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Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.


Obeliskos

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EVERYONE




There is a planet circling Gliese 581, which is a red dwarf star about 20 light years away from us.

On this planet, about the size of Neptune, there exists two continents made of something resembling obsidian, and they're separated by an ocean of methane on all sides.

On one continent there lived one man-equivalent, who didn't age and spent his days terraforming his continent so it eventually was exactly the way he wanted it.

On the other continent there lived an entire civilization which had, over the course of many years had arrived at the very basics of ancient technology. Slings, irrigation, and the like.

Neither continent knew of the other's existence.

Between these continents under the methane ocean there is a single fish covered in eyeballs who can see the entire planet and knows exactly what is going on on both continents but cannot move or do anything. The fish forgets everything it sees moments after they happen.

Of the three parts of this story, the man, the fish, and the civilization, which is the smartest?
 

Rule 34

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Your momma.

For reals though, I would say The Fish. At least he knows what's going on.
 

Lucas

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

None, because the conditions stated would make it impossible to have this scenario be true. The planet in question has a temperature around 800+ degrees Fahrenheit (430+ Celsius), far above the freezing point for methane which the fish would be frozen in, and of course far above the 'Goldilocks conditions' needed for human life. And while ice could exist in various forms due to any extreme gravity from nearby red dwarf, a layer of anything except for a gas with a lower density in high amount would not protect the ice.

In other words, you can't have the methane ocean and the frozen fish at the same time while you're orbiting a red dwarf.

Or maybe I'm just being too much of a space nerd.
 

Rule 34

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

None, because the conditions stated would make it impossible to have this scenario be true. The planet in question has a temperature around 800+ degrees Fahrenheit (430+ Celsius), far above the freezing point for methane which the fish would be frozen in, and of course far above the 'Goldilocks conditions' needed for human life. And while ice could exist in various forms due to any extreme gravity from nearby red dwarf, a layer of anything except for a gas with a lower density in high amount would not protect the ice.

In other words, you can't have the methane ocean and the frozen fish at the same time while you're orbiting a red dwarf.

Or maybe I'm just being too much of a space nerd.
No, I actually think you gave the correct answer.
 

Twisted

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

None, because the conditions stated would make it impossible to have this scenario be true. The planet in question has a temperature around 800+ degrees Fahrenheit (430+ Celsius), far above the freezing point for methane which the fish would be frozen in, and of course far above the 'Goldilocks conditions' needed for human life. And while ice could exist in various forms due to any extreme gravity from nearby red dwarf, a layer of anything except for a gas with a lower density in high amount would not protect the ice.

In other words, you can't have the methane ocean and the frozen fish at the same time while you're orbiting a red dwarf.

Or maybe I'm just being too much of a space nerd.
Whoever said the methane was frozen? It says an ocean of methane, suggesting liquid. It never said what form of a civilization it is, you assume thats its a human civilization, and not an alien civilization in which is capable of surviving in such extreme conditions; and as for the "man equivalent", its an equivalent, not an actual man. The equivalence might be that it is the man equivalent for that atmosphere.

I say the answer to the question is that there is no answer.
 

Treebeard

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Whoever said the methane was frozen? It says an ocean of methane, suggesting liquid. It never said what form of a civilization it is, you assume thats its a human civilization, and not an alien civilization in which is capable of surviving in such extreme conditions; and as for the "man equivalent", its an equivalent, not an actual man. The equivalence might be that it is the man equivalent for that atmosphere.
In this case I say the civilization.

The man may have terraformed the planet to how he liked it, but that does not mean that he used some super-advanced technology. He may have done it one square inch at a time, using a rock. He could have done this yearly, and still gotten it precisely how he wanted.

The fish forgets everything it sees moments after it happen, and therefore doesn't retain knowledge in any form.

The civilization, however, has become more advanced in its ways, and therefore knows how to do things.
 

aika

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Taking a logical approach I'd say the fish, since he has absolute knowledge for the absolute present.

One could argue that for a being that cannot move or act, this is perfection.


Alternate answer:

According to the title of this thread, everyone "in the world" is equally dumb.
 

Pheonix Alugere

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Unless this is a trick question which would make the poster the dumb one (Don't give a multiple choice question and expect people to create their own answer, that's very stupid), I shall have to vote the man-like creature for the simple reason that no one has voted for him yet and we should have at least one person vote for every answer.
 

Fab10

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Hmm... You know, technically, he's not asking whether the fish/man/civ is the smartest; he's asking which of the part of the story is the smartest.
 
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QuirkyQuark

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Fab10 said:
Hmm... You know, technically, he's not asking whether the fish/man/civ is the smartest; he's asking which of the parts of the story is the smartest.
Wrong.
Of the three parts of this story, the man, the fish, and the civilization, which is the smartest?
It is indicated by the punctuation that it is indeed a multiple choice question with options of: the man, the fish, or the civilization.

I deem the civilization to be the smartest based on pure technological intelligence. It is worth noting however that the fish is the wisest of the three because it possess an untainted objective view of everything contained within the planet/star.
 

Fab10

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Originally Posted by Obeliskos
Of the three parts of this story, the man, the fish, and the civilization, which is the smartest?
It is indicated by the sentence structure that it is a multiple choice question with options of: the part of the story about the man, the part of the story about the fish, or the part of the story about the civilization.
 

Pheonix Alugere

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Of the three parts of this story, the man, the fish, and the civilization, which is the smartest?
It is still read as such:
Of the three parts of this story, which is the smartest?
A)the man
B)the fish
C)the civilization
You chose a, b, or c. There are no other options. The bubble sheet only has a, b, and c and will not accept any scribbling in of a choice d.
 

DeMatt

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Okay, just for giggles, I'll vote for "the civilization", since it's learning and making use of its learning.

Now, Obeliskos, do ya think ya could tell us all why everybody gets this question wrong? And why ya didn't make a poll out of it - seems appropriate for one.
 

ZeroSpace

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

If we weren't bounded to that fish/man/civ I'd say us, because we see the fish/man/civ or know of their existance and their role.
But if you ask me I'd say Civ because they managed to survive without changing things they want it do be.
and if you are asking for the smartest, the 'answer' is the smartest because it's the answer.
OR since no one would probably say it, the guy that asked/made the question is the smartest.
 

XSI

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Not going to put in a vote for whatever answer, but knowing what is going on and seeing it all is not smart, it is having very good perception. The fish might know, and see everything of both continents, but that does not mean he is intelligent.

Just being able to see what is going on, "single fish covered in eyeballs", is different from a being that's smart. (Further examples would include idiots looking at something, just because they see it, doesn't mean they are smart and know what is going on. Perception =/= Intelligence)
 

Sinfulwolf

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

I'll say the man. The fish dosn't hold any information, so how can it truly think and process anything. It is simply aware. The Civilization while yes made all those advancements, did so as a community, and from what I've seen of the world I wouldn't say having a handful of smart people justifies having all the dumb fucks wandering about. The man is living by himself, has the intelligence of the ages, is doing what he wants, and by his lonesome.

Of course, I could argue for the civilization too but I don't want to.

Now... is Obe going to give the answer, or was this thread just another bait/ troll maneuver?
 

ToxicShock

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Us, for finding out about this planet in the first place. Hell, that's a bit more perception than the fish, AND we have surpassed the civilizations technology
 

Mamono Assault Force

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Or, you could not get the question wrong by not answering it.
 

Hentaispider

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

Or, you could not get the question wrong by not answering it.
Exactly. It's a loaded question anyway, since the right option isn't available. Therefore we must reject the question.
 

Kusanagi

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Re: Everyone in the world got this question wrong. Yes, everyone.

I reject your reality and substitute my own!
 
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