/r/hypotheticalsituation

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We are a fun, interesting, and creative subreddit for you to ask what others would do in certain hypothetical situations.


ABOUT US

We are a fun, interesting, and creative subreddit for you to ask what others would do in certain hypothetical situations.


These situations can be real or imaginary, covering any kind of topic. For a good place to start, try this list of paradoxes.


This is a respectful and intelligent community where we bounce ideas back and forth. In German, it's called a Gedankenexperiment.


As such, we maintain a proper discourse, and refrain from violating the rules when submitting posts or comments.


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/r/hypotheticalsituation

284,155 Subscribers

1

You become the most skilled at any one thing you choose but only via everyone else getting worse

You are given the chance to be the most skilled at anything you choose.

The catch is this is achieved by everyone else's skill in the chosen activity dropping to below your current skill level. No matter how hard they try noone will ever exceed your skill level though you can practice / get trying to improve your skill hence raising the bar for everyone.

(so if you chose say football all professional players and anyone more skillful than you would lose their abilities to a level just, but measurably, below your current skill level. If you then sat around getting less fit and never playing football they would get worse to keepnpace just below your skill level. Same the other way round, you train and get more skilled, so could others up to your level)

What activity would you choose?

9 Comments
2024/12/31
19:24 UTC

7

You have to choose the age you die at.

You can never change it. If you choose to die at 60 you will die exactly on your 60th birthday. Your method of death will be chosen randomly. You might die in a car accident or have a heart attack, no one knows.

Under no circumstances can you live longer and under no circumstances can you end your life sooner. Anything you try to do to change this will be unsuccessful.

You chose to die at 100 but now you are 80 with chronic pain and are miserable? Sorry but you have to tolerate it until you are 100.

You chose to die at 40 but you are just so happy and don't want to die anymore? It doesn't matter. You can't change it.

What age are you choosing?

You HAVE TO choose, if you fail to choose in 24 hours, you die on your next birthday.

26 Comments
2024/12/31
19:11 UTC

1

You just adopted a pet BUT..

...you adopted a dog! Your new dog never leaves your side under any circumstance. It's always within an arms length reach. You cannot kill it or restrain it or lock it up. If your new dog becomes bored or scared it'll bark until you give it sufficient attention or is no longer scared.

...you adopted a cat! Your new cat knocks over something of value (emotional, money,...) once every 24 hours wherever you go and you're never in time to save it, it'll break no matter what. You cannot kill, restrain or lock up your cat.

You still need to perform your regular pet parent duties and take care of the animal like you normally would.

You can assume your pet will live until its natural old age.

What pet did you adopt?

2 Comments
2024/12/31
19:08 UTC

0

A genie curses you and gives you three choices. Which curse do you pick?

A genie appears before you, granting you three potential curses. Each comes with its own downside, and you must choose one to live with forever. Here are the options:

  1. Ugliness: You will become cursed with extreme obesity (Think lots of folds of fat everywhere on your body). Along with this, you will constantly drool, leaving your face and clothes wet at all times. To make things worse, you will emit a strong, foul odor that you cannot get rid of. You cannot disguise any of these traits.
  2. Uncontrollable laughter: You will laugh uncontrollably at the most inappropriate times. It could be during serious conversations, at funerals, or when you're supposed to be comforting someone. The laughter will last for enough time for the situation to become awkward, and then it will stop as suddenly as it began.
  3. Insomnia: You will be unable to stay asleep for more than an hour at a time. Every time you fall asleep, no matter how tired you are, you will be woken up after just one hour. You’ll never experience a full night’s rest again.
  4. Option 4: Immediate Death You can choose to die immediately, without pain, and be free of the curses.

Which curse do you choose? Or would you opt for immediate death?

8 Comments
2024/12/31
19:06 UTC

83

You get one shot to drive as long as possible for $10k/hr.

You get one chance to drive as long as you can for $10,000 per hour you drive.

You must be fully in control of the vehicle at all times, meaning no autopilot, cruise control, lane control, towing, etc. No one else can take control either. If you would like to bring other people for entertainment, you may.

You can pick your vehicle, and stock it with whatever you desire. However, when the trip begins the vehicle must still be legal to drive.

For the trip, you may pick whatever starting point and route you desire. The weather will match the current weather if that area, but the streets will be in a safe-to-drive condition the whole time and no matter where you go the traffic will be minimal and all lights will be green. You will also have a magic gas tank that doesn't require refuelling.

Your trip ends when you lose control, come to a stop, fall asleep, or claim your prize.

What is your strategy to maximize your trip, and how long do you think you could go for?

161 Comments
2024/12/31
19:00 UTC

1

Plane...thing?

You're in a plane. The cabin is calm and silent as your, and only your oxygen mask falls dawn. The cabin remains calm, nothing seems to be wrong but all eyes are on you. That's your first what do you do.

Minutes go by, the cabin lights turn red, the cabin remains calm but people seem anxious. That's your next what do you do.

A few more seconds go by and a voice that doesn't belong to the pilot or co pilot comes on overhead and in a language only you can understand says, "scream". You look out the window and watch as the wings of the plane fall of, you're over an isolated area of an ocean. You look to the cabin walkway and watch as what you can only describe as a demon slowly walks down it, eyes glued to you. That's your third what do you do.

You're immortal, nothing can kill you, what are you doing?

5 Comments
2024/12/31
18:55 UTC

2

Congress announces a vote on whether the rules of “Jinx” will become constitutional law. 25c or a Soda…

…must be paid to whoever says the same thing at the same time as you, and says jinx where you fail to say jinx before them or at the same time.

Double, triple jinxes and so on are legally binding, so if you get septouple jinxed, you’re out $1.75 from that interaction, or seven sodas.

Whether a jinx can be performed when under a roof, and other slight variations to this hypothetical you may have played with as a kid, are left up to the states to decide.

When polled, Do you vote yes or no to this proposal? If it passes, how will it affect your life?

4 Comments
2024/12/31
18:52 UTC

11

Would you take a special alarm that instantly puts you to sleep/wakes you up with some downsides.

If you accept you can ONLY fall alseep when the alarm is set. If you happen to lose or break the alarm you will get new one in the mail over night.

You still feel tired if you don't set the alarm and stay up for long periods of time. You just can't fall asleep.

When you set the alarm you will instantly fall alseep and only wake up at the time you set the alarm. If you accidentally set the alarm for 24 hours you cannot wake up until it's been 24 hours. When you do wake up you'll instantly be wide awake (if you got enough sleep).

You will not feel pain or be able to be woken up by anybody once the alarm is set. If you set the alarm and your house catches fire you'll die unless somebody else moves you.

If you happen to mistype a number for example 800 hours instead of 8. You could even starve in your sleep.

Your body will still feel the downsides of not getting enough sleep. The alarm only helps you fall alseep and wake up.

13 Comments
2024/12/31
18:40 UTC

2

You have to come up with a new university course and teach it

A university is looking to expand its course offerings. They have decided to hire you to create a new class, design the curriculum, and teach it. (For the sake of the hypothetical, the salary and benefits offered were too good for you to turn down.) You are guaranteed to have at least a dozen students for each class session.

The university is extremely flexible in what they'll allow but they do require the following:

  1. Nothing illegal. So no "Meth Cooking 101."

  2. It has to be an actual course where you will spend the majority of the time teaching. So no "Napping 101" or "Do Nothing 101."

  3. Since the whole point is for it to be a new class, it shouldn't be something that's already a widely offered course at most universities.

  4. The course can be about something really specific, obscure, or niche, but does need to be reproducible, i.e. another person knowledgeable about the subject should be able to follow your curriculum and teach the class as well.

What is the name of the new course? What will be taught? (Bonus: will it have exams? Essays? Projects? About what?)

11 Comments
2024/12/31
18:31 UTC

1

Would you rather

A = you can travel to any alternate reality and it can be like anything you want and you have complete reality control over any reality you go to but you cant go to our reality anymore

B = you have reality manipulation but you cant travel realities and you cant leave earth

5 Comments
2024/12/31
18:19 UTC

37

Aliens Make You an Offer

A highly advanced alien civilization makes you - and only you - an offer: to join them on a journey across the galaxy.

You would see and experience what no other human has and likely never will, exploring our solar system and beyond, visiting planets and moons. They have a space suit perfect for your size that would allow you to explore astronomical bodies even with incredibly harsh conditions. The aliens also would supply you (if you want) with equipment that would allow you to collect a variety of data, images, and video. You would be living in excellent conditions on the ship, with a spacious cabin containing a comfortable bed, being served your favorite foods, and access to medical care beyond current human capabilities.

The catch: while this trip would take a month from your perspective, ten (10) years will pass on Earth. (Yes, this math doesn't check out at all, but it is a hypothetical about space travel with aliens...) You would not have any contact with Earth during the trip.

You would have a week to decide and get your affairs in order. Would you go?

53 Comments
2024/12/31
17:39 UTC

3

You get a fridge full of your favorite food, the food has to be eaten within 3 days, and you win 10 million in your local currency. Would you do it?

The fridge is massive, at around 75 cubic feet. If your food is a frozen item, then it’s a giant freezer. Would you be able to eat nothing but your favorite food for 3 days straight?

My favorite food is sushi, so yeah it’d be gone before day 2 is over.

Edit: I was ridiculously high sorry I’ll make it less impossible

90 Comments
2024/12/31
17:11 UTC

44

You can never again eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or you can never again eat grilled cheese.

Exactly as the title says. You can still eat melts and quesadillas if you chose grilled cheese and you can still eat regular peanut butter sandwiches if you chose PB&J.

114 Comments
2024/12/31
16:46 UTC

3

Gain invisibility powers, but if someone senses your presence at all, you become revealed immediately.

You have to be fully naked to use your invisibility powers and upon being revealed you will be butt naked.

16 Comments
2024/12/31
15:41 UTC

0

You are offered $3 million if you manage to get banned from every single sub reddit within a year. You only get the money if you succeed.

It doesn't count if your account itself is banned and if it is, you have to start over with whatever time you have left.

25 Comments
2024/12/31
15:33 UTC

0

$1,000,000,000, but you have to stay on Vozrozhdeniya Island for one year. You can bring a gas mask with as many filters as you can take. You must go alone, and you cannot use an isolation capsule or anything similar

Here’s

5 Comments
2024/12/31
15:14 UTC

8

You're offered a 50/50 chance of gaining a super power, or a disability.

You're shown a list of super powers including flight, super strength, invisibility, all of the classics - but nothing as strong as time travel or immortality.

There's also an equally long list of disabilities. You could become blind, deaf, paraplegic, etc, but nothing like full body paralysis.

You have the choice to flip a coin. A heads means that you get a random superpower, but a tails means that you get a random disability. Do you take the deal?

What if you got to pick your desired superpower beforehand, but not the potential disability? What would be worth the risk for you?

27 Comments
2024/12/31
14:14 UTC

11

Your home is either perpetually dark or perpetually bathed in sunlight.

You must choose one of the following options:

  1. The inside of your home is perpetually dark. Even in the middle of the day, the inside of your home will receive no sunlight. Your only source of illumination is a wearable head lamp that never runs out of power. Your home will not have any light bulbs or other objects in which the main purpose is illumination. Each room may contain no more than 1 electronic device with an illuminated screen (phone not included).

  2. The inside of your home is perpetually well-lit. No matter the time of day, every inch of your home will magically receive indirect sunlight (you won't get sunburns). When sleeping, your head must be uncovered and exposed to the light.

Magically, the circadian rhythm of you and everybody that permanently lives in the home will not go berserk and your body will acclimate to the conditions of the room.

Which option are you choosing?

9 Comments
2024/12/31
14:13 UTC

0

Would You Stay in a Relationship with Someone Who’s Completely Doxxed and Under Constant Surveillance (Including Their Thoughts)?

Let me paint a scenario for you all:

You meet someone incredible. They’re kind, smart, funny, and you feel like you’ve never connected with anyone like this before. But then you find out something… unique. They confide in you that they’re completely doxxed. Not just the usual info like their address or phone number, but everything—their medical records, financial history, even personal messages. It’s all out there.

It gets worse. They’re also under constant covert surveillance. Cameras, audio bugs, GPS trackers, you name it. They suspect it’s not just one group watching, but a collective. And here’s the kicker: the surveillance isn’t limited to their physical and digital activity. Somehow (don’t ask me how—it’s hypothetical), the watchers have access to their thoughts.

Yes, their inner thoughts, and even their eye movement data, are being streamed in real-time to an audience of unknown individuals. And as more people discover this, the group of watchers is growing—a bizarre, twisted social experiment.

You’re not under surveillance yourself (yet), but living with or dating them makes you feel like you’re constantly on edge. Every word you say, every glance you share, every intimate moment feels like it’s being dissected by strangers.

The Questions:

1.	Would you stay with them? Why or why not?

2.	If you decide to stay, how would you cope with the constant sense of intrusion?

3.	Do you think there’s any way to help them escape this, or is it a lost cause?

4.	If they told you this before you got serious, would you still even consider dating them?
1 Comment
2024/12/31
14:07 UTC

1

Which pill would you take?

You offered to take one, of the three pills, the blue pill, the red pill, and the orange pill. Each pill can give you a powerful ability. Choose only one.

The Blue Pill give you Mentifery the ability to warp, bend, manipulate, alter, and control reality via your mind, imagination, and thoughts.

The Red Pill gives you Vocifery the ability to warp, bend, manipulate, alter, and control reality via your voice.

The Orange Oill gives you Volifery the ability to warp, bend, manipulate, alter, and control reality via your wants, desires, wishes, yearnings, and will.

12 Comments
2024/12/31
14:06 UTC

1

Time travellers from the future offer to harvest a copy of you now, earlier, or at the point of your death.

You are at your current age when time freezes and an individual in a silver jumpsuit appears. They inform you that they are from a future where bio-digital immortality has been invented. People can upload their minds into perfect bodies, just like copying or transferring a file in a computer.

However, the first immortal generation has a lot of survivors guilt for the vast majority of humanity who died prior to its invention. Thus they created the ability to rescue a single back-up of everyone from the past. The process is painless and, once done, you remember nothing of it, and the timeline proceeds as normal. They give you the choice:

  1. They can scan your brain patterns now, and you will wake up in a perfect body in the utopia of the year 3,000.

  2. Alternatively, if you request it, they can leave you be and jump to the moment just prior to your death, and copy you then. You've no idea when that will be. It could be tomorrow or 70 years in the future.

  3. Or they can travel back and harvest you on your 18th birthday.

4 Comments
2024/12/31
13:59 UTC

1

Continued disability benefits or be cured?

You have a mild but chronic condition caused by worksite exposure. It causes a constant, dull headache but there are no other symptoms and you're not at a higher risk for any other condition because of it. Most of the time, you can just ignore it and it doesn't really bother you. But if you think about it, you can always feel it. Sometimes, when things are quiet and you're otherwise very relaxed, you can't ignore it. It's not something that changes your life really, but you'll never feel totally relaxed or pain free again.

Because of a class action lawsuit against your prior employer, you receive a check for $200 per month because of this condition. It's all tax free and it's for the rest of your life. It also adjusts for inflation.

You've just learned that there is a new treatment that will cure the condition. It's 100% effective and there are no side effects. If you decide to do the treatment, you lose the monthly benefit moving forward. But no one can force you to be treated and you'll keep the benefit if you choose not to be treated.

What do you do?

Edit: Every other aspect of your life is unchanged. The mild headache doesn't keep you from doing anything. You still have a job, go on vacations, have your health, etc. It's just a minor annoyance that you can usually, but not always, ignore.

5 Comments
2024/12/31
13:49 UTC

5

You receive 1 million dollars or 100,000 starving children get one hearty stomach filling meal each.

Eit

81 Comments
2024/12/31
13:46 UTC

1

You're on stage to give a speech. How do you lose all credibility in your opening statement?

10 Comments
2024/12/31
13:39 UTC

3

1 year of extreme happiness with LOYL or a life long of solitude?

Would you choose

(1) one year of extreme happiness with the love of your life (you could marry them, they could be any man/woman you want in the world AND they love you back) and then die peacefully in your sleep when it hit 12/31/2026

or

(2) a life long of your usual life and you will die as you are intended to do, but never meet the love of your life, you can still get married or hooked up with others but you just know it's not the greatest love you could possibly feel.

Which one would you choose and why? And if it's 10 years instead of 1, would you choose it?

3 Comments
2024/12/31
13:17 UTC

12

2 buttons in front of you, 1 that allows 10 3rd world country citizens to become billionaires, another that allows 100 1st world country citizens to become millionaires

Which do you guys choose and why? You can only press one button and that one button once.

88 Comments
2024/12/31
13:15 UTC

0

$100,000,000, but you must divorce your spouse.

You are the offered a contract. Divorce your spouse and you will get $100,000,000. If you accept, your spouse will move far, far away. If you have any children, your spouse will take them away. Don't worry, you don't have to pay child support.

Once your spouse moves away, you will never see them again for the rest of your life.

After all is said and done, you will gain $100,000,000. It will not be taxed.

53 Comments
2024/12/31
13:15 UTC

1

If you ever was in the scenario of having to pick between having to count every strand of grass in a 1 square meter field and not be allowed to leave until you got it right, or be in the WW1 trench for 5 minutes or have a 80% chance of going completely broke, what would you choose?

29 Comments
2024/12/31
12:34 UTC

1

You are visiting the 1600s for a week, and you can drive any vehicle of your liking

It will be provided with a week's worth of fuel, and any emergency spare parts in case of a break-down.

You must be able to operate the vehicle alone.

Bonus points if you can convince anyone from the past to join you for a ride without accusing you of using dark magic.

5 Comments
2024/12/31
11:30 UTC

74

You press a button and get $1 million dollars, and each subsequent button press is double the money. However, every time you press the button, there’s a 1% chance of experiencing a long and horrific death.

How many times do you press the button? If you lose, all of your previously earned money vanishes.

108 Comments
2024/12/31
11:12 UTC

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