# The Experience Engine

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [March 19, 2011, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293 "2011-03-19T22:04:08Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2011, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293/1 "2011-03-19T22:04:08Z")

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Someone creates a machine that can (through the power of whatever scientific or magical mumbo-jumbo you want to imagine) put you into the mind of anyone in history to experience anything they experienced. You will see what they saw, feel what they felt, think what they thought, and live what they lived. Then you’ll be back in your own reality.

You’ve only got one. It can last up to 24 hours.

What event, if any, do you choose to experience?

(Let’s ignore the real ethical implications of doing a ridealong in an unwitting brain for right now, please.)

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**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2011, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293/2 "2011-03-19T22:09:21Z")

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Going into outer space would be pretty cool.

The runner up would be someone having the party of their life- crazy hard drugs and lots of dirty sex. It’d be interesting to try heroin and have sleazy sex without taking on the associated physical risks.

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**Author:** ![Justin\_Credible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a8b319/32.png) [@Justin\_Credible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Credible)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2011, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293/3 "2011-03-19T22:18:00Z")

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Even Sven, you and I thought of the same two things. 😛

I’d probably go with Neil Armstrong so I could walk on the moon.

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**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2011, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293/4 "2011-03-19T22:46:14Z")

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Christmas celebrations at the court of Elizabeth I or James I. Mostly, of course, because I’d _love_ to see an early performance of any of Shakespeare’s plays, but I imagine the spectacle would be all-around amazing. (And I’m sure they ate and drank well.)

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**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2011, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-experience-engine/575293/5 "2011-03-19T23:46:57Z")

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> [@Fretful\_Porpentine](#):
>
> Christmas celebrations at the court of Elizabeth I or James I. Mostly, of course, because I’d _love_ to see an early performance of any of Shakespeare’s plays, but I imagine the spectacle would be all-around amazing. (And I’m sure they ate and drank well.)

I don’t know. Even royalty can do just so much with period English food. The atmosphere would be surreal but you would wonder why they aren’t using real Shakespearian style accents (they didn’t hadn’t been invented yet).

I might pick being JFK during the Cuban Missile Crisis. You get to see a major crisis unfold that may destroy the world yet you know he still got laid every day by someone on order.

I think I would really pick the signing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. It would be mind-blowing to see those people in one place at one time.