[Grizzly]

<p>Son in Victoria was interviewing for a host position at an upscale restaurant.  Typical questions and then this:</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Manager: "If you could go back in time to the Middle Ages and bring something with you to leave, what would it be?"</p>
<p>Son:  "A steam engine"</p>
<p>Manager:  "Pardon me?"</p>
<p>Son:  "Well, it's practical technology, it's something that they could understand and build themselves, and it is something I could explain and that is important because it would ensure that I wouldn't get burned at the stake for witchcraft."</p>
<p>Manager:  <blink></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Son tells me he didn't think he got the job.  But it probably gave the manager something to chew on.  Ah the joys of an Aspie life.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I think it was a great answer, but I'm biased.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>

 

[Tech Tee]

<div class="quote-container" data-huddler-embed="/forum/thread/74409/what-kind-of-an-interview-question-is-that-anyway#post_2005385" data-huddler-embed-placeholder="false"><span>Quote:</span>
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by <strong>Grizzly</strong> <a href="/forum/thread/74409/what-kind-of-an-interview-question-is-that-anyway#post_2005385"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif"></a><br><br><p>Son in Victoria was interviewing for a host position at an upscale restaurant.  Typical questions and then this:</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Manager: "If you could go back in time to the Middle Ages and bring something with you to leave, what would it be?"</p>
<p>Son:  "A steam engine"</p>
<p>Manager:  "Pardon me?"</p>
<p>Son:  "Well, it's practical technology, it's something that they could understand and build themselves, and it is something I could explain and that is important because it would ensure that I wouldn't get burned at the stake for witchcraft."</p>
<p>Manager:  <blink></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Son tells me he didn't think he got the job.  But it probably gave the manager something to chew on.  Ah the joys of an Aspie life.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I think it was a great answer, but I'm biased.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
</div>
</div>
<br>
I don't know what being an Aspie has to do with it all.<br><br>
It is a fantastic answer. Well thought out, and well reasoned. Some other bonehead would probably have said a computer or something, that would have been totally useless to people in the Middle Ages. Anything that anything to do with electricity would be useless.<br><br>
Sounds to me like your son is smarter than the guy doing the interview.<br><br>
I always tried a thought experiment. If all our technology was removed from us in an instant, but we still retained our knowledge. How long would it take for use to get back to where we are now, and how different would things be? For example, would we bother creating a nuclear weapon (sadly the answer is probably yes).

 

[Mrtambalynman]

<p>Interesting answer.  I wonder why he thought that they wouldn't burn him at the stake.  I suspect that to the medieval mind a steam engine would look like magic.</p>

 

[Grizzly]

<p>Yes and no...  the Romans had a rudimentary steam engine as a toy, so the concept might not have been lost on the monastics.</p>

 

[RandMart]

<p>Middle Ages or Dark Ages??? Where's the cutoff there, I forget???</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I'm sure for those folks running around Iceland in reindeer skins, a nice spinning wheel, a loom and a pedal-powered sewing machine would have been a huge step upwards</p>

 

[Tech Tee]

<div class="quote-container" data-huddler-embed="/forum/thread/74409/what-kind-of-an-interview-question-is-that-anyway#post_2005443" data-huddler-embed-placeholder="false"><span>Quote:</span>
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by <strong>RandMart</strong> <a href="/forum/thread/74409/what-kind-of-an-interview-question-is-that-anyway#post_2005443"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif"></a><br><br><p>Middle Ages or Dark Ages??? Where's the cutoff there, I forget???</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I'm sure for those folks running around Iceland in reindeer skins, a nice spinning wheel, a loom and a pedal-powered sewing machine would have been a huge step upwards</p>
</div>
</div>
<br>
The cutoff would be the Renaissance, I believe.