dreams about “what if…”
Of course, not Elon himself, but undoubtedly an important question at two o’clock in the morning: “What if, during the course of some scientific experiment (let’s say), Comrade Musk ended up in the vastness of medieval Europe?” Well, you know, this is teleportation in space and time.
Of course, an ordinary person who finds himself in such an environment will most likely, um… end his existence in the first couple of hours. Okay, days. But, firstly, Elon is not such an ordinary person. And secondly, at two o’clock in the morning my brain demands the continuation of the banquet and categorically does not accept such a quick ending. Therefore, let’s put the so-called “plot armor” on our hero (I saw this term in one book, it’s very convenient in such cases). Now not a single villain will be able to even scratch him, no tragic accidents will happen, the medieval infection will not stick, and wild animals will treat him like a Disney princess. Well, that’s it, now you don’t have to worry about the safety of Elon’s life and health and finally switch to thinking about his possible accomplishments. Oh yes, and we will also abolish the language barrier, otherwise it’s too difficult.
So, how would our hero behave if he found himself in a time far from any significant progress? Would you accept the lack of Internet and gadgets? Would you join the local society, deciding that forced downshifting is also interesting? Or would he still begin to break the foundations and introduce science?
So, well, the idea that Elon will become a peasant, sweating in the field, becomes simply funny. It would be more in his nature to accept such an unusual challenge of fate and squeeze the maximum benefit out of the situation, consistent with his ideas and interests, of course. Well, what is his most important idea? In my opinion, this one:
“An asteroid or supervolcano can destroy us, and in addition we are exposed to risks never dreamed of by dinosaurs: an artificially created virus, the accidental appearance of a microscopic black hole as a result of a physical experiment, catastrophic global warming, or some other destructive technology unknown to date could cease our existence. It took millions of years for humanity to develop, but in the last sixty years, atomic weapons have created the potential for self-destruction. Sooner or later, our lives will have to expand beyond this blue-green ball – or we will die out.”
Elon Musk, Wikipedia
Of course, Comrade Musk will have to abandon the idea of conquering Mars at this time. But he can launch progress in the direction he wants, put the ideas and priorities he needs into people’s heads and put science on the right (in his opinion) tracks, and even speed up the whole thing by sharing his knowledge in areas known to him. Sounds great! But what is needed for this? That's right, resources. And money – first of all. This means Elon would concentrate his efforts on the material side of the issue. Perhaps, at first, he could introduce himself as an overseas merchant from a distant country, offer the services of an intermediary, or use one of some modern business tricks, which these days seasoned businessmen buy for once or twice, but at (I assume) naive medieval They will work quite well for traders. This is how our hero will earn starting capital.
What's next? And then, most likely, he will try to reproduce what he does so well in our time – create a company. A startup in the Middle Ages? It sounds promising! To do this, of course, he will need a team. I am sure that our hero’s charisma and intelligence will attract the attention of talented artisans and inventors. What could they have done for the Middle Ages? So that, on the one hand, this would have a wow effect, but on the other hand, would it not interest religious figures too much? Improved mechanisms? Typography? Drug production? I don’t even know what to choose, hmm…
In the first case, he could concentrate (to begin with) on technologies for agriculture, and subsequently expand the scope of his activities into construction and military affairs. From plows to cranes and siege engines, why not? Feudal lords, wealthy merchants and monasteries would be quite interested in such mechanisms. Elon would begin to acquire connections with the powers that be and gain his own influence. And this is very important! Of course, there would be many difficulties. Training of employees, wariness of society, and even more so the risk of arousing suspicion in the church of that time, which was quite critical of everything new.
Next is book printing. Guttenberg, at that time, if I’m not mistaken, was developing his improvements in the field of book printing, and Elon could well have offered his ideas for improving and speeding up printing. And this, in my opinion, is an extremely important area for our hero to be able to promote and disseminate his ideas and knowledge. Perhaps Elon would even invest in opening public libraries at universities to make knowledge more accessible. The main thing is to dose this knowledge correctly so as not to arouse unhealthy interest in you-know-who and to prepare society for more modern and revolutionary discoveries.
Well, the last thing that seems to me the most important and promising is medicine. Of course, under the guise of alchemy. Surely some simple medicines and antiseptics, based on knowledge in the field of chemistry and biology, could be produced. Even spreading knowledge about hygiene would be very useful. Doctors, pharmacists, and rich people would probably tear off actually working drugs with their hands. The main thing, again, is not to be accused of witchcraft.
Well, the most important thing. Realizing that, unfortunately, he could not invent immortality, Elon would take care of training loyal followers. Perhaps he will form some kind of secret order, the members of which, even after the death of the founder, will direct progress and pull the right strings so that science develops in the right direction and at the right speed. And of course, taking into account all the mistakes of our past and pitfalls, which Elon, of course, will tell them about. Or maybe Comrade Musk, on the contrary, will act openly and become the founder of the most modern and progressive universities? In my opinion, this is a more risky path, although if you have the proper connections and support from the rulers…
Oh yes, I almost forgot. Another thing that Elon would definitely do is an observatory. As modern as it gets. This would be the first step towards his big dream – a dream that would take man to other planets. And in this version of the universe, I suspect this will happen much faster than with us.
So, do I think all this would be possible? Of course not. We had to give the main character too much of a head start in order for him to at least survive. But I would really like to take at least one look at the world that would have turned out in our time through the efforts of Elon-Trapped-in-the-Middle Ages. It's not harmful to dream, is it? =)
Thanks for reading!
Don't forget to dream, but still try to get enough sleep at night. =)
Have a nice day!
