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[FearfulJesuit]

A genie has granted you a time machine. You may choose three points in time and space to visit as often and for as long as you wish. These are start points, so, for example, if you chose 1840, you could spend two years there without worrying about whether you'd also asked for 1841 and 1842. You may bring up to $1 million worth of modern-day technology or goods. Remember that just because you can bring it doesn't mean you can use it (good luck charging your laptop in the 18th century).

Where do you choose?

Personally, I think I'd choose New York City in 1925, bringing a million dollars worth of 1925 currency to go wild with; Newfoundland in 1000 AD, bringing enough hardy modern livestock and cold-weather crops to keep the Norse going; and Alexandria, circa 200 BC, bearing a printing press (that could be replicated, yes?)

[Dutchling]

I would choose the moment before getting visited by the genie.

[ChairmanPoo]

I would choose the moment before getting visited by the genie.

win

[Levi]

50 years in the future.
100 years in the future.
200 years in the future.

I'd stop and live in the first one with tech to make me immortal. 

[RedKing]

I would choose the moment before getting visited by the genie.

He's got you there.

Assuming there's a "no wishing for more wishes"-style clause, I'd probably choose:

1. Parthia, 97 AD (ok, maybe 96 AD to give myself time to set up). The Chinese envoy Gan Ying would come through the region in 97 AD, seeking to reach the vaguely-known Roman Empire. He gave up and turned back, leaving one of the biggest what-if scenarios in history.

2. Florence, 1476 AD. Leonardo Da Vinci would be leaving his apprenticeship and setting out on his own. Would enjoy just hanging with Leo, but even more interested to see what he could do if given some modern blueprints and materials to work with. (Yes, I'm into fucking up the timestream like a boss)

3.  Somewhere in the Northern Hemisphere, circa 2500 AD. Hopefully shit'll be interesting (especially after my work in the previous two timelines led to competing Roman and Han Empires in space by 1600 AD...another 900 years should have given them the chance to get into spaaaaaace in a big way)

[Scoops Novel]

Wrong order. Pick up Leonardo first, then go back and forward.

[GlyphGryph]

I would choose the moment before getting visited by the genie.

This is exactly what I was going to say. Damn it. I assume we become unhinged time travelers, and that all that matters for chronistic considerations is the actual date. Is that a fixed point, or does exist in reference to our own temporal progression?

So yeah - if we stay hinged, one of the time periods will be just before meeting the genie.
If not, 1784, so I can have a say in the founding of the United States and huge bits of important technological history. Woot woot. If nothing else, it's far enough back that I could hopefully use my FUTURE KNOWLEDGE to build up some sway and alter future events, which I couldn't do in the modern day.

The second will be 88,000,000 B.C. Dinosaur hunts, ho.

The final will be 4,000 A.D. Something interesting must have happened by then. Assuming, again, unhinged, I will get to see at least several planets held sway under the Glorious Cyborg Dinosaur Republic of the United States, a utopian future society that is everything I could have hoped for and more.

And if that doesn't work, I have the perfect time points chosen to use my new find the perfect dinosaur.

Note that I fully intend to use future cryotech to abuse this as well.

[Scoops Novel]

The point where the most species of humans are about, for one, AND ALL OF YOU GUYS ARE FORGETTING THE IN SPACE BIT. Why stay on world? I'd go for somewhere most likely to have some vestige of advanced alien life. And lastly... the first human.

[DJ]

Early neolithic, now, 3k AD. I'd bring 1mil $ worth of weed and Cheetos.

[kaijyuu]

Some near-future dates (4000 AD or so) so I can get me some socialized immortality.

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

If only I could choose more.  I have a book by the name of "The collected What If?"  That contains many scenarios that I would want to see and affect. 

Spoiler: examples (not in chronological order, and eventually just becoming the titles of the short stories) (click to show/hide)

Premature death of Alexander the Great, The Teutoburg Forest Disaster in 9 A.D. that prevented Rome from retaining control of Germany, The disaster of Adrianople in 378 that sent the Roman Empire into its final decline, the possible triumph of the Spanish armada, Napolean's possible victory at Waterloo, if the lost confederate order wasn't lost, the possibility of WWI never happening which would mean WWII never happened, a disaster at Midway, D-day failing, the communists never taking control of China, Socrates' possible death in 424, Octavian losing at Actium, Pontius Pilate sparing Jesus, William the Conquerer never taking control of England, the possibility of China discovering America, Napolean invading North America, if Lincoln never freed the slaves, If Charles I had never left whitehall, France doesn't go to war in 1870, Theodore Roosevelt being elected in 1912, Germany winning WWI, a russian revolution without Lenin, the possible death of FDR before he was president, Chamberlin falling sway to Hitler at Munich, Britain making peace with germany in the 1940's, Failing to break the Enigma code, the WWII pope protesting the holocaust, allowing Patton and Montgomery to attempt to take Berlin, no atomic weaponry was developed, if FDR had not gotten rid of Henry Wallace in 1944, America without Nixon, Johnson, and Kennedy, Pizzaro never finding potatoes in Peru.

and then there are all the events of the future that I would want to see and change, and the list becomes even larger.  I don't think that I could choose three times to travel to.

[Strife26]

Near current scenario, maybe a decade or a little more ago, with all million dollars in knowledgy stuff so that I can amass a ridiculous fortune. If I'm allowed to return to the current day, then I'd probably forgo this one.



30 years war, with standard knowledgy stuff as well as some fancy equipment, including steps to establish power generation for my computer from base materials. Establish myself as close to Gustav Adolphus, prevent his death, lessen the severity of the 30 years, see if I can establish a modernly minded Swedish Empire

1924, with standard knowledgy stuff again. More or less do the same thing with PreWWII America. Take a quick trip to waste Hitler, because, let's be honest, how could I *not* take advantage of that bit of fate tempting? Especially when I'd be there to guide America into main battle tanks a helluva lotta years ahead.


If I've got the option, something 226 years in the future, so I could do the same thing with the modern day.

[Frumple]

Forget the other two options and the excessive loot. I'll take the long shot and pick about an hour before the big bang and a stick I nabbed off the ground, in order to find out what happens if you poke a singularity with a stick. Maybe a camera too, to record it or whatev'.

Barring that... Siddhartha, Jesus, Muhammed. And a tape recorder/camera. Maybe a taser or some knockout gas or somethin', too. Hostile natives, probably. Get some questions answered and on tape, y'know?

[Strife26]

Yeah, but look at how inefficient that guy was! I'd do my best to leverage all of my future knowledge to get America to bomb the prison where he was being held all to hell and back, or maybe just be sitting out there with a crack squad of Proto-SEALs to cap him when he gets released.

I mean, there'd be some collateral damage, but I'd certainly be dammed for the number of deaths it'd cause anyway

[misko27]

Hmm.
Go back to last week, obtain powerball winnings,
 
Forward end of the academic year, see how I did, use to force self to work harder.
 
Lastly, go back in time, assasinate Lincoln, frame John Wiles Booth give the allied powers a computer chip.
 
And why? Because they all benefit me directly far more then being lost in 18th century Britain with no money, name, clothes, Identity, or disease resistance to save me.