Live data from Hacker News

Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

idlewords.com

21–30 of 45 posts

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#21
post #5

John Titor said he arrived in a 1967 Corvette that he brought with him from 2036. I do not think he said it was a 2036 Corvette. If he planned to travel to the early 1970's, that makes sense. Here is a bit about it. I can not confirm any of what they are saying: https://www.reddit.com/r/JohnTitor/comments/yago4w/john_tito...

Could carbon dating prove age or is that too accurate eg. needs to be 100s of years apart.

You can probably carbon date the rubber in the tires:

https://meridian.allenpress.com/rct/article-abstract/50/4/81...

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#22

If I wanted to gain access to places in 2023 without too much trouble, I'd don a hard-hat, reflective vest, and a clipboard. However, what is the equivalent attire for 1880's London? 500's Mesoamerica? 300's Rome? Please answer fast as my rift is opening.

Use your rift to check back for late answers...

A real time traveler would know that opening a rift just to get the latest Hacker News was banned in 2052

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#23
I told a buddy about this and he replied in some ways I found interesting, so I have attempted to the best of my abilities to replicate his response herein:

Long, exaggerated sigh for effect...OK, Titor is a totally reasonable time traveler for someone employed by the U.S Army, that is to say he is not especially creative. The Army values people who can think inside the box, and this guy can.

If this is what you do for time traveling you might as well go see a movie, and not a very good one either.

If you have a quick layover somewhere, make it interesting - I recently wrote the guide to 10 concerts you should see if you are a time traveler https://medium.com/p/8d2ead8cb643

or maybe you might just like to go get high with the quality drugs of yesteryear? https://medium.com/luminasticity/using-time-travel-to-score-...

Maybe there is a favorite food that you can no longer get? My guilty pleasure was 7-11 Nachos from the 80s when you could pile it up high enough to survive all day on one box, as long as you didn't care overmuch about what it did to your insides https://medium.com/luminasticity/a-stopover-for-nachos-8aed8...

Or indulge in some revenge on your worst enemies after they're gone and can't get even https://medium.com/luminasticity/money-making-opportunities-...

These may not be best practices, but they are enjoyable practices, and someone able to access all of time and space that doesn't attempt to enjoy themselves has definitely something a bit wrong in the head - just saying. Lucky this guy found someone to order him around in his life.

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#24
post #8

Discussed 13 years later: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003) - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13051116 - Nov 2016 (76 comments)

That discussion is what prompted me to go back and write the original

Perfect comment.

Thank you for your writing, Maciej. It’s so good.

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Use your rift to check back for late answers...

A real time traveler would know that opening a rift just to get the latest Hacker News was banned in 2052

Sorry for nitpicking on your grammar, but you are supposed to use the prophetic perfect for stating future events as if they were past.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prophetic_perfect_tense

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#26

If I wanted to gain access to places in 2023 without too much trouble, I'd don a hard-hat, reflective vest, and a clipboard. However, what is the equivalent attire for 1880's London? 500's Mesoamerica? 300's Rome? Please answer fast as my rift is opening.

In most of human history there has been wider differentiation between the classes than there has been in the past 30 years or so, and as such there is unlikely to be just one uniform that allows authoritative access to every where, in most cases you will want a number of costumes suited to what you are attempting to do.

In 1880s London prepare an upper class costume as already suggested, a copper's outfit - this will also allow you to bear a formidable truncheon, it is nice to have access to weaponry when getting access to places when someone discovers you have gained access to said places.

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#27

If I wanted to gain access to places in 2023 without too much trouble, I'd don a hard-hat, reflective vest, and a clipboard. However, what is the equivalent attire for 1880's London? 500's Mesoamerica? 300's Rome? Please answer fast as my rift is opening.

In most of human history there has been wider differentiation between the classes than there has been in the past 30 years or so, and as such there is unlikely to be just one uniform that allows authoritative access to every where, in most cases you will want a number of costumes suited to what you are attempting to do. In 1880s London prepare an upper class costume as already suggested, a copper's outfit - this will…

In most civilizations before reformation era Europe you would be best off dressing as some sort of priest or scribe.

Re: Best Practices for Time Travelers (2003)

#29

If I wanted to gain access to places in 2023 without too much trouble, I'd don a hard-hat, reflective vest, and a clipboard. However, what is the equivalent attire for 1880's London? 500's Mesoamerica? 300's Rome? Please answer fast as my rift is opening.

> the equivalent attire for 1880's London? Either a top-hat and a suitably wealthy attitude, or dress like a washerwoman who has come to scrub the floors.

As long as you use the servants' entrance, anyway!
Post reply on HN