# What is the ultimate "What if"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 4, 2003, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409 "2003-04-04T06:35:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/1 "2003-04-04T06:35:19Z")
I submit - What if the Big Bang didn’t happen. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/2 "2003-04-04T06:38:02Z")
I think you win. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/3 "2003-04-04T06:42:38Z")
What if the Universe suddenly rotated 180 degrees - _and nobody noticed_. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/4 "2003-04-04T06:43:30Z")
:smack: I think that counts as a thread-killer-OP. I think some reviving is needed… **CLEAR!** So… what is the _ **penultimate** _ “What if”? ---
**Author:** ![3trew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/13edae/32.png) [@3trew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3trew)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/5 "2003-04-04T07:05:15Z")
Meh. If the Big Bang didn’t happen, then presumably you wouldn’t be here to think about it, or the (insert theist group here) are right, etc. Either way, “What if everything you knew was wrong?” It presumes a “you”, but it kind of has to, doesn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/6 "2003-04-04T07:37:00Z")
What if a duck’s quack really didn’t echo? ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/7 "2003-04-04T07:43:56Z")
What if you were the only girl in the world, And I were the only boy? ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/8 "2003-04-04T09:04:43Z")
What if the Universe rotated 90 degrees? Well, we’d be in imaginary space. What if I never got up this morning? I’d write the world’s shortest blues song. What if I could rock but not roll? I’d climb a stairway to heaven. What if Elvis lived? JFK would have died in Dallas. What if Monroe died? Dukakas would have won. ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/9 "2003-04-04T10:37:45Z")
What if there were several types of hominid species of varying intelligence? ---
**Author:** ![mr.splitfoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@mr.splitfoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr.splitfoot)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/10 "2003-04-04T10:39:23Z")
What if Cecil had never been born? * * * What if Breakfast Chunks had never been invented? Then tasty breakfast squids would sweep the nation! ---
**Author:** ![Maria](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Maria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maria)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/11 "2003-04-04T13:34:09Z")
I think the ultimate what-if is if you _do not believe_ that “I think, therefore I am.” That is, that thinking you exist means nothing, and that you and the universe, present and past, can all be imaginary- when the thought ceases, there is no more of anything. ---
**Author:** ![Earthworm\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f07891/32.png) [@Earthworm\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthworm_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/12 "2003-04-04T13:54:39Z")
Obviously, the ultimate ‘what if’ is **What if there were no hypothetical situations?** ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/13 "2003-04-04T14:08:08Z")
What if a != a? ---
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/14 "2003-04-04T14:53:40Z")
What if we were all just figments of somebody else’s imagination? Barry ---
**Author:** ![gyt\_fx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/74df32/32.png) [@gyt\_fx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gyt_fx)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/15 "2003-04-04T15:40:02Z")
What if you sprouted the opposing sex’s genitalia for one day? What if those creationists were right about adam and eve and we were only created 8,000(or somethin like that, im no scholar)years ago? ---
**Author:** ![j.c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/73ab20/32.png) [@j.c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j.c)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/16 "2003-04-04T16:03:06Z")
What if the opposing sexes finally learned to get along? Seriously, I’d be okay with the “penis for a day” plan so long as my own sex characteristics retreated for that day. Wouldn’t want all of it cluttering up my jeans. ---
**Author:** ![mrweebles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/da6949/32.png) [@mrweebles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrweebles)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/17 "2003-04-04T16:13:22Z")
What if the Red Sox pitching holds up for the entire season, and they win the Series? Would this city (Boston) survive? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/18 "2003-04-04T16:18:20Z")
What if _everybody_ changed gender for a day? ---
**Author:** ![FranticMad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c68b51/32.png) [@FranticMad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FranticMad)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/19 "2003-04-04T16:38:24Z")
What if there were an intelligent species living on planet Earth? ---
**Author:** ![Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f08c70/32.png) [@Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crowbar_of_Irony_3)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-ultimate-what-if/166409/20 "2003-04-04T18:03:03Z")
What if this is the Matrix??