Maybe I missed some dialogue that explains why Jason isn't using his knowledge of his own time to help improve their lot. Presumably he's a 21st century high school graduate. Even if he was a C student throughout, his general knowledge of technology would be adequate to invent or at least seed the invention of simple items that would make him/them filthy rich. I mean, c'mon, the Prime Directive is for Star Trek .
shareA lot of the more basic things that we enjoy in the modern day had already been invented in ancient Greece. Jason's up to date shown no mechanical or craftsman's skills, so not building anything isn't that unreasonable. Plus would it really be such a good idea to draw attention to them? Majority of the things that they don't have which he might suggest they invent, would require a lot of materials which didn't exist in those days.
shareEven still I would think he has some know how about tech thanks to that Sub adventure he had. It's just that Jason has not demonstrated anything beyond the first episode that he's from the future and it's quite annoying.
shareWell it crops up in his flaky knowledge of Greek mythology now and them. Its possible he's tech savvy only in terms of knowing how to use it, not build it or how it works.
Technically he's not from the future, its described by the Oracle as two different worlds so I think its more akin to Parallel universes, presumably to allow the writers to get away with a few historical and mythological inaccuracy's.
Yes it is very annoying that he doesn't mention his personal history and they don't ever ask. Even forgetting how useful his most basic knowledge of 21st century mechanics would be, it would certainly add a layer of interest to their relationships.
shareJason is written as a really dumb character, IMO. He is very stupid. I dunno how he is the "hero." I prefer Hercules and Pythagoras to him. He is bland, lacking in personality, charisma and smarts. He isn't even that great looking. He just has nice abs and they exploit this every freaking minute by showing him naked.
shareagreed. jason is pretty enough for a secondary character, but he's not smart enough to make a third grade diorama. please.
shareEven if he is not mechanically inclined - the OP is correct that he would have a very basic concept of 21st century technology and being friends w/ Pythagoras - somehow they could "invent" some items - using resources from the low-tech place he's found himself to be in.
Hell even Gilligan and Co. managed to create some stuff from Bamboo and Coconuts.
How exactly? For one thing most of the more basic things that we have today they had already invented back then, and the ones they hadn't wouldn't provide much help as they were designed to compliment things they don't have yet.
And for that to work he would have to explain how they work to someone whose never seen them, has no idea of what your trying to describe and has never seen anything close. Plus, doing so with ancient resources would presumably cost a considerable amount of money, something they don't have.
Gunpowder, Printing Press, English LongBows, Trebuchets, Basic Calculus & Physics (i.e Newtons 3 Laws), Triangular Sails, Modern Crop Rotations etc. All things useful in forging an empire and ensuring its relevance for many years.
shareGunpowder
Printing Press
English LongBows
Basic Calculus
Physics (i.e Newtons 3 Laws),
Triangular Sails
Modern Crop Rotations
The problem with weighing up these to and fro's in the absence of tech is that the show is fictional to start with.
Any amount of variables are possible.
How intelligent was he before he left this world for the Atlantis version?
Ingredients for Potassium Nitrate are completely achievable using excrement from certain Cave dwellers.
I don't know how potent Minotaur crap is?
A rudimentary printing press would be achievable.
But in doing so would attract massive attention to himself.
As for the timber for the long bows... Are we assuming that Atlantis was in Ancient Greece?
Basic Calculus?... Does it have to be Calculus?...
I'm thinking he might be capable of any version of mathematics that could advance whatever they were doing in the alternate Atlantis world which he traversed.
Which raises another question.
The rumour mill use to have it that Atlantis was a race of advanced people with a city of amenities that were far ahead of their time.
Maybe somebody did go back in time and divulge a future intelligence to them?
I doubt Physics, Triangular sails (Which would require no knowledge of ship building to achieve) and modern crop rotations would come into play...
That would go alongside Mathematics and any other intelligence that our fictional character has obviously forgotten since his entry into Atlantis.
It's up to the writers of the show to make him more intelligent.
Instead they've opted for the simple dumbass version.
That said... I just plead ignorant and actually enjoy the show for what it is!!!
The rumour mill use to have it that Atlantis was a race of advanced people with a city of amenities that were far ahead of their time
Its alright saying these things, but unless you actually have an in-depth knowledge of them, if you were thrown into three thousand years in the past could you make them?Of course not. I couldn't make them here and now!
But does he have know-how? He knows how to use modern technology; that doesn't mean he knows how to make it.
Toss me into that world, and I doubt I'd be able to work up so much as a prototype for a ballpoint pen. I can't draw, so I couldn't make a blueprint for someone else to make it from, and I'm not a master metalworker (which would be required because no plastics), so I couldn't make it myself either.
I'm a failure. I can't even fake the death of a stripper.
This is the exact same thing that has been pissing me off about this show from the beginning. Something as simple as the pulley would make a huge difference. How about basic knowledge and design of a crossbow, recurve, or compound bow. Gunpowder doesn't require rocket science nor chemistry. Simply knowing the components that go into making it is enough and then creating a cannon would make them unstoppable in this time. He could even revolutionize architecture just by sharing his "common" knowledge with Pythagoras.
Instead he fights battles that are not his own, sticks his nose into other peoples business and gets the hots for the princess just to create drama and more trouble. Its really just adding to the multitude of cliches already present.
Um Crossbows already existed at this point in history, and who in the modern day honestly knows anything about making anything more than the most simplistic bow?
Same with gunpowder, its alright knowing what's in it, first you have to get hold of the ingredients and then mix them correctly, so it doesn't blow up in your face. And honestly would introducing it several thousand years earlier be a good idea? It hasn't really helped anyone. The most he could benefit from it, is selling the recipe to the army, who would then conquer everyone.
As for Architecture, who they heck knows anything about modern architecture other than the people who work in it.
We keep going on about introducing this advanced technology, yet honestly, unless you had specialised knowledge in it, and new how to adjust it the standards and materials three thousand years ago, really there is nothing you could do.
Besides even if he knew how to make it, he would require money to build them, money which they clearly don't have.
Something as simple as the pulley would make a huge difference. How about basic knowledge and design of a crossbow, recurve, or compound bow. Gunpowder doesn't require rocket science nor chemistry.The pulley, they may have.
I know how to use a lot of things, but I couldn't design an internal combustion engine, or a camera, or any number of useful items.
I may be able to explain some general concept of how some modern machines work, but I wouldn't know where to begin to actual build one.
Exactly, same here. We know how to use these things, we may even have some knowledge of their basic principles, but to build one, or even draft it on paper (papyrus? not that it matters), is another thing entirely. Those are skills most people don't have.
Had Jason been an inventor, or a technical draftsman or something like that, in the modern world, then the opening question here would make a little more sense.
"I'm a doctor, dammit! Not a nuclear physicist!"
I've wondered what sort of modern age knowledge I could actually use if dumped back in time somewhere. As a few other people have pointed out, it's not as easy as it first seems. Yes, we know of many inventions and know how to use them. But most of us have no idea how to make them, especially from the resources available in the era Atlantis is set.
The main thing we all know that should be useful is health stuff. eg I'd get people to boil drinking water. Wash hands. Cook certain meats thoroughly. Disinfect with alcohol or sterilise by heat surgical tools. Boring stuff, I know. But boring stuff that would help keep us alive.
I'm not sure what other knowledge we could realistically use. They were the only things that sprang to mind at once.
Edit. There is one other thing. I'd advise the fictional locals of the time to never watch a series called Atlantis at some point in the distant future. I'd know all too well how bad it was and want to spare them the pain.
Most of the replies on this thread imply that Jason, himself, would need to create these tools. That's just not true. All Jason would need to do is explain the concepts of these tools or knowledge to someone else who is already knowledgeable in that field. For example, he doesn't need to know anything about agriculture to utilize the knowledge of crop rotations. He need only explain the concept behind it to one or more farmers. They could then work out the details through trial and error. He doesn't not need to know how to make a printing press. He only needs to know the concept behind it and be able to explain that concept to someone who could build it, such as a blacksmith and someone who has mechanical knowledge.
And filmtvwatcher is absolutely correct. Cooking meat thoroughly and sterilizing through fire or alcohol are basic knowledge today. He didn't need to explain why they were true, he need only convince people to try them - over time, they would see that his ideas work. Back then, in ancient times, they didn't understand basic sanitation, such as putting your latrines far away from your water supply and not dumping waste into the streets. He didn't need specialized knowledge to convey that to people. Again, he would only need to convince them to try it. As soon as everyone realized that people weren't dying as much in Atlanta this versus other cities, I E realize he was right, he would be a hero. That alone would have to be worth something. So, yes, he could definitely monetize his 21st-century knowledge.
All that being said however, it's clear that the storytellers didn't want that cheat to be a factor in the show. I think it's a big goof on their part to have not come up with some kind of a plausible explanation on why he doesn't use that knowledge. They could've said that his original accident, that which brought him to Atlantis, caused him to lose his memory of his former life, permanently. For whatever reason they haven't done that though.
All Jason would need to do is explain the concepts of these tools or knowledge to someone else who is already knowledgeable in that field.And they're gonna listen to this guy who popped into town out of nowhere last year, and has no particular intelligence, and automatically do what he says. SURE.
It is obvious to me that humans won't follow rules like washing their hands for no reason and we only wash our hands and sterilizing with alcohol and meat because we have knowledge about bacteria and food poisoning.
While Ignaz Semmelweis was working in Vienna General Hospital in the 1840s (the existence of bacteria wasn't discovered for another 20 years) he believed that doctors were spreading disease on their unwashed hands. Women were dying in huge numbers after childbirth from a disease called puerperal fever. By telling his doctors to wash their hands in an antiseptic solution, he cut the death rate from 12% to 2%.
However Semmelweis couldn't prove his ideas were correct and his methods were dropped when he left the ward. There are other examples of this in history, what about people thinking that the earth was flat for thousands of years. Some people logically realised it couldn't be but without proof people wouldn't believe in what they are saying.
It is interesting that some people have mentioned gun powder, isn't that what Hiccarus's dad has already invented, 'fire powder', but Pasiphae didn't care about how he made the explosion and locked him into a cell!
One of the inventions Jason could have brought to this ancient world is the Steam engine. The concept isn't that difficult to understand and surely Jason would have known about it. He and Pythagoras could have become rich from building train lines for trade in this parallel world. This would have an unbelievable impact and hercules could stop worrying about who's ruling Atlantis, end the pointless battles and create a trade network that would have a profound impact for generations to come!
Yes - because Ancient Greece would have invented steel so that steam engines, trains could be made.
I'm mocking you a little bit - the steam engine is simple but the steam engine for a train is more complex. It wasn't just steam engine->train in a few years. The steam engine was around for a long time and it was being modified until eventually it could be used for transport.
Not to mention - you need steel, lots of steel and you need to be reasonably good at making steel.
I doubt Jason or anyone on this board if they were sent back could explain how steel is made.
But you just gave another example of how Jason's 21st century knowledge could have a MASSIVE impact on Atlantis society. Theoretically, they are in the bronze age. Jason could help them skip right over the iron age and into the steel age almost overnight. He could also introduce them to the use of fossil fuels (primarily coal) as a fuel source. Any number of simple 21st century ideas would cause a huge paradigm shift in how the ancient world worked.
shareBronze is actually superior to iron in most ways that matter. Iron is much cheaper which is important when outfitting thousands of people, but this wouldn't be an issue in ancient Greece as the economy would only support a limited higher class and those had the very best training and equipage. The rest would be useless, or worse dangerous to their own rulers. Steel, good enough to compete with bronze is actually pretty hard to do consistently when working with impurities in the ingredients which means some difficult chemistry and trial and error with every batch. The best European blacksmiths couldn't duplicate Eastern steel for hundreds of years in the middle ages, and this was a serious goal in the middle ages. Jason would just make a fool of himself chasing steel for years.
Most coal makes an awful stink unless it is processed. Smelly and poisonous. Same with even "light sweet crude", it's a mess of contaminates. "Greek fire" was known by the Greeks (obviously), but there's a long way from Greek fire to a combustion engine. Even a reliable spark plug is a complex piece of technology, especially if he tries using ceramics like modern plugs.
"One of the inventions Jason could have brought to this ancient world is the Steam engine"
They had the basic idea for a steam driven device in ancient Greece. A sphere with two nozzles at 180 degrees to each other, filled with water, and heated it would spin.
However Why go to all the expense inventing labour saving machines when you have slaves?
They cost next to nothing and can easily be replaced.
OK, I came up with something I could probably make and would want to make if magically transported to ancient Greece.
the toothbrush! it's disgusting - none of these people ever bathes (except for hercules, one time, after he's told he stinks and is off to see medusa), never mind oral hygiene. why the invention of a toothbrush would make it far more realistic that all of these people still have most of their teeth!
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Ancient Greece was pretty advanced I thought. What's more confusing is he's not ever mentioned it - not even to his parents. I thought maybe he'd forgotten or had amnesia about it or something - I can't remember the very first episodes. Who sent him to our dimension (assuming it's parallel dimensions)? Was it the Oracle? They've never referred to it again so it's easy to forget he lived in our time.
It's too cerebral! We're trying to make a movie here, not a film!
The show isn't what I expected from a "man out of time/future" show! I mean it just could just as easily been Jason from another part of the ancient/alternate dimension world in which Atlantis is located!
He has shown no bewilderment to being in Atlantis at all! His father made no attempt to return to his son and leave his rounder gold digging evil witch of a wife!
He has shown no...nothing of any knowledge from the World his grew up in!!!
I don't get it!!!
Photography is truth. The cinema is truth twenty-four times per second. ~ Godard
only just started viewing this on syfy channel and was looking for the reason why its never talked about.
and got up to season 2 now.