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submitted 1 day ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

For me "How long could I get away with driving like an ABSOLUTE ASSHOLE all the time before I lost my licence or had an accident." Speed limits, red lights, stop signs... forget them all. Every day I have to drive sensibly and obey the law because without my licence I dont have a job, and every day I see at least one person driving like an absolute moron and I wonder...

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[-] [email protected] 8 points 12 hours ago

I want to see how far you can push performance of the human body, and make the results compete against each other. All the bonkers whacky surgeries you can think of: limb lengthening, bone strengthening, replace their organs with bigger, stronger versions.

All the drugs: hgh, steroids, any performance enhancing substance you can pump into an athlete.

Have sports scientists raise children so that they're born into a dedicated training regime for running or swimming.

Then make them compete against each other in the trans-human olympics. I want to see someone do the 100m in 3 seconds, I want to see someone not have to come up for air during the freestyle, I want someone to throw a javelin 2 miles, I want bioengineered mutants doing gymnastics routines

[-] [email protected] 1 points 1 hour ago

So basically unit 731 stuff

[-] [email protected] 9 points 18 hours ago

A bit contemporary, but I'd like to have studied what it takes to break someone of illusions that were fed and forced on them externally, e.g. schooling, TV, social media and other forms of cultural imprinting and propaganda.

We've all had that "what would it take to get this person to realize how far off base they are?" question, it would be fascinating, in a no-holds barred experiment testing various solutions and combinations to find out which is the most effective.

E.g. someone believes climate change isn't real because (x,y,z irrelevant). No amount of written evidence is effective to people who don't understand the scientific method, so would it be videos, traveling to acutely affected places, having polar bears removed from all zoos, baseball bats on their knuckles when they make a logical fallacy?

It would be interesting to then categorize the types of delusions or illusions and then prescribe treatment based on these results.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 18 hours ago

I think this one could be done ethically, even make a good TV show.

[-] [email protected] 4 points 13 hours ago

Parts of it could be done, but it would always stop at "the subject is uncomfortable", which is the whole point of why changing someone's mind against delusions, illusions and propaganda is hard. They don't want to, so without some treatment experiments that would certainly not meet today's medical and/or psychological standards, we wouldn't get an answer to many questions.

You could make a TV show sure, but all the wrong people would tune in.

[-] [email protected] 20 points 22 hours ago

I want to totally impoverish the 50 richest capitalists to see if they could "bootstrap" themselves out of it for real.

Okay, so there's nothing unethical or dangerous about that (they are capitalist parasites, not humans), but it would still be interesting to see.

[-] [email protected] 10 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

Eddie Murphy and Dan Ackroyd already published the definitive paper on this.

[-] [email protected] 9 points 1 day ago

I've broken traffic laws most of my life, and I still have a driver's license. So, you can drive like a partially reasonable asshole indefinitely if you have the skill to pull it off.

I'd like to see GMO humans. I want to see how far we can elevate our species using science. It's completely unethical, but there it is.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 18 hours ago

Oh I'm no saint. I set my cruise control at 10km/h over the speed limit, I punch it through orange lights and I sometimes roll through stop signs.

I'm talking about full blown fast and furious wannabe swerving lanes, running reds and racing literally everywhere.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 23 hours ago

How is that unethical? If anything i say it's unethical to let us languish in these horrible bodies when we can work towards something better.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 22 hours ago

Most people are very opposed to eugenics and genetic modification of humans. There is infinite opportunity for unexpected disasters along the way to perfection, and it's extremely apathetic to be okay with subjecting a sentient creature to the possible ramifications of unexpected outcomes.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 11 hours ago

Most people are only opposed to eugenics (as you're using the word) because of a very narrow application. A rare few get genetic engineering and capitalism mixed up, which at least makes sense, i wouldn't want musk choosing who gets a generic upgrade or how an augmentation is implemented.

And i find it abhorrent that people are just fine with letting our entire species suffer the nightmare of random chance that is our bodies. Sure it's surprisingly good for a system that only selects for whatever fucks the most, but we can and should eventually do better.

[-] [email protected] 26 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Cyborg-like implants. I want titanium joints and UV vision and magnetic field sensors and charging my phone by laying it on my belly. Uncap each finger to reveal a small tool: screwdriver, USB key, cutting blade, etc.

Note that none of that includes or requires a constant connection to a network/internet. I want to augment my interactions with the real world, not replace them with a virtual world.

[-] [email protected] 7 points 1 day ago

I've looked forward to this most of my life, but given how things have changed, I would never do it. There's no way these implants wouldn't be subscription based, and spy on everything you do. Oh, you forgot to pay your enhanced eyeball subscription? Now you're blind, motherfucker!

[-] [email protected] 15 points 1 day ago

Oh boy do I have an 80's cartoon for you…

[-] [email protected] 7 points 1 day ago

Go-go-gadget...

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[-] [email protected] 10 points 1 day ago

Raise a child on their own without any exposure to language. Could be interesting to see how their perspective on the world develops.

[-] [email protected] 4 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I think this was done? Long time ago, maybe in an Russian orphanage or something? If my memory serves me well, those kids all died, despite even having food etc...

Edit: might be confusing that with lack of social interaction. But either way, here's some reading for you

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[-] [email protected] 2 points 19 hours ago

What happens if you put a lightbulb in your ass

[-] [email protected] 2 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago)

Nothing until you start rubbing your feet on the carpet to generate current to light it up.

[-] [email protected] 34 points 1 day ago

It may not be possible, but I want to gradually replace a person's brain piece-by-piece with the same areas from other brains and see if they retain their sense of self when none of the original brain remains.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 18 hours ago

We can satisfy this curiosity with a fair amount of scientific evidence.

Of course, most regions of the brain are so densely and variably interconnected that the technical difficulty of “replacing parts” precedes the ethical consideration by many, many years. But we do have a great deal of evidence for how our subjective sense of self is affected by “losing/removing parts” of the brain. Patients are often unaware of change unless evidence for it is overwhelming, and even then are adept at healing/reconciling instinctively. It appears that this is just something brains have evolved to do.

So while the technology (and sheer artistry) required to match and “stitch” these networks is quite staggering, basically magic, it is theoretically possible that a patient could have every part replaced without recognizing any continuity errors in the chimeric stages, until one day they wake up as a completely different person.

[-] [email protected] 31 points 1 day ago

The brain of Theseus!

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[-] [email protected] 37 points 1 day ago

Isolate a bunch of babies together, with food etc, and see how they develop their own language and society.

[-] [email protected] 16 points 1 day ago

Not exactly the same, but suggests probably it would not turn out well. https://thebrain.mcgill.ca/flash/capsules/histoire_bleu06.html

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[-] [email protected] 33 points 1 day ago

Raise a kid in a sensory deprivation chamber, with one exception: a monitor that only shows gen alpha brainrot videos. When they're like 14 drop them off in a populated area and see what happens

[-] [email protected] 23 points 1 day ago

Realistically would just end up a developmentally stunted invalid. There was an example from some book, I don't remember which, where there was a SE Asian woman who lived with her family and had a baby.

The family was ashamed, so they forced the girl to keep the baby by itself in the attic. She would go to work most of the day, and come back to take care of it when home. That was the total extent of interaction and stimulation the baby got. It ended up being severely stunted and never learned to talk.

Essentially young children need human interaction which includes warmth and constant validation, caring for, etc

If you interrupt that in any way, you end up with a feral child who is permanently stunted.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago)

Developing a wireless brain-electronic interface. I believe it will be not so bad if the development is non intrusive.

[-] [email protected] 14 points 1 day ago

Gorillas on steroids. How bulky can these magnificent already bulky beasts get?

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[-] [email protected] 22 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

How far can you strip down the human body until it can't survive anymore. Assisted feeding and breathing is okay. Adjustable room temperature too.

Arms, Legs? Gone. Can we get rid of the skin? Probably, if the room is the right temperature? Bones? Most of them aren't needed, are they? Some organs surely can go too.

Basically, what is the bare minimum needed so the body and the mind still more or less work.

[-] [email protected] 14 points 1 day ago

For this you don't need a human, Can start with monkeys.

Disclaimer: I don't want this experiment to happen.

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[-] [email protected] 9 points 1 day ago

make a fallout shelter and have some isolated communities there live off purely of either one of meta, apple, or alphabet products (or any large enough multinational like nestle).

all for the science of understanding addiction and brand cultism.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 19 hours ago

Forgot the name, but the one where they had a mock prison where half the subjects were guards with special treatment and the other half were prisoners. Though I'd be trying to figure out how to eliminate the whole "power corrupts" stuff, not just sitting back watching what happens as people die.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 17 hours ago

The Stanford Prison Experiment. But it shouldn't be taken seriously, it was terribly done, biased and unscientific

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31380664/

Could be interesting to run something similar under actual experimental conditions, if that was doable

[-] [email protected] 2 points 12 hours ago

It's regrettable that it became part of "psychology 101" (in a general sense).

Can you imagine how much misinformation is piggybacking off these "facts" about human nature?

[-] [email protected] 13 points 1 day ago

I’d give everyone a device that allows them to take photos of themselves and their lives, and then instantly post them online. Other people would be able to rate and comment on how well or badly they think someone is doing, based on these curated snapshots of their existence. In this experiment, people could also scroll through endless streams of these 'highlights,' constantly comparing their lives to others. To spice it up, I’d introduce a feature that allows people to see how many likes or comments other posts are getting, so they can feel great or miserable about themselves in real-time.

[-] [email protected] 11 points 1 day ago

Oh boy, have I got good news for you!

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[-] [email protected] 9 points 1 day ago

Human genetic engineering. I'm sure governments are already doing this, because the technology is already here.

You could create super soldiers or very intelligent people. You could then copy them in cloning vats and have an army of people you could shape and mold to your will.

Could experiment with all sorts of stuff. For example they've put biiluminescent genes from certain fish into frogs to make glowing frogs. Now imagine giving humans the raw power of chimps. Or the ability to see UV light like birds. Or venomous spit. Or the power to smell like dogs.

[-] [email protected] 16 points 1 day ago

the power to smell like dogs

I know how it was meant, but imagine a new X-men hero who has only the ability to smell like a wet dog. That's some Deadpool level of absurdity.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 day ago

I was imagining a human who is constantly shoving his face in other people's butts and crotches for a good sniff.

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[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 day ago

I think I sat next to him on the bus once

[-] [email protected] 9 points 1 day ago

It would also require centuries, so it's not as possible, but breeding people for very specific traits and features. Whether appearance, physical strength, overall intelligence, specifically being great in mathematics, great smell, great sight.

Basically, control the evolution by favoring very specific features and outright disallowing others (like hereditary diseases/disorders) that would be unacceptable in the mix.

Since this requires a lot of time which I'd somehow theoretically have (I know, this wasn't in the post, but anyway...), I'd want to try yet another thing. Breeding at the most late age possible, then continuing with that and extending it. Perhaps it would lead to increased lifespan, or at least lesser effects of aging in the far far offsprings. At least physically. These experiments don't exactly favor mental health of the subjects.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 19 hours ago

We already did this unintentionally during our natural evolution. All we really got out of it were a group of humans who can run slightly faster on average, and a group of humans who can drink milk as adults without shitting themselves.

I imagine the timeframe to get any noticable results would be in the thousands of years, even with deliberate selection for specific genes.

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this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2024
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