. Kurt's meaner and extra ferocious. No submission right here, Kurt could in basic terms could desire to positioned on Owen out and pin him. Hulk Hogan. Hogan CAN try against. he's extra advantageous and enhanced than Austin, too. The Undertaker. Shawn's stable, actual stable. I in basic terms think of the Undertaker can beat him. Ric flair. flair had no worry out-wrestling the great adult adult males. The Rock could be no distinctive.

Answer 8

You could demonstrate that hot air rises therefore inventing the hot air balloon.

You could forward theories like gravity and evolution and all kind of things would lead on from that, but evolution would probably get you killed as a heretic.

You could also have a go at penicillin, it's only mould.

It's not so much as what you could invent as what you would know, biology, chemistry, physics and so on.

Answer 9

I'd teach people in hospitals about germs and how to wash their hands to avoid infection and about sterilisation. Would save millions of lives.

If I wanted to make money I'd invent velcro - can just see that helping out women's dresses in those days.

Answer 10

The cross bow, invent the toilet, reinvent the sewer systems ( the romans invented it first),invent the printing press