Poll of the Day > Even if you could travel back in time to stop [whatever] from happening...

(+) Yeah! (+)

how exactly would you convince people that you're really from the future, and not just some crazy person? I think the obvious answer is to bring some kind of modern tech with you, and then the option after that would be to play the lottery, but what if you couldn't do those things? What if you couldn't bring anything with you, or you didn't have the chance to choose a specific enough time to know what predictions to prove?

Well, I guess your option would have to be study as much history as possible so you have a wealth of memorized events to predict. That or claim you got the information another way. For crimes, you could complain you overheard somebody planning it. That or you could do what move time-travelers seem to do and just attempt to save the day yourself, alongside a love interest you met earlier and who you convinced that your story is true after they sleep with you.
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I would not change anything from the past. It may fuck up my present.
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VeeVees posted...

I would not change anything from the past. It may fuck up my present.

I would save Heath Ledger because I *really* want to see what they would have done differently in TDKR.
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If you could travel back in time making that fact known sounds like a terrible idea. You'd become a huge target for any number of reasons, the results would be volatile and probably fatal.
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Here's my problem with time travel as a plot device...

...jump in your time machine. Punch in your time coordinates. Hit the big red button. Congratulations, you've emerged from the time stream in the black void of space.

The Earth is moving around the Sun. The Sun is lollygagging around the milky way galaxy. The milky way galaxy is moving in relation to Andromeda, 2 dozen other galaxies, and the expansion of space itself.

There is literally no chance you're going to pop out of the time stream cleanly to kill Hitler or stop the sacking of the library of Alexandria. You're going to be sucking vacuum in the cold void of space.

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.
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Zeus posted...

VeeVees posted...

I would not change anything from the past. It may fuck up my present.

I would save Heath Ledger because I *really* want to see what they would have done differently in TDKR.

If you're going that route, save Brittney Murphy too so we can see her Harley Quinn and Heath Ledger's Joker...
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WhiskeyDisk posted...

Here's my problem with time travel as a plot device...

...jump in your time machine. Punch in your time coordinates. Hit the big red button. Congratulations, you've emerged from the time stream in the black void of space.

The Earth is moving around the Sun. The Sun is lollygagging around the milky way galaxy. The milky way galaxy is moving in relation to Andromeda, 2 dozen other galaxies, and the expansion of space itself.

There is literally no chance you're going to pop out of the time stream cleanly to kill Hitler or stop the sacking of the library of Alexandria. You're going to be sucking vacuum in the cold void of space.

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.

You could wave that away by saying that because of how closely time and gravity are related time travel is still anchored to earth.
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I wouldnt convince anyone of anything. Id just get shit done.
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DrPrimemaster posted...

WhiskeyDisk posted...

Here's my problem with time travel as a plot device...

...jump in your time machine. Punch in your time coordinates. Hit the big red button. Congratulations, you've emerged from the time stream in the black void of space.

The Earth is moving around the Sun. The Sun is lollygagging around the milky way galaxy. The milky way galaxy is moving in relation to Andromeda, 2 dozen other galaxies, and the expansion of space itself.

There is literally no chance you're going to pop out of the time stream cleanly to kill Hitler or stop the sacking of the library of Alexandria. You're going to be sucking vacuum in the cold void of space.

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.

You could wave that away by saying that because of how closely time and gravity are related time travel is still anchored to earth.

Not if you actually believe in the conservation of angular momentum. Believe me, I've thought about this a lot. Even the earth itself is rotating. Even if you were working some tied to Terra angle, the odds of you not popping out in the middle of an ocean without a boat or in the middle of a mountain range, or hundreds of feet above the planet in relation to where you left are extraordinarily remote. You'd actually have to calculate your precise location in space and time, as well as that of your destination when going backwards and there's still the issue of where you're aiming for not having happened yet if you're going forward, even if "forward" is the present you left from.

Time travel is still a mess as a plot device no matter how you handwave it.
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WhiskeyDisk posted...

DrPrimemaster posted...

WhiskeyDisk posted...

Here's my problem with time travel as a plot device...

...jump in your time machine. Punch in your time coordinates. Hit the big red button. Congratulations, you've emerged from the time stream in the black void of space.

The Earth is moving around the Sun. The Sun is lollygagging around the milky way galaxy. The milky way galaxy is moving in relation to Andromeda, 2 dozen other galaxies, and the expansion of space itself.

There is literally no chance you're going to pop out of the time stream cleanly to kill Hitler or stop the sacking of the library of Alexandria. You're going to be sucking vacuum in the cold void of space.

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.

You could wave that away by saying that because of how closely time and gravity are related time travel is still anchored to earth.

Not if you actually believe in the conservation of angular momentum. Believe me, I've thought about this a lot. Even the earth itself is rotating. Even if you were working some tied to Terra angle, the odds of you not popping out in the middle of an ocean without a boat or in the middle of a mountain range, or hundreds of feet above the planet in relation to where you left are extraordinarily remote. You'd actually have to calculate your precise location in space and time, as well as that of your destination when going backwards and there's still the issue of where you're aiming for not having happened yet if you're going forward, even if "forward" is the present you left from.

Time travel is still a mess as a plot device no matter how you handwave it.

idk, space and time are curved so you just need to time-travel sideways >_>
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Zeus posted...

WhiskeyDisk posted...

DrPrimemaster posted...

WhiskeyDisk posted...

Here's my problem with time travel as a plot device...

...jump in your time machine. Punch in your time coordinates. Hit the big red button. Congratulations, you've emerged from the time stream in the black void of space.

The Earth is moving around the Sun. The Sun is lollygagging around the milky way galaxy. The milky way galaxy is moving in relation to Andromeda, 2 dozen other galaxies, and the expansion of space itself.

There is literally no chance you're going to pop out of the time stream cleanly to kill Hitler or stop the sacking of the library of Alexandria. You're going to be sucking vacuum in the cold void of space.

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.

You could wave that away by saying that because of how closely time and gravity are related time travel is still anchored to earth.

Not if you actually believe in the conservation of angular momentum. Believe me, I've thought about this a lot. Even the earth itself is rotating. Even if you were working some tied to Terra angle, the odds of you not popping out in the middle of an ocean without a boat or in the middle of a mountain range, or hundreds of feet above the planet in relation to where you left are extraordinarily remote. You'd actually have to calculate your precise location in space and time, as well as that of your destination when going backwards and there's still the issue of where you're aiming for not having happened yet if you're going forward, even if "forward" is the present you left from.

Time travel is still a mess as a plot device no matter how you handwave it.

idk, space and time are curved so you just need to time-travel sideways >_>

In 4/19/25 dimensions with your primitive 3d brain that hasn't even figured out what dark matter is.

Yeah, good luck with that.
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WhiskeyDisk posted...

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.

Or if you're changing events in history, which is the premise of this topic, returning to somewhere that won't happen at all.
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Zeus posted...

I would save Heath Ledger because I *really* want to see what they would have done differently in TDKR.

was joker supposed to be in dkr?
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I'd bring a laptop with schematics and credible footage on the hard drive. My chosen point of divergence would be prior to the outbreak of WWI. I'd do my best to ensure that Britain and the USA weren't triggered (much easier than it sounds - basically just leave Belgium alone). The Middle-East would be peaceful today as the Sykes-Picot Agreement never would've taken place, Nazis wouldn't exist, and neither would the Islamic extremism they pushed for during and after the war. WWII, at worst, would've probably just been Western Europe and Japan eradicating communism.
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You'd cause a paradox if you tried to change anything since once it's been changed your past changes as well. So preventing a death because someone died in the past is impossible to accomplish because if they stay alive you won't go back and prevent their death in the first place.
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Snake posted...

You'd cause a paradox if you tried to change anything since once it's been changed your past changes as well. So preventing a death because someone died in the past is impossible to accomplish because if they stay alive you won't go back and prevent their death in the first place.

We don't know though. The only logical explanation is for a tangent universe to be created, so you're just missing from your old one and can never return. You created a divergence. A paradox would in essence be impossible because if you undid your own existence you couldn't undo your own existence.
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WhiskeyDisk posted...

Zeus posted...

WhiskeyDisk posted...

DrPrimemaster posted...

WhiskeyDisk posted...

Here's my problem with time travel as a plot device...

...jump in your time machine. Punch in your time coordinates. Hit the big red button. Congratulations, you've emerged from the time stream in the black void of space.

The Earth is moving around the Sun. The Sun is lollygagging around the milky way galaxy. The milky way galaxy is moving in relation to Andromeda, 2 dozen other galaxies, and the expansion of space itself.

There is literally no chance you're going to pop out of the time stream cleanly to kill Hitler or stop the sacking of the library of Alexandria. You're going to be sucking vacuum in the cold void of space.

And then there's the issue of returning to somewhere that hasn't happened yet.

You could wave that away by saying that because of how closely time and gravity are related time travel is still anchored to earth.

Not if you actually believe in the conservation of angular momentum. Believe me, I've thought about this a lot. Even the earth itself is rotating. Even if you were working some tied to Terra angle, the odds of you not popping out in the middle of an ocean without a boat or in the middle of a mountain range, or hundreds of feet above the planet in relation to where you left are extraordinarily remote. You'd actually have to calculate your precise location in space and time, as well as that of your destination when going backwards and there's still the issue of where you're aiming for not having happened yet if you're going forward, even if "forward" is the present you left from.

Time travel is still a mess as a plot device no matter how you handwave it.

idk, space and time are curved so you just need to time-travel sideways >_>

In 4/19/25 dimensions with your primitive 3d brain that hasn't even figured out what dark matter is.

Yeah, good luck with that.

If you were smart enough to create a time machine, hopefully, you'd be smart enough to put the coordinates of where you wanted to land when you go back. NASA can help. Or it could depend on how far from the future you are...

TheCyborgNinja posted...

Snake posted...

You'd cause a paradox if you tried to change anything since once it's been changed your past changes as well. So preventing a death because someone died in the past is impossible to accomplish because if they stay alive you won't go back and prevent their death in the first place.

We don't know though. The only logical explanation is for a tangent universe to be created, so you're just missing from your old one and can never return. You created a divergence. A paradox would in essence be impossible because if you undid your own existence you couldn't undo your own existence.

I agree. The paradox would only work if you tried to go back. But now you're created a different universe. That being said, I think it depends on how far back you go. You could fuck a lot of shit up... and you'll basically have to live there now unless you have a time machine that goes with you so you can either try again or stop yourself from changing anything.

Either way, I would most likely never go back and change anything. I like my life the way it is. And changing even the smallest thing in my past would change who I am today...
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I will be a "psychic", and become a billionaire. Up until March 24th, 2018, where I become wrong again.

the best thing about being a time traveler is that no one believes you so no one questions why you know things will happen before they do and then they never see you again so the thought stays in the back of their mind constantly nagging them
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TheWorstPoster posted...

I will be a "psychic", and become a billionaire. Up until March 24th, 2018, where I become wrong again.

Well, I mean, it's not like you have a time machine right now. So, it would be up until whatever day you get a time machine and leave...
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FatalAccident posted...

Zeus posted...

I would save Heath Ledger because I *really* want to see what they would have done differently in TDKR.

was joker supposed to be in dkr?

Pretty sure the script was written *after* Ledger's death (which happened before TDK even hit theaters) so it hadn't even got to that point yet. However, the Scarecrow popped up in TDKR and, given how big Ledger went over in TDK, it's very likely he would have had at least a few scenes if not a supporting role.

Snake posted...

You'd cause a paradox if you tried to change anything since once it's been changed your past changes as well. So preventing a death because someone died in the past is impossible to accomplish because if they stay alive you won't go back and prevent their death in the first place.

Or you could go back in time, fake their death, and bring them to the future with you. That's overlooking that you could just create a new timeline.
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I'd go back in time an hour so I could charge my phone
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SteamedHams posted...

how exactly would you convince people that you're really from the future, and not just some crazy person?

Without proof I wouldn't.
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Zeus posted...

Or you could go back in time, fake their death, and bring them to the future with you. That's overlooking that you could just create a new timeline.

That works well, too. I've thought about that myself. Everything stays the same, most likely...
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If I could go back in time, I'd make my family rich. Maybe I wouldn't explain who I was, but I'd hand my dad all the winning numbers to the lottery and tell him to invest it all in Amazon.

I mean, if that were remotely possible as it would also affect where I was in my present and I'd actually probably end up erasing myself.
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zebatov posted...

If I could go back in time, I'd make my family rich. Maybe I wouldn't explain who I was, but I'd hand my dad all the winning numbers to the lottery and tell him to invest it all in Amazon.

I mean, if that were remotely possible as it would also affect where I was in my present and I'd actually probably end up erasing myself.

As long as you were already born, you would mostly end up changing your life. But you couldn't go back to the present. As it's probably gone now. You can live with you family as your own older sister, however...
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