Just before death you are granted one truthful, understandable answer to one question. What would you want to know?

Mothra@mander.xyz to Asklemmy@lemmy.ml – 235 points –

Obviously a hypothetical scenario. There is no way to pass on the knowledge to anyone else. Time freezes for you only, and once you have your answer you are out of this world.

The question can allow you to see into the past, present and future and gain comprehension of any topic/issue. But it's only one question.

Edit: the point isn't "how to cheat death". You can't. Your body is frozen and there is nothing you can do with this knowledge other than knowing it, and die. So if you would rather be frozen in a limbo just thinking of numbers for eternity, be my guest.

Such a variety of replies, it's been really interesting to read them!

What would you want to know? Personally I'd want to see a timelapse or milestone glimpses of humanity's future until the end of Earth's existence (if we survive that long)

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Starting right now, how can I preserve my personal conscious existence until I'm ready to no longer exist?

"You can't. You had literally all of eternity to ask your final question, you could've used some of that time to come to terms with your death, but instead you immediately used up your question(and your remaining time) trying to cheat death. Goodbye"

If you're not mentally ready to go this is hands down the best question

What if the answer is just "you can't, goodbye"

I believe there is a good chance there is an answer that can achieve the preparedness necessary, but if not- at least they tried. They were going to die anyway.

You can't, you need more time.

So then the answer would tell me how to get that time, of it's possible. If it's not: well, I tried.

Well, you could in theory build as accurate as possible a recreation of both yourself and the entire universe in simulated form that wouldn't be dependent on a body with an expiration date.

You wouldn't have much benefit from this, but the copy would benefit a lot.

Unless...you already are that copy.

(There's actually a group in antiquity that claimed this was the case - that souls which depend on bodies are screwed but that we all are actually copies of a first humanity which brought forth an intelligence in light which tried to save them, couldn't, and thus recreated them within its light in a copy of the universe. That it's actually the future, we just don't realize it, that the evidence for this can be found in the study of physics, and that those who understand its sayings about it being better to be a copy of what existed before will not fear death.)