On Magic and Science

>"So they could fly without flapping their wings?"
>You nod
"Sure. We'd had lighter than air flying machine for something like 300 years. I think the first heavier-than-air machines, the first ones that actually flew-"
>Twilight gives an audible groan
>You cut off your conversation with a rather puzzled looking Rainbow Dash
>The pegasus has always been interested in hearing about Earth, and answering her never-ending stream of questions was strangely satisfying.
>It's just a shame the other ponies weren't so... engaged.
>They were certainly curious, it's just...
>Well, as soon as you tried to give a more technical or in depth explanation of something, they seemed to quickly lose interest, becoming almost impatient.
>You glance over at Twilight, her head buried in a book
"Something wrong, Twi?"
>She mutters something before answering
>"No, no. Just... just reading."
>It wasn't unusual for you to hang out at her castle. After all, you had no real job and no one really really had any plans for you.
>After three weeks, you were still sort of floating around, at a loss for what to do.
>"Were they fast?"
>RD's question breaks your train of thought
"Fast? You better believe it. I mean, the fastest manned one got up to about mach 3. Three times faster than sound."
>More muttering from Twilight
>"The fastest manned one? Were there ones that didn't need a human in them?"
"Oh, sure! I mean you get to a point where the human's the weakest thing in the plane-the flying machine. You start getting to speeds so high that just turning the plane too quickly would literally kill the person in it."
>"Whoa! Who flew them, then?"
"Oh, no one. I mean, they sort of flew themselves. Either that, or they were controlled remotely."
>"But how did- who-"
>Rainbow takes a moment to get her thoughts in order, deciding which of her questions is the most important
>"How fast did they go? Even faster than the manned planes?"
>You nod
"Much faster. The fastest one got up to something like mach 10. Ten times faster than sound."
>Rainbow gives a reverent 'whoa', rubbing her hooves together
>"And you did all this without magic?"
>You nod
"Yup. Nothing but good old-"
>Twilight snaps her book shut, cutting you off
>"I think that's enough."
>She looks... pissed
"Something wrong, Twilight?"
>Rainbow cocks her head uncertainly
>"I know you're in a new place, and our ways might be different to your. I want you to be comfortable and happy here, but there's only so much I can hear before I've just got to step in."
>Holy shit.
>Have you been doing something wrong, accidentally offending them?
>"You're coming into a new, more advanced civilisation and that must be hard for you. But you need to forget about this 'science' of yours."
>...
>What?!
"Uh, Twilight, I'm not sure if we're on the same-"
>She stomps a hoof
>"No, Anon. I know you're not lying maliciously, I know you're just confused. All of what you saw, it was just... tricks. Deceit. Obviously, the magic users in your society were manipulating you and the rest of the lower classes into believing any of what you just said was possible. I mean... listen to yourself!"
>You try to interject, but Twilight's not having it
>"Flying machines that pilot themselves? The speed of sound? What does that even mean?"
"But it's fact! It's scientifically-"
>Twilight tosses her head in frustration
>"Again with the science! Look, Anon. Thousands of years ago, we had a little scientific community of our own. It inevitably collapsed, though. There was a lot of bit talk, but they never managed to explain anything like they said they would. They couldn't even come up with a 'theory' of how levitation works! The most simple of all spells! The whole thing ended with a whimper when all the intelligent people-"
>Rainbow winces
>"- realised that not everything can be explained and applied themselves to more worthwhile fields."
>You've fallen silent now, Twilight's words sinking in
>No wonder all the ponies weren't interested in hearing about the technology of your world, especially when you backed it up with a more technical explanation
>You were being their equivalent of the conspiracy nut who sits in the corner at a party and won't shut up about the hidden planet Nibiru
>But that doesn't change the fact that what you were saying was valid, and most of it you could probably demonstrate!
>Even if it wasn't, even if things /were/ different here, it's not like the whole empirical research philosophy wasn't valuable, wasn't worth something.
>Before you can get your jumbled thoughts in a good enough order to give Twilight a verbal beat down that would make Charles Bronson wince, she turns her attention to Rainbow Dash, who hangs her head
>"And you, stop encouraging him! I know you went through that phase in school-"
>Rainbow frowns at the floor
>"-oh yes, Fluttershy's mentioned it before. You were quite the little scientist, weren't you? I thought you'd got it out of your system, but here you are asking Anon all kinds of nonsense questions. Do you have any idea how silly you sound, asking so many questions? It's not even like his answers mean anything!"
>Christ
>Twilight's going off the rails. You had no idea this was annoying her so much
>While you're thankful to her for putting you up and providing for you, you're not just going to take this lying down
"Oh, like my answers mean anything?!"
>You didn't mean to shout, but you realise you've raised your voice
>Making an effort to calm yourself down, you continue
"This may all be difficult to believe, but I'd be happy to explain the logic behind the things we had back on Earth. Heck I can even demonstrate some of the principles easily enough. Why don't we just-"
>Twilight shakes her head
>"No. I don't want to hear any more of this 'science' talk."
>Her expression softens slightly as she glances from you to Rainbow, and she sighs
>There's a pause as you all wait for each other to do something
>Twilight kicks at the ground
>"I'm sorry if I've been a bit... aggressive."
>A bit? You thought she was going to have an aneurysm at one point there
>"I just don't get much time to relax, and I don't want to hear all this when I should be taking it easy. Ignorance really gets me wound up."
>Judging by her apologetic tone and her gentle smile, she didn't mean to offend.
>It doesn't matter, though.
>Her words are like a slap to your face
>Your whole life, you've approached everything with an open mind.
>Scientific theories, religion, philosophy, culture, even conspiracy theories. You've never dismissed anything out of hand, not without at least hearing the arguments for it.
>You are /not/ ignorant.
"Fine, Twilight. I'll never talk about science in front of you, not unless you get down on your knees and beg me to. That's a promise."
>Twilight smiles, but you don't return it.
>"Thank you, Anon. Now, why don't the three of us take a nice walk outside, enjoy the weather while it's nice, put this all behind us?"
>Taking a calming breath, you nod
"That sounds great, Twilight. Maybe we could even stop off at Sugarcube Corner."
>"Good idea! Rainbow?"
>You glance at the mare, standing forgotten off to the side
>She's frowning, lost in thought
>"Huh? Sugarcube Corner? Oh, uh, no. I just gotta... do a few chores."
>Twilight nods sympathetically
>"That's a shame. Well, maybe we'll see you later?"
>Rainbow Dash pads over to the door
>"Maybe."
>Her tone of voice makes it clear that she definitely /won't/ be seeing you later
>Twilight and Rainbow say goodbye as the blue mare leaves.
>Once she gone, Twilight frowns uncertainly at you
>"Rainbow'll be fine. It was just a little tough love, and she's not the kind to get upset easily."
>You're still a bit off kilter from Twilight's out-of-character outburst.
>It seems like an odd thing for to get so het up about
>"Maybe I should get her something from the bakery to smooth things over... at least /you're/ not holding a grudge, Anon!"
>Grinning for the first time, you nod
"Not in a million years! C'mon. Let's go to the park."

>You're not one to hold a grudge.
>They're petty little things, far below you.
>No, you don't hold grudges.You hold vendettas.
>And Twilight's done did it now.
>There's a poetic irony to her calling you ignorant as she refuses to listen to reason, but that's wasted on her.
>You need a way to get even, and also to teach her something. You need to show her the value of the scientific method.
>A plan begins to form in your head.
>It'll take work, but you'll turn the tables. Make her look the ignoramus.
>And all you've got to do is build a reputable scientific academy, get the official endorsement of the Equestrian government and make several notable contributions to the understanding of magic and the physical world.
>That should keep you busy for the next few weeks, at least...

~

>For a week after Twilight's outburst, you hardly spoke to Rainbow. She always made herself scarce whenever you were around, coming up with a weak reason to make a quick getaway.
>You didn't realise how much you liked spending time with the mare until she stopped hanging around with you
>It's been a busy week, but not having her around made it seem... longer, somehow.
>Sitting in your living room, you admire the new house Twilight rustled up for you. Apparently misappropriation of public funds wasn't a thing here, because you have no idea how she actually bought it.
>A month here, and you'd already been given the things you needed to get yourself on your feet.
>It was a cosy little number, just the right size to be comfy without being cramped.
>A nice gesture, and a nice house. But it felt... hollow. You hadn't earned this.
>It felt a little like stealing, really. You'd find some way to repay her, to repay the kindness of all the other ponies too.
>None of them were bad, even if they were a little... set in their ways.
>It's pretty chilly out, and you're just considering putting the fire on when there's a knock at the door
>You're pleasantly surprised to find a sheepish Rainbow Dash, wearing a saddlepack
"Oh, hey Dash!"
>"Yeah, hey. I haven't had a chance to visit yet, so I thought I should come check out your new place."
>You grin at her
"Sure, come on in."
>You give her the grand tour.
>It's not actually that grand, but it's definitely a tour
>After, you sit her down on the couch with a hot cup of tea.
>Dash seems a bit nervous. Maybe she's worried you're upset with her for not seeing you.
>The two of you make small talk for a while, but it feels forced and eventually the conversation dies.
>Rainbow fidgets nervously before finally speaking again.
>"Listen, Anon. I really needed to talk to you."
>You've never seen her this serious before
"Sure, what's the problem?"
>"The whole thing with Twilight, it kind of threw me. I mean, I enjoy spending time with you, but the science, it's... I don't like... well..."
>She puts her mug down and slips off her bag, rummaging around in it, pulling out a small wooden box, old and battered
>"It's easier to just show you this..."
>She pulls the lid off, and hesitates.
>She takes a deep breath, and hands it to you
>"It's from when I was a foal."
>Dash watches you closely
>It's filled mostly with brik-a-brak, oddly shaped rocks, some feathers and things. There's a worn ruler, some string.
>"This box used to be one of my favourite things."
>Below the junk is a pile of papers, a couple of old polaroid photos sticking out
>Lifting the papers out, you flick through them
>"I used to take this everywhere with me"
>A worn photo catches your eye
"Is this your mum?"
>It's a picture of a beaming Rainbow Dash hugging a smiling, older mare. They're both wearing labcoats.
>Dash doesn't answer for a long moment, and you start to wonder if you've said something wrong
>"Yeah. My mom got me into all this. She was a real boffin. Got a lot of stick for it, but it never bothered her. I was too young to really realise it, but she was determined, never gave up."
>She smiles sadly
>"Heh, that's probably where I get it from. But then, one day, she... she just..."
>Rainbow tails off, clearing her throat after another moment's pause
>"It was just so... normal. She gave me my lunch, and I said bye to her in the morning before I went out to school. I never saw her again. So... mundane. I just came home to an empty house."
>Christ.
>You can't imagine what that must have been like
>You turn your attention away from the photo, and examine some of the papers.
>"It was how I used to remember her, losing myself in this."
>Most of the papers are in a bad state, some of them even torn up and stuck carefully back together.
>"It was like when I was doing this stuff, she was still with me. I shut out everything else. I had no friends, no healthy interests. The other foals, they used to tease me about it, bully me."
>One of the torn up papers is covered in a rough table of values, "size" and "date".
"They tore your things up?"
>A hint of defiance creeps into your friend's voice
>"And I stuck 'em back together."
>The defiance fades again, as Dash's tone lowers
>"The worst thing was my dad, though. I could tell it upset him, reminded him of her. He never said anything, never asked me to stop but... he took it bad. I used to hear him crying, when he thought I was asleep. I had no other way to cope, I'd pushed my friends away and didn't have much in common with the other foals anyway."
>You turn the sheet over
>The back is covered in childish drawings of a filly and mare together, surrounded by leaves
"Why did you stop? What happened?"
>Rainbow gently takes the paper, sniffing as she thinks
>"I learned to fly. And I was /good/ at it. For once, ponies my age started to be interested in me. I made friends and just... they helped me cope with what I was going through better than this did. I had less and less time for it."
>She stares wistfully at the sheet, her eyes moistening
"Science is for foals, Anon. It's sup-"
>Rainbow's voice breaks, and she takes a moment to compose herself
>"It's something you're supposed to grow out of, if you're ever even into it in the first place."
>Dash takes the box off you, putting the paper away
"But you haven't grown out of it."
>It's not a question.
>Why else would she have kept the old box? Why else would she be so curious about your world, and how everything in it worked?
>A quiver of anger runs across her face, and Dash snaps the box closed
>She looks at you, almost accusingly
>"My mom used to say 'Nopony ever got hurt by asking a question'."
>Rainbow snorts
>"She was wrong, Anon, and Twilight was right. Some questions just can't be answered. So why bother trying?"
>Her face is flushed, her breathing short and quick
>What she's sharing with you is personal, it's no surprise she's getting upset.
>You give her a moment to compose herself
"What happened to your mum, Dash?"
>Rainbow's eyes widen, and her mouth begins working as she tries to think of something to say
>Then she stops, her head lowering in defeat
>"I don't know."
>Her voice is small, her hanging mane obscuring her face
>"She just... she just never came home one day from work."
>The two of you stand in silence for a moment
>It's no wonder Dash has been avoiding you, if your tech talk was reminding her of this
>You realise Dash is shaking slightly, her mane still hiding her face. It looks like she's crying.
>Without saying anything, you step toward her, pulling her into a tight hug
>Your friend leans into you, giving a sob
>"F-for weeks, when I got back from school I used to wait for her, at the door... I just thought maybe she would walk in and everything would go back to normal. That I'd have my mom back, that dad could be happy and we'd be a family again."
>You don't say anything- what could you possible say? You just stroke her mane as she continues.
>"No pony ever found out what happened to her, Anon. And all the questions in the world couldn't bring her back."
>The two of you stand in silence a while longer
>Eventually, Dash calms down, her breathing normal and her body still
>She pulls away from you, wiping a hoof across her face
>Dash gives you a tired smile
>When she speaks, her voice is a little hoarse.
>"Thanks for listening, Anon. I wanted you to know that I'm not just making up some excuse to not see you."
"Of course, I'm glad you did, Dash."
>"I like spending time with you, I just... I don't know if I can risk getting pulled back into all this."
>She pats her box
>"What Twilight said the other day really hammered it home. Brought back some bad memories. A part of me wants to get drawn back into it, but I can't."
>Maybe you're imagining it, but it there's a certain hesitancy to her words, like she doesn't quite believe what she's saying
>You let it drop. There's time to try to nurture her interest later. Right now, Dash just needs a friend.

>You spend a while talking. Nothing heavy, just chit chat.
>Rainbow relaxes as the time passes, becoming more comfortable.
>There's a question that's been on your mind for a while though
>It's not something you think you could ask anyone else, it's not exactly about science, but it still might be a bit too close for Dash's comfort.
>She seems more relaxed now, though. You decide to push your luck.
"I just don't get it, RD. Why is Twilight so convinced that some things can't be explained?"
>Rainbow shifts uncomfortably
>"Ponies tried, Anon. Thousands of years ago, they tried. In the end, nothing they came up with could explain how magic works. It broke every rule they thought of."
>That... actually makes sense. Just from a conservation of energy standpoint, you've seen Twilight do things that would strain heavy machinery, and she didn't even break a sweat. Where was that energy coming from?
>Humans have had hundreds of years of the scientific method to build up an understanding of the world. Even with that, the magic you've seen here defies any obvious explanation.
>It still doesn't seem right, though. Even if it couldn't explain magic, surely there were problems that needed solving that required innovation or invention.
>And surely with invention came understanding of the world? A more innate, intuitive knowledge of how a part of the physical world works must follow from building something that interacts with it.
>Would that not pave the way for more questions, for more inquisitive thinking and investigation?
"So where do your inventions come from? How do you navigate? Sail the seas? How do you irrigate your crops? Where did the ideas for the train come from, or the printing press? How did you develop medicine? Someone must have come up with those things."
>Dash shrugs
>"It's magic, Anon. A lot of those things are powered by unicorn magic, or by how Earth ponies are good at growing stuff. Heck, most of the things you described have been around for hundreds and hundreds of years."
>Magic.
>Of course.
>What else could it have been?
>The ponies' greatest power is the thing holding them back.
>You'd been reading a lot in the month since you'd been here, and the lack of change in Equestria was startling. For two thousands years, there had been almost no changes to the ponies' lifestyles.
>Politically, economically, technologically, they'd achieved about as much progress in two millennia as humans did in a century.
>Heck, their leaders are immortal, literally a constant throughout the whole history of the country.
>Was this stagnation, or stability?
>A world almost static, devoid of change, of curious thought. And why should they want change?
>To any question, the answer was simply magic. Need more food? Earth ponies can do it. Need a power source for a new method of transport? Why invent an expensive, complex machine like a steam engine when you have access to magic? Want long distance communication? There's a spell for that.
>And it wasn't just the practical problems. When you accept the existence of some inexplicable force, any difficult question can be answered with the wave of a hand. Why do the celestial bodies move the way they do? Magic. How do diseases spread? Magic. How is energy transferred from a hot object to a cold one? Magic.
>Magic
>Magic
>Magic
>Your mind reels
>Necessity was the mother of invention. The ponies had no needs or wants that couldn't be fairly easily fulfilled with magic, so what need did they have of invention or innovation?
>Sure, from what you'd seen, magic wasn't a perfect match for science in terms of utility. On a day to day, personal level, it was probably at most as good as modern technology. When it came to industry, though, it was hugely behind, probably comparable with the early industrial revolution. Magic in factories or agriculture needed lots of oversight from individual ponies, who had to personally control the magic, or monitor it.
>It was inefficient, but that didn't matter. It was efficient /enough/. It matched the needs of the ponies, and technology not only /didn't/, but it wouldn't even be able to do so for hundreds of years.
>As a labour-saving device, magic was good enough that it didn't make sense to start working on complex technical solutions to problems, mundane or not.
>In fact, magic would probably make a technical solution laughable. Imagine comparing early irrigation to Earth pony magic, capable of growing whole orchards in the middle of barren desert.
>The more you think about this, the more the outlook on science here makes sense.
>Not only does it not seem to offer a meaningful insight into the world, but it wouldn't even be of any practical use anyway.
>And if the ponies believe magic is inexplicable, then where does that end? Who decides what the cut-off is for what can be explained, or do ponies just assume they're dealing with 'magic' whenever they see something they can't easily understand?
>Do their philosophers not question what existence is? Do they not wonder if we're alone in the universe? Are they curious about what beauty, truth or love are?
>That's not to say the ponies are stupid. You've seen their art, read their poetry, their philosophies. But they focus on social issues, and even then, their arguments aren't based on rationalism but, rather, are empathetic or emotionally driven.
>While their outlooks and arts are still impressive, their understanding of the world is weak, almost childish.
>The more you think, the more Equestria seems not like the utopian paradise it had seemed when you first arrived, but a hollow, vacuous place where intelligent ponies accepted things at face value, never questioning or wondering how things work.
>With a sinking feeling, you start to wonder what this might mean for mankind's development.
>Was a happy, stable society impossible without sacrificing a desire to learn about the world around us?
>Is technological and scientific advancement driven through change and adversity, or is it the other way round?
>Does our constant drive to ask questions and expand our understanding cause the problems in our world that we strive to fix, or are the problems themselves what make us seek better solutions?
>Surely not. Humans lack magic, so have to come up with their own solutions in stead. And since the scientific method was, by its very nature, ever changing, any society based on rationalism must also be in a state of flux, if not socio-politically, then at least intellectually.
>More scary, though, is the possibility that ponies and humans are fundamentally different on some level, that humans are simply incapable of true, society-wide happiness, while ponies naturally formed more stable systems.
>Were humans just unable to find contentment in their situations? Is that why the drive for improvement is constant- has /been/ constant -throughout our history?
>You're not sure what scares you more; that idea, or the possibility that, if humans had access to magic, they too would have given up the search for understanding.
>Would that even be a bad thing? The ponies were blissfully ignorant, seemingly with no desire or drive to expand their knowledge beyond the superficial.
>It was like a kid watching a puppet show, never questioning what was making the puppets move, fine with just enjoying the story.
>And they were happy, content. It was the status quo, had been for thousands of years. You wanted to share with the ponies a deeper understanding of the world around them...
>But did they even need it?
>"You ok, Anon?"
>Dash's question snaps you back to reality
>Dash. A reminder that not all ponies aren't curious about the world, that they did /try/ to explain the things around them.
>Perhaps it was the framework they lacked, their society looking down on science and discouraging ponies from following the empirical method.
>If you wanted to change things, you'd have to find other like her...
>The was /if/ you even wanted to change things.
>Is that a decision you could even personally make?
>For a second, you just stare at her concerned face
>You groan
"I think I need a drink."

~

>"Wow, that's a pretty heavy load!"
>Twilight's words snap you out of your concentration
>She smiles as you nod sheepishly, surrounded by thick books.
>Your talk with Dash left some serious questions, and the library seemed like the best place to start looking for answers
>As you carefully mark your place in a dusty tome, Twilight levitates a few of the discarded books
>"A Concise History of Equestria, The Essays of Neighcarte, the Encyclopaedia Equestria, On Ethics and Morality... I'm impressed!"
"Heh, yeah. Fancied a little light reading, you know?"
>You grin as Twilight chuckles
>"I can relate."
>With a nod, you stare at Twilight
>There's something you need to ask her.
>Three days ago, you were sure you were going to introduce Equestrian society to the scientific method. Now?
>Well, there were... complications.
>Could you guarantee that a scientific revolution wouldn't destabilise the country, indeed, the whole world?
>Was it better for ponies to live in happy ignorance, or unhappy knowledge?
>It wasn't even like you were sure it would end that way. You ideas may never really take off, or they could even help the quality of life rise even higher.
>After all, what was science if not a way to fulfil the deeper needs of man, giving us knowledge and understanding that made our lives richer.
>Ultimately, you had to make a choice. For almost two days, you've been reading.
>While it's all fascinating, it hasn't answered your questions.
>You'd hoped to find out more about the life outlook of ponies, but the books weren't dealing with the right issues.
>A book can only get you so far. What you really need to do is to talk to a pony.
"Hey, Twilight? Mind if I ask you a couple of questions? They'll be pretty deep, I'm afraid."
>"Well, if that's what you consider light-" she waves a hoof at your books "- then I don't know if I'll be able to answer!"
>She takes a seat opposite you at the library desk
>"What did you want to know?"
>You frown
"Well..."
>Is stability more important than understanding? Is it right to sacrifice understanding for happiness? Intellectual growth for peace? Progress for magic?
"Say a great magician invented a new spell-"
>"-discovered," Twilight corrects you
>You wave a hand dismissively
"Yeah, discovered. Say they discovered a new spell that would put a pony in a deep sleep, forever."
>Twilight furrows her eyebrows as you continue
"For the whole time that pony was asleep, they would be dreaming a dream so realistic, that they thought it was real life. They would forget having the spell cast on them, they wouldn't have any reason to doubt what was going on around them was real."
>You pause, thinking carefully about how to word the next bit
"In this dream, their life would be perfect. They would be fulfilled, happy. There would still be downs, sure, but ultimately everything would end well for them. Anything they set their mind to, they could accomplish. They would go from being sick in real life, to perfectly healthy in the dream. From a failure to a great success. From a lonely outcast to a beloved leader."
>Twilight frowns slightly at the last one
"You following me so far?"
>She nods
"Ok. Then my question is this: If I told you I'd discovered this spell, and that I could cast it on you right now, would you want me to?"
>Twilight looks shocked
>"No, of course not! That would be... that would be terrible!"
>Hmmm.
>You weren't exactly sure what her response would be. A part of you wouldn't have been that surprised if she said she'd want the spell
"Why would it be terrible?"
>"Well, what about my friends? My family? I'd never see them again!"
>You shake your head
"No, no. You've missed the point. You'd see them all the time, exactly as much as you wanted. Everything would seem normal to you."
>"Oh..."
>Twilight looks down in thought, puzzled for a moment
>"But they would all miss /me/! Going into that sleep would hurt others, I couldn't do it."
>You shrug
"Right... but..."
>You're not getting the answers you need. You have to know that it's her personal choice, not something she feels morally obligated to do.
"Ok, forget about your family and friends. Let's say that they all decide they'll do whatever you do, and they'll be happy. What do /you/ want?"
>Twilight fidgets for a moment
>"I... I couldn't. It just seems wrong. I mean, it wouldn't be real, would it? It would be hollow."
"It would /feel/ completely real. You would never know it wasn't."
>Twilight shakes her head
>"It's wrong. It's not the same."
>That's it. The answer you were looking for, or at least the first stage of it.
>A desire for reality rather than complete happiness. For whatever reason, the fact that she has such a deep aversion to the idea is a good sign.
>If ponies really were purely interested in gratification no matter from what source, she'd have wanted the spell cast on her.
>Time for the next question
"Right. So let's say that you decline the spell, and this powerful wizard destroys any evidence of it ever existing. Then he asks you out for a drink."
>Twilight cocks her head in confusion at the sudden shift
"Say, for arguments sake, that you fall in love. You get married, have foals. You're perfectly happy. But say, unbeknown to you, he was having an affair, seeing another mare."
>Twilight's eyebrows crease again. This line of questioning doesn't seem like something she's 100% comfortable with
"Would you want to know?"
>She nods without hesitation
"Even though it would ruin your happiness? Tear your life and the lives of your children apart?"
>"I'd want to know. It's better to know the truth than live a lie."
>You blink
>Shit, that's almost exactly what you wanted to hear
"So you'd want to know the truth, even if it hurt you?"
>She nods again, resolute
>Well. That makes things a bit easier. A clear desire to know the truth rather than live a lie, in both circumstances.
>There are other questions, ones about what the effects of enlightenment might actually be on society, but Twilight isn't going to be able to answer those
>You grin at Twilight
"Excellent. Thanks for answering."
>Standing up, you stretch
>Take a short break, spend a while longer reading. Then start trying to come up with a plan. The first step would-
>"Anon?"
>You glance back to Twilight
"Yeah?"
>"Is everything ok?"
>You're taken aback
"Uh... yeah. Why wouldn't it be?"
>"Those questions, they... is something wrong?"
>Oh
>Maybe those aren't the kind of questions ponies ask. Ponies that are 'ok', anyway
"Nope. I'm good."
>"You know, I'm here for you if you ever need to talk about anything."
>Twilight gives you a sincere look
"Uh... thanks. Same here. But for you, I mean."
>"About /anything/, Anon. Any time."
>You nod
"Yup."
>"I mean, even-"
"I got it, Twi. You're worrying about nothing, I'm fine."
>You give a grin and Twilight returns it
>"I'm just looking out for my friend."
>Her friend.
>It's a pleasant thing to hear.
>And really, apart from the whole science thing, you think of Twilight as a friend too. She's been nothing but kind and caring to you since you first arrived. They all have, in fact.
>Just the other day, Pinkie baked you a "Happy Tuesday" cake. Then there was those kids that found out you didn't have a cutie mark, and invited you to join their club as an honorary member.
>There was Dash, who always brought a smile to your face, putting on airshows for you, or trying to get you into her book series.
>Heck, there wasn't a pony that hadn't tried to make you feel welcome in some way.
>You look at Twilight's concerned face.
>You almost laugh. You thought they'd lose their kindness, their happiness if you introduced technological and scientific change. Somehow, you don't think that's an issue at all.
>Suddenly, things seem like they've fallen back into place.
>A large part of you is excited to see what wonderful things these ponies can achieve if you push them out of their comfort zone. As much as they learn, it's your privilege to learn even more, to see the things humans have built with new eyes.
>You smile at Twilight
"I'm fine Twilight. I really am."
>She gives a relieved sigh
>"Phew. You really had me going there, Anon. What was with those questions? Are they the sort of things human normally ask?"
>You shrug
"We're a curious bunch."
>Twilight bobs her head in agreement
"Well. I'd love to chat, but there are a few things I need to look in to."
>Her face scrunches up slightly, in thought
>You need to start your revolution. First thing to do is get Dash on your side. She's interested in this stuff already, and she'd be a great help in spreading the word, especially since a fair few ponies look up to her.
>The important thing right now is that this is something you're going to commit to, to spend your life working on if needs be.
>You owe it to these ponies who've helped you so readily.
>The best thing you can give them back is this, the chance to grow and develop.
>Twilight's still looking puzzled as you turn to leave
"I'm off. I'll see you around, Twi."
>"Wait..."
>She calls to you almost hesitantly.
>"The first question, about the spell? I was thinking..."
"Yeah?"
>Twilight's face drops slightly, growing a frown
>"... How do I know someone hasn't cast that spell on me already?"
>Huh. That's not the kind of question you were expecting from a pony
>"Is... that the kind of question humans ask?"
>You give her a nod
"That's exactly the kind of question humans ask."
>She perks up slightly, leaning forward in anticipation
>"And what's the answer? How /do/ we know this world is real?"
>You grin, cheerfully.
"We don't. Bye!"
>With that, you leave a bewildered looking Twilight in the library
>Maybe it was a bit mean, but you couldn't help yourself.
>After all, perhaps that'll jolt her into thinking a bit more deeply about the world.
>That or drive her insane. You're not exactly a pony expert
>Either way, today's been a good day.
>Tomorrow's going to be an even better one...

~

>On your way home from the library, you decide to stop by Sugarcube corner
>The treats are just too tempting.
>You step inside, and it takes all of half a second for Pinkie to materialise beside you
>"HEY NONNY!"
>After waiting a moment for your heart to stop fibrillating, you give her mane a tussle
"Hey, Pinks. Didn't expect you to appear so suddenly."
>She grins craftily to herself
>"They never do..."
>The two of you walk over to the counter
>"So, what've you been up to?"
"Thinking."
>"Thinking? About what?"
>You stare wistfully into the distance
"The meaning of life."
>Pinkie give a gigglesnort, and you grin at her
>"Oh, Nonny. You're so silly!"
>Huh, here we go.
"Why?"
>"The meaning of life! I mean, come on!"
>You roll your eyes
"Yup. Magic explains it all, why ask questions. I've heard it before."
>Pinkie gives another giggle
>"No, Nonny. Not /that/. Wait here, it's easier to show you."
>She slips behind the counter, and pulls a tray from underneath it
>It has three identical cupcakes on it, all of them look delicious
>"See these three cupcakes? Take one!"
"For free?"
>You're not sure where she's going with this, but if you're getting a free cupcake you'll go wherever she damn well wants you to
>"On the house!"
>You shrug, and take a cupcake.
>Pinkie cocks her head
>"Why did you take that one?"
"Why this one in particular? I dunno, I just took one."
>"You had no reason? You took it at random?"
>You give a non-committal shrug
>Not really at random, but for the sake of the argument...
"Sure."
>Pinkie squints at the cupcake
>"You could have taken any one, but you took that one. That cupcake will get eaten, but its brother and sister get to live on."
>Uh...
"I guess?"
>"And there was nothing that cupcake could have done to avoid being eaten. It had no choice over being on the tray, on looking so delicious, on even being baked in the first place!"
>Pinkie's grin widens slightly
>"Its whole existence, from the moment it was created to the moment it was destroyed was completely outside of its control."
"You could say that, yeah."
>Pinkie nods sagely
>"It was born into this world alone, with nothing. Its whole existence was leading up to fulfilling a destiny it had no choice in, and then it'll be gone forever. Another couple of days, and we'll both have forgotten all about it!"
>Uh...
>Is Pinkie a nihilist?
"And you think it's like that for us?"
>She smiles
>"Whoa, Anon, you're one smart cookie!"
>...wow.
>"The meaning of life? What even /is/ meaning? You can't touch it, or eat it or snuggle up to it on a cold night! The universe is a cold, empty place, and any order or rules we impose on it are merely our own transient attempts to impose order on chaos."
>You stare at your cupcake
>"Truth, beauty, love... none of those exist beyond our own fragile perceptions. We're born into this world fumbling for meaning, Anon, trying to twist an indifferent world into something that we can bear to face!"
>Pinkie leans in close, a conspirational look in her eye
>"In a hundred years, we'll all be gone, and so will most of the people who remembered us. We come from nothing, and we go back to it. Everything we do is ultimately meaningless, Anon."
"...oh. That's an... interesting outlook."
>"Yep! And that's not even the best bit!"
>She takes a deep breath
>"SinceEverythingIsSubjectiveAndSeemsDifferentByItsPerceptionByIndividualsWe'reNotEvenExperiencingTheSameRealitySoNotOnlyAreWeTrappedInAUniverseThatAtBestDoesn'tKnowWeExistAndAtWorseAbhorsUs-"
>Pinkie sucks in another lungful of air
>"-ButWeCanNeverEverCommunicateAnythingToOthersInAWayThatPerfectlyPreservesMeaningSoInSomeWaysWe'reCompletelyAloneFromTheCradleToTheGraveWhichIsSomethingCompletelyBeyondOurConrolAndNoMatterHowYouLiveYourLifeThere'sNoTellingWhenACartWillRunYouOverOrYou'llBeSmashesToPiecesByAFallingPiano-"
>Again, she takes a deep breath
>"-AndSometimesIWakeUpInTheMorningAndICanBarelyGetOutOfBedBecauseTheWorldSeemsSoBigAndColdAndMyBedIsSoToastyAndWarmThatIJustWantToCurlUpAndSleepForeverButThenIRememberThatThat'sExactlyWhyIShouldGetOutOfBedBecauseMyFriendsAndFamilyAreTrappedInExactlyTheSameWayAndThatIfTheyLoveMeHalfAsMuch-"
>Gasp
"-AsILoveThemThenMyLifeDoesHaveValueAndIOweItToThemToDoMyBestToMakeThemSmileForJustAMomentBecauseIfTheyDoTheUniverseDoesn'tSeemSoSadAndLonelyAndICanAlmostBelieveThatEverythingWillBeAlright!"
>Pinkie finishes with a flourish
>You blink
"Uh... come again?"
>That was fast.
>It's impressive she can just ream things off like that, but you followed about three words she said. Something about a piano, and how toasty her bed is?
>Pinkie just giggles
>"I'll write it down for you next time!"
>You shrug
>Pinkie, huh?
>Still...
"Do you talk about the pointlessness of existence with all of your customers?"
>She shakes her head vigorously
>"Only with the ones that look like they need cheering up!"
>You laugh, and Pinkie joins in
"Still, it's a pretty morbid outlook. How do you cope with something like that?"
>Pinkie grins, and suddenly sweeps the other two cupcakes off the tray, stuffing them into her mouth and swallowing them in one go
>"That's the secret, Anon..."
>She puts the tray away
>"I eat /two/ cupcakes!"
>Pinkie saunters off happily
>Slowly, you take another look at your cupcake
"Sorry."
>You're not sure why you felt compelled to apologise, but it doesn't stop you eating it.
>And it's delicious.
>Free food always tastes better.

~

>"How high is space?"
>You lounge in the sun, enjoying the softness of the grass as you ponder Dash's the question
"Depends. There are different definitions of where it starts. About 100km is somewhere in the middle of that range. Back on Earth, that is."
>Dash nods thoughtfully
>"You said people got things up in space, right? That the things didn't come back down?"
>You nod
>After Rainbow Dash opened up to you, the two of you started meeting up again, closer now than you were before.
>Despite what she said about not wanting to get back into science, Dash is still as curious as ever about Earth and humanity.
>You do your best to not get too technical, trying to respect her wishes.
>She said she didn't want to get into it and you're not going to try to sneakily bring her round, no underhand tactics.
>Her friendship is worth more to you than that.
>Besides, science is about openness and clarity. If you're going to try to convince her, you need to do it openly and rationally.
>It's pretty clear that she's not as disinterested as she claims. Maybe she's willing to listen to reason.
>"How did you get things to stay up there? In space?"
"Hmm..."
>A bird chirps somewhere nearby, and you idly watch the distant ponies going about their business in Ponyville.
>This is one of your favourite places to relax. The view is incredible.
"That's not so easy to explain."
>It's your little warning. Whenever things start to get too technical, you say that and Dash understands.
>She backs off, and-
>"Try anyway?"
>You turn, raising an eyebrow at Dash
"It's pretty technical."
>"I... I want to know."
>This is a first. Normally there's a little pause and she changes the topic.
>You nod
"Well. Imagine I had a stone which I threw as hard as I could horizontally. It would fall to the ground, right?"
>Dash nods
"If I could throw it even harder, it would travel further before it hit the ground. From side on, the line the rock would make would look like a curve, starting straight and getting more curved toward the end."
>She nods again
"We're on a round planet."
>It had come as a little surprise to find the ponies knew their planet was round, but it kind of makes sense. Heck, the ancient Greeks knew.
"So, what if I threw the rock so fast that as it fell, it was moving around the curve of the planet?"
>Dash's face scrunches up for a minute
>She absent-mindedly traces something in the dirt
>"It wouldn't hit the ground?"
>She doesn't sound 100% sure.
>You nod
"Exactly. The rock wants to fall down to the ground, but it's moving so fast that the ground isn't there for it to land on."
>Her blank look tells you you're not explaining this very well
>You grab a small stick and begin doing a couple of sketches in the dirt as you try to explain again
>Dash rolls over to watch, shifting to get herself comfortable
>The drawings help a lot, and Dash is soon nodding in understanding at your explanation of an orbit
>You're glad she's interested, but talk about sending mixed signals.
>She gave you her whole story about why she didn't want to get into science, and here she is asking you about orbits.
>Not that it's too heavily scientific, but it's still more than you'd have expected her to want to know.
>The two of you fall back into another comfortable silence, enjoying the beautiful day
>A few minutes pass before Dash continues your conversation
>"So the things you put in orbit, they have to travel really fast sideways? They don't have to push up?"
"Yup"
>"How fast do they have to go?"
>You grin at RD
"Why, planning on sending something to space?"
>She rolls her eyes
>"Yeah, maybe you."
"Ouch. And here I am answering all your questions. They have to go pretty damn fast."
>You don't remember any exact speeds, but you think the ISS used to orbit at about 7km/s
"I think something like 25,000 km/h"
>"Whoa..."
>You nod
"Yeah, tens of times the speed of sound."
>On Earth, at sea level. But you doubt Dash wants to go into be nuances
>"The speed of sound, huh?"
>You nod
>Ponies don't think of there being a speed of sound, which always struck you as odd. It's not a very difficult observation.
>Again, silence falls on you
>You're glad Dash is getting outside her comfort zone
>A sudden breeze makes you shiver slightly, but it's gone as fast as it came
>Since talking to Twilight a couple of weeks ago, you've been making a few orders, buying pieces of equipment.
>Nothing major, just measuring equipment, beakers, lenses. Anything that might come in handy for experimentation.
>You've set up a little shop, too, doing repairs. You've always been pretty good with your hands and you've got a pretty technical mind.
>Ponies bring you their broken things and pay you to fix them. Old scooters, broken tools. They're usually pretty simple to mend.
>Occasionally you get called out to someone's house to fix a broken door or something.
>You enjoy your job. Meeting ponies is always fun, and you get to choose your own hours. Besides, each broken thing is like a little puzzle to be solved.
>It's good cover, too. Twilight wouldn't be impressed if she knew you buying so much equipment for scientific research, but you can easily explain all your tools and equipment as being necessary for your job.
>Once you've got a nice little setup, you can start investigating how Equestria works.
>You're going to have to start pretty much from scratch, though. You can't assume that even the things you take for granted like gravity or electricity are going to be the same. They may behave drastically differently than on Earth.
>Your goal is to start writing books as soon as possible. Get some things published and try to get ponies interested in learning more.
>You need to make science useful to them, and make it as easy to understand as possible. The more you can make it sound like common sense, the better.
>So no quantum theory, obviously.
>"Anon?"
"Yeah?"
>"How do you know sound has a speed?"
>Dash's look is quizzical
>She's putting a lot of thought into this, for someone who doesn't want to get dragged back into science
>You sit up
"Dash, I'm happy to tell you, but are you sure you want to know?"
>Dash hesitates
>"It's not like I'm getting really into studying science or anything."
>You shake your head
"That's exactly what it's like. Don't get me wrong, it'd be great if you were, but I thought..."
>Not sure how to finish the sentence, you leave it hanging
>You're sure Dash knows what you mean
>She looks at you for a moment, then rolls over, facing away from you
>"I'm sorry, Anon. I just..."
>She trails off
>Damn. Were you too harsh?
>A long minute passes. You're not sure if she's getting her thoughts in order, or whether the conversation is over.
>Finally, she speaks
>"I just can't help it. I always wonder about things. Why they're the way they are, how they work. Why does the sun shine, how do rogue clouds occur, how could I get above the Draft-Line?"
>You're not sure what rogue clouds or are, or what the Draft-Line is, but you get the picture.
>"Whenever I catch myself thinking about that stuff, I try to stop and think about something else. It's fine for a while, but then..."
>You nod
"You always come back to it. There's nothing wrong with being curious."
>She nods
>"I still really want to learn. It's just... I don't know."
>She gives a frustrated groan
>You give her some time to think.
>"The way you talk about things, it makes sense. It's not some half-baked theory like most of the other scientists."
>You shrug. You've read into the Equestrian science scene a bit, but there wasn't much to learn. Mostly just incoherent, rambling 'dissertations'.
>There isn't really a unified scientific method, it's just a handful of different ponies doing their own thing
>"It makes me think maybe there's something to all this after all."
>You fight back a grin
>This is exactly what you've been wanting to hear
>And it's good for Dash. If it's something she's interested in, why shouldn't she learn about it?
"Dash. Can I make a suggestion?"
>She rolls over to face you again, a slightly apprehensive look on her face. She nods
>Time to offer to teach her.
"You're interested in this stuff. You want to learn about things, you want answers. Heck, you want to be able to ask questions"
>She nods absent-mindedly
"And when you do ask how something works and the answer is just 'magic', it doesn't feel right."
>Dash pulls herself up, nodding again
>"That's right"
"That's how /I/ feel, Dash. For humans, curiosity is just what we do."
>It's true. Doesn't matter whether they're asking deep, philosophical questions or just wondering idly about something trivial, humans are curious creatures.
"We look for answers. And we find them, no matter how long it takes."
>Humanity is always making progress, we have been for thousands of years.
>We're pretty awesome like that
>Dash is staring at you, paying close attention
"If you want, I can teach you. I can't guarantee I can answer all your questions, but I can promise to try. And I can promise to give you the tools to find your own answers."
>Your friend's face screws up in thought
"I'd understand if you said no, and I'm not expecting an answer right away, Dash, but it seems like this is something you really want. Something you'd really enjoy. So why not give it a try?"
>You finish, and give Dash a gentle smile
>If this is something she really doesn't want to do, you don't want to push her into it.
>But that doesn't mean you aren't going to at least give her some arguments for.
>She holds you gaze, chewing her lip in thought
>The gentle breeze picks up again, carrying the scent of flowers
>Dash continues to look at you for a little while longer
>Eventually, she nods
>"Ok."
>You blink
>A hesitant smile creeps across her face
>"Let's do it! What's the worst that'll happen? If I don't like it I can just stop."
>Your smile spreads wide in spite of yourself, and Dash's grows too
"Marvellous!"
>You hesitate
"What was your question again?"
>Dash stands
>"How do you know there's a speed sound travels at?"
>Oh, yeah
>You pull yourself to your feet, feeling... excited. Really, really excited.
"Dash?"
>"Anon?"
"It's time for an experiment."

>After a quick trip to your house to pick up some supplies, you and Dash return to the park
>You walk over to a lone tree, Dash hovering above you, playing with the stopwatch you gave her
>"Are we starting now?"
>You shake your head
"There's a little bit of setup, but I think we should do more than just an experiment anyway. Do you want to learn about the scientific method? How we do research on Earth?"
>Judging by her eager nods, Dash is more than happy to learn
>You shift the weight of the spool you're carrying. 100m of rope is pretty heavy. The backpack isn't helping either
>When you get to the tree, you scratch a mark into the mud with the toe of your shoe, then line the end of the rope up to it
>You grab a decent sized rock, and use it to weigh down that end of the rope
>Then you walk away from the tree, unspooling the rope as you go
"So. Here's the basics of the human scientific method"
>Dash stops fiddling with the stopwatch, swooping down to walk alongside you, looking up attentively
"We always start with a question. In this case, you asked me how I knew there was a speed of sound. So let's rephrase that slightly and ask 'Does sound travel instantaneously?'"
>Dash nods thoughtfully
>"Because if it doesn't, it's got to go at a certain speed?"
"Yes, very good."
>Dash nods again, smiling faintly
>She quickly wipes her smile away, trying to look serious
"Normally the next step would be to do background research. Has anyone else done an experiment that answers our question? What more can we learn about the subject? In this case, we'll just assume there's nothing to research."
>"What kind of stuff would we normally look for?"
>You shrug
"It depends. You may try and ask a specialist in that field, or even just read through as many research papers as you can that are relevant. You're looking to gain as much knowledge as possible for the next step."
>"What's the next step? Is it the experiment?"
"It's almost time for the experiment. But first, we need a hypothesis."
>"A hypothesis?"
"Yeah. Normally it's like a prediction for what we think will happen in our experiment. In our case, we'll use something a bit more general. The hypothesis I'm proposing is 'sound does not travel instantaneously'."
>It's not really a hypothesis, more of a theory. The key thing here, though, is to expose Dash to the core process. You can teach her in more depth later.
>Dash grins
>"Now it's experiment time?"
"Yup. Then it's experiment time. There's a whole over process for coming up with an experiment idea, and making sure it's good enough, but we'll talk about that another time."
>Dash hesitates
>"You promise?"
"Yeah, of course."
>You've finally reached the end of the spool of rope. You're now standing about a hundred meters away from the tree.
>With your foot, you scratch an X into the ground at the end of the rope, one line parallel to the rope, one line perpendicular to it
>"Anon? If we're talking now and I hear the sound at the time you move your lips, doesn't that mean your hypothesis is already wrong?"
>Huh.
>That's a fair point. She's putting thought into this.
>It doesn't really disprove it, but your statement should be clearer.
"Nice one, RD. It doesn't exactly invalidate my hypothesis, but I should make my hypothesis more clear. I think sound travels at a high speed, fast enough that you wouldn't notice a delay when you were talking to someone normally."
>Eh, may as well go all the way
"In fact, my hypothesis is 'the further you are away from a sound source, the longer it takes for you to hear the sound'."
>Dash nods, evidently satisfied
"If that hypothesis is supported, it will support the theory that sound doesn't travel instantaneously."
>Again, Dash nods.
>You're impressed
>You knew she was interested in this stuff, but she seems to be really taking to it well, even the drier side.
>She's excited for more than just the hands-on part, and her enthusiasm's rubbing off on you
"Right. We're ready."
>Dash grins
>"We're starting the experiment?"
"Yup."
>You slip off your backpack, taking out a pair of pans
>Dash raises an eyebrow
>"What're those for?"
"The experiment. Here's what's gonna happen. I'll stand here and bang these pots above my head. You'll be standing at the tree, a hundred meters away. When you see the pots hit each other, start the stopwatch. When you hear them bang together, stop the stopwatch."
>"And if there's a delay, then we proved you hypothesis?"
>There's a little clarification needed there, but she's close enough.
>The experiment won't prove it, after all, just provide evidence for it
"That's right."
>You're waiting for her to ask about the rope, about why you measured the 100m
>"Awesome! I'll go to the tree now."
>Before you can say anything, Dash has, well, dashed.
>Damn. You'd wanted to explain that you could actually calculate the speed of sound if you knew the distance.
>Eh, you can tell her in a minute
>Dash gives you a wave. She's ready.
>Taking a pot in each hand, you hold out to the side
>Then you swing your arms up, the pans hitting each other with a load clang
>Rainbow Dash taps the stopwatch a moment later, then looks down
>Even from this distance, you can read the excitement in her body language as she reads the result, and see her big goofy grin
>Without any warning, she takes off, hurtling toward you, outstretched hoof holding the stopwatch
>"Look, Anon!"
>You smile broadly as she blurs toward you
>Why was she ever fighting this? She looks like she's having a blast
>She skids to a stop in front of you, thrusting out the stopwatch
>"Zero point three four seconds! You were right, Anon! It's not instantaneous!"
>She laughs and you join her
"Nice work, Lead Researcher Dash. The experiment supported the hypothesis!"
>You're not massively surprised by the result, but Dash's enthusiasm is infectious
>"Zero point three four, what's that? About three hundred meters per second? A bit less..."
>Hang on.
>You were expecting to have to show her that you could work that out
"You've calculated speed before."
>She waves a hoof dismissively
>"All the time. I gotta know how fast I'm going!"
>She flares out her wings proudly
>Huh
>Makes sense
>It's weird. The ponies don't really have any empirical system, or any scientific method. The experiment you've just done is simple, the kind of thing you'd do with a kid.
>It's not that you think Dash is stupid, not at all. It's just the right level to start at.
>Yet Dash was pretty comfortable working out the speed without any prompts from you
>It's going to be interesting finding out how advanced pony folk actually are in certain subjects
>You wonder if they have calculus... if not, it shouldn't be-
>"Anon?"
"Huh?"
>Dash is grinning at you
>"You zoned out."
"Sorry... had you asked something?"
>"Yeah, what's next?"
"Oh... after experimenting, we have to analyse our results and draw a conclusion."
>Dash nods
>"So we can say we were right, that sound goes at three hundred meters a second?"
>You shake your head
"Our result suggests that, but that wasn't our hypothesis."
>Dash's smile falters slightly as she thinks
>"It supports the hypothesis that sound doesn't travel instantaneously? Did we even need the rope and the stopwatch to prove that?"
>You shake your head
"Your observation was enough. I thought it might be interesting to get an idea of just how fast it was going, though."
>"Right. So, we did it? That's the whole scientific method?"
"Not quite. There are two more steps. The next thing we should do is communicate our results."
>She cocks her head
>"With who?"
"Well. No one, yet. Back on Earth, we would write a paper that would explain our hypothesis, the experiment and results and our conclusion. That would get published somewhere, and it would join the pool of background information. Remember when I said we should have done background research?"
>"Yeah, second step."
"Uh-huh. Well, in the future other people would be able to see our experiment and the results. Which would help them devise their own questions, hypotheses and experiments."
>Dash nods thoughtfully, then looks off into the distance, her gaze going blank
>Her mouth slowly hangs open
>"That's... that's..."
>Huh.
>Guess you broke Rainbow Dash.
>You don't have a receipt, but the store'll give you a replacement.
>This one should still be in its warranty.
"You OK there?"
>Dash practically jumps at your voice, spinning excitedly to face you
>"That's amazing! It's like a big- a big /pool/ of what we know!"
>You chuckle at her as she continues her outburst, bobbing with excitement
>"And then when we do experiments, other ponies can learn from them, and it means there's, like, an expanding..."
>She notices your amusement, and takes a second to compose herself, looking a little flustered.
>"Uh. I mean, your scientific method is pretty cool."
>Dash blushes a little
"Don't worry."
>You grin
"I feel the same way. It's funny, what you were saying about a pool of things we know."
>You pack the pans back into your bag
"One of the greatest scientists back on Earth, a chap called Isaac Newton, he said something you might appreciate. About how we build our understanding based on previous discoveries other people have made."
>Shouldering the backpack, you give Dash a smile
"He said 'If I have seen further, it is only be standing on the shoulders of giants'."
>Dash gives you a funny look
>Serious, a slight squint. You're not sure what to make of it
>After a moment, she speaks
>"Thanks, Anon. Thanks for showing me all this."
"It's a pleasure, Dash. Teaching people new things is always fun, doubly so when they're so keen to learn."
>She nods her agreement
>"I'm glad we did this. I want to do more, though."
>You nod
"Good. I'm more than happy to teach you. We can do more experiments, learn about how to create them. Hypotheses, writing results, analysing them... we can go into a lot more depth."
>Dash's looks up to you, her smile disappearing
>"Promise?"
>You're taken aback by Dash's sudden seriousness
"Yeah. Promise."
>A split second later, her smile is back.
>What you've shown her today is barely even scratching the surface. It's a taster, something to get her started.
>You need to teach her how to design an experiment, the importance of understanding errors, the necessity for repeatability, for accounting for statistical anomalies.
>She needs to learn how to communicate results in a clear way, needs to learn about the fundamentals of physics, chemistry.
>And the maths! Calculus, statistical analysis and probability, logic and proof theory.
>All those things will be necessary eventually. But for now, this will do.
>"What was the last step?"
"Huh?"
>"You said there were two more steps. Communicating is the second last, but what's the final one? How do we finish the scientific method?"
>To be completely honest, back on Earth communication /was/ the last step.
>But, like all things, even the scientific method isn't perfect. It had always struck you that there was one key step missing, and this was your chance to introduce it into an unbiased world.
"Ah, the final step. It's the most important, you know."
>"But what is it?"
>You grin
"We go celebrate. Pub?"

~

"Twilight? You about?"
>It's early afternoon, the sunlight streaming through the windows of Twilight's castle-tree-house making you squint
>Stifling a yawn, poke your head into her library
>You were out late with Dash last night, celebrating
>It felt exciting. Sitting in a quiet corner of a pub, talking in hushed tones about the next experiment you were going to do
>Conspiring together. The mare was pretty enthusiastic about doing some proper experiments in the future. Said she was going to start making notes of questions she had so she could try to answer them.
>Dash really wanted to measure the speed of sound more accurately, so that's what you're going to do next.
>It's a good next step. You get to build on something you've already done and you can also impress the importance of repeatability on her. Get her to take multiple measurements and use averages, measure the speed over different distances to see whether it's constant and so on.
>And, of course, there was the usual banter
>You're regretting those Jaeger bombs now, though. And the tequila.
"Twilight?"
>You almost miss Twilight as you scan the room
>She's hunched over a desk, half-hidden behind a stack of thick books, muttering to herself as she takes furious notes
>Yup. You're not going to get anything out of her for a while
>When she's like this, just about the only thing that would get her attention is a blast measured in megatons
>Instead of trying to snap her out of it, you wander around the library, head aching slightly.
>Your post-experiment celebration with Dash got a bit heavy. You may have had a couple more beers than you should have...
>Well. Best way to beat a hangover is to power through it.
>Got to learn about magic. Best place to start is probably some books. Then you can question Twilight about any specifics you're struggling with
>From you previous conversations with her, it seems there's a fundamental difference in outlook between empiricism and the... magical sciences?
>Whatever they call the study of magic here. Probably not that, then.
>Thaumatology?
>Either way, the point is that Twilight and the ponies in general all think certain things are just inexplicable.
>If you're ever going to convince them to listen to reason and to actually become invested in the scientific method, you'll need to know where they stand now.
>If they believe that only certain phenomena can't be explained, then you can work with that. You'll offer explanations that they're comfortable with first, build up to the more 'inexplicable' things later
>On the other hand, if they believe the universe itself is fundamentally unknowable, mysterious and irrational, then you're going to have a harder time.
>If they believe the answer to certain questions is 'magic', fine. If they believe the answer to /all/ questions is 'magic', well. That'd be a problem.
>You walk along a bookshelf, looking for M. Ponies just sort their books alphabetically by subject. It's a terrible system, really.
>It doesn't take long to find the magic section. It's big enough that you'd have a hard time missing it, in fact
>You skim the titles
>Something light, to ease you in. You have to understand their outlook, not advanced spellcraft.
>It's a basic persuasion technique. To convince the ponies to take science seriously, you'll need to understand how they see the world. It'll help you form arguments they'll follow and, hopefully, agree with
>You hum to yourself as you skim the titles
"Thaumatic Readings, The Art of Levitation, A Hundred Things to Do With a Magic Wand..."
>There's a lot here, and none of the thick, leather bound tomes seem helpful. Or even well-read, judging by the dust.
>Maybe you should talk to Twilight-
"Glimmer Learns About Magic?"
>The thin book catches your eye, its bright spine making it stand out like a black man at a skinhead rally. You pull it off the shelf
>This is what you were looking for. It's a book clearly aimed at children.
>You take it over to a desk, sitting on a leather chair
>This will get you started.
>The cover shows a trio of stylised foals, an earth pony, a pegasus and a unicorn playing together
>Inside are full page illustrations, cartoony.
>The first one shows a smiling unicorn colt standing in a messy bedroom
"This is Magic Glimmer."
>Good start for a story. Has you hooked.
"Magic Glimmer likes candy, cuddles and playing with his friends."
>A true, relatable everyman.
>There's a pull tab coming out the side of the book
"Oh, cool."
>You pull it, and the lid on Magic Glimmer's toy box opens, revealing his playthings inside
>Huh. You've read worse.
>The next couple of pages explain that he wants to learn more about magic, so he goes to visit his grandpa, who's some bigshot wizard
>You turn to a page showing the illustration from the cover, three foals playing, one of each race
>Sweet. More pull tabs.
"Magic Glimmer already knows that magic helps earth ponies get big and strong, and grow the best food."
>You pull a tab, and the earth pony rears up, a little plant rising beside him.
"He knows that magic lets the pegasus ponies fly and control the weather."
>This tab makes the pegasus wings flap
>Nice book, this. Well made.
"He knows that magic lets unicorns cast all kinds of spells."
>You don't bother pulling the tab this time
>Turning to the next page, you continue Magic Glimmer' riveting story
>It's a picture of some forest, clouds above and he sun shining
"But that's not all magic does."
>Ah. This is more like it
"Magic does a lot of things. It makes the wind blow. It makes the sun shine."
>You heart falls
"It's what makes plants grow, and colts too!"
>Stifling a groan, you skim the page, then flick through the rest of the book.
>It just lists a load of phenomena that don't have an obvious explanation, and attributes them to magic.
>Even a few of the more philosophical questions like what the meaning of life is, or where our conscious comes from are waved away as just being 'magic'
>This is exactly what you didn't want to see.
>It goes on with the colt asking his grandpa what magic is, and the stallion laughs
"That's the best thing about magic. It's a mystery. The cleverest ponies all agree that magic can't be understood."
>While you could argue very angrily with that point, you let it slide.
>The grandpa is really in no position to argue back.
>With a sigh, you close the book
>"Something wrong, Anon?"
>You jump so suddenly you almost leave your skin behind
"Twilight!"
>She giggles, seeing the book
>"I've never seen someone look so upset over Magic Glimmer."
>You give her a sheepish grin
"I looked upset?"
>"More annoyed, really. You were muttering under your breath."
>You nod, trying to regain your composure
"It's an intense story. A real page turner."
>"Uh-huh. What're you reading this for, anyway?"
>Ah, the whole learning about magic thing
"I wanted to find out more about magic."
>You come right out with it. You know Twilight's feelings about science, and beating around the bush might look funny.
>Her eyes narrow slightly as you give her an innocent look
>"You want to learn about magic."
>You nod
>She still seems a little suspicious
"Yeah. I mean, we didn't have it back on Earth-"
>Twilight's frown deepens
>You're not doing a great job here
"-that I know of. And, well, it just seems like something important."
>She hums
>"Well, you're right about that, but I don't think you're starting with the right book."
"It's been helpful, actually. At the moment, I just want to learn the basics."
>Twilight grins
>"Well, I suppose it's where everyone else starts. I could make some recommendations, if you think you're ready for the grown-up books."
>She gives a playful grin
>You shrug
"I dunno. I struggled with some of the longer words, but if you think I'm ready..."
>Twilight chuckles, walking over to the shelves in the magic section
>Sure, that book answered your most fundamental question. That doesn't mean you don't have others. The more books you can read, the better.
>Twilight levitates a handful of books of the shelf
>"Well if you're looking for a general overview, this one's..."

"Thanks again, Twilight."
>You gesture at the stack of books
"I appreciate the recommendations."
>Twilight waves a hoof dismissively
>"My pleasure, Anon. I just wish everyone else was as excited about learning as you are!"
>You nod
"Me too, Twi."
>The irony's lost on her
>There's one more thing you want to talk to her about
>Well, it's the same thing you read about earlier, with the kids book.
>You need to confirm what it said. That ponies really believe everything is inexplicably caused by magic. One source isn't enough to be sure, and you're more interested in what Twilight thinks
"Twi, can I ask something about magic?"
>She nods
>"Ask away!"
>You think of how best to word this. Don't want to set Twilight off on another anti-magic rant
"So, that book I read earlier. I'm a bit confused. It said that everything's caused by magic."
>Twilight's smile falters slightly
>Got to tread lightly here
"I just wondered, how do you measure magic?"
>Twilight's smile slips a little further
>"Well, earth and pegasus ponies can't really feel it, not much. Only a few types. But if another unicorn cast a spell nearby, I'd feel it."
>You cock your head
"Other types of magic? Like the kind that makes the wind blow, or the sun shine?"
>Twilight's practically frowning now
"This is going to get a bit complicated, I'm sure those books will explain this better than I can, but there are lots of types of magic. Your four basic elemental magics, then combinations of those. There are things like shadow magic, life magic. Navigational magic. Pure magic, of course-"
"Pure magic?"
>"Yes, it's the kind of magic unicorns use. That's the kind we detect. We can turn it into other types of magic, that's why we call it pure."
>You're curious about these types of magic, but they should be in the books Twilight recommended
"Right."
>"Anyway, they're all fundamentally magic, they just behave differently. They underpin everything about the world. The tides, for example, are caused by natural water magic build-up. There's always balance between the different types of magic, though. And even within the same type, there's always harmony."
>You nod along. This isn't really answering your question yet, but it's all useful information
"So the water magic in the sea builds up, causes a high tide and then it... disperses? And the tide comes back down?"
>Twilight nods enthusiastically
>Well, there you have it. It's not exactly what you asked, but it's clear how Twilight, and possibly all of ponydom, thinks the world works.
>"That's right. But to answer your question, we can't measure most types of magic directly."
>Huh
>Can't detect /most/ types?
>You're interested to know which can be detected, but, again, that'll most likely be in the books. You have more interesting questions for Twilight
"So how do you know it's there?"
>Twilight stifles a sigh
>Shit. If you weren't on thin ice before, you're now practically holding a blowtorch to it
>"We can turn pure magic into all other types. So they must be magic. It's pretty simple, really."
>She's being very patient with you.
>Well, patient compared to her usual snappiness whenever you start asking these sort of questions, at least.
"So it must be magic? Doesn't that seem like a -"
>"Anon. I appreciate you're learning about magic, that you're trying to put all that... silliness behind you. But you need to just accept these things for what they are: the truth. It doesn't make sense to ask all these questions."
>There it is
>It's like running into a brick wall
>How can you reason with someone who won't even question anything? Who won't even consider that they could be wrong?
>You've already annoyed Twi enough for the day, you think.
>But... there's one last thing you want to say
>It's a bit of risk, she might take it badly. But if she follows and thinks about it, well...
>You take a moment to think about how to phrase this.
"There was once a little crab."
>"Huh?!"
>Twilight looks taken aback, but you continue
"It had lived its whole life in the bottom of a rock pool, with steep sides. The high tide would bring bits of food, but it would never take the little crab away with it. He'd never known anything but the rock pool."
>Twilight's brow is furrowed, not sure where you're going with this
"This crab never imagined that there was anything outside his tiny pool until one day, a seagull landed beside it. The crab was amazed: he'd never seen anything like this before."
>Twilight nods slightly
"He called up to the seagull, asking where it came from. There was surely nothing beyond his rock pool. It spoke to him, told him of the wide ocean, the beautiful coral reefs and the colourful fish within it. The giant whales and the ships that travelled it. The crab couldn't believe it: how could there be so much more than just his little pool?"
>You grin at Twilight
"The crab was sure the seagull was wrong. At first he didn't believe there could be such a vast, beautiful world out there. So the seagull offered to lift crab out of his pool, so he could see it for himself..."
>You trail off, hoping that Twilight's following.
>Hopefully a little fable is a better way to bring her round. Not too direct.
>The two of you sit in silence for a short while.
>"And? What did the crab do?"
>You grin and give her a shrug and a smile
"We'll just have to wait and see."
>Another long moment passes in silence as Twilight digests your story
>Hopefully she'll be just that little bit more open minded after this.
>Finally, carefully, she speaks
>"Anon, I think I owe you an apology for how I've been treating your interest in... science."
>Your eyebrows raise in surprise
>Ok, you definitely weren't expecting this
>"I always thought you were being ignorant, but it's not your fault you lived your whole life in a rock pool, so to speak."
>Aaaand never mind.
>You'll have to think of another way to get through to her.
>"I'll try to be more patient in future. I can see you mean well."
>Curse your optimism
"Thanks, Twi."
>Is it dishonest not to correct her? You don't want to lie to her, or for her to feel manipulated when you finally start making progress
>Eh, you can worry about that later, if it ever comes to it
>You pick up your stack of books
"Well, I'd love to chat, but I'd better get reading."
>Twilight grins
>"Let me know if you need anything else."
"Will do, Twi. Take care."

~

>Huh.
>The books Twilight gave you are... heavy, to say the least.
>There's a lot of confusing and often contradictory statements to wade through, but one thing's clear...
>These ponies are pretty committed to this whole damn magic thing.
>It reminds you of all those theories about the Earth being the centre of the universe.
>In ancient history it was a pretty reasonable thing to think. Sun goes up, sun goes down. Moon goes up, moon goes down.
>Slowly, though, people noticed things that didn't quite fit.
>The way the planets moved was off. Eclipses happened at the wrong times.
>So they added things to the theory. Planets didn't just circle the Earth, they actually circled a point circling the Earth.
>Soon other issues were spotted, and suddenly the planets circled a point circling a point circling the Earth.
>Eventually someone looked at it and decided it was all too messy, and that things made a lot more sense if the sun were in the middle with everything going round that.
>Maybe you're simplifying it a bit, but the point is theories get too complicated and a simpler one comes along to replace it.
>You get the feeling that the ponies are right on the verge of that.
>It looks like they've attributed everything in existence to different kinds of "magic". Every action or interaction is magic. Forces, energy, the physical properties of matter. Heck, even time, life and concepts like love.
>Take, for example, fire, as described in the most recent book you've been reading.
>Fire is one of the four fundamental elemental magics, the others being (famously) water, earth and air.
>Take a campfire, for example. According to the ponies, the fire works by releasing latent fire magic from the wood.
>As the fire magic leaves the wood, it causes the 'composition' of the wood to go out of balance, and it returns to its other constituent elements, ash representing its earth magic, smoke representing its air elements and the water elements being devoured by the fire, since those are opposites.
>There's more, though. There are other types of magic to be balanced out. Life, light, dark, 'aromatic'...
>The burning wood spits out all its life magic as light, and its latent 'dark magic' (which normally balances out its light magic) is absorbed into the surroundings as shadows.
>So far so mental.
>And then, somehow, it gets even more contrived.
>The release of fire magic can be triggered by flames or by heat, both of which are expressions of fire magic itself. That explains how fire spreads. But not all objects have the same 'composition' as wood, and fire magic being added or taken from different other objects can have different effects.
>Sand, say, is composed mainly of earthen elements and can produce glass when it has fire magic applied to it. This is because the fire burns out the 'water content' of the sand, which leaves it full of air and earthen components. The air components are what make it transparent.
>Fire's also innately linked with strength, which fire magic brings to metal when it tempers it. It's also linked with nutrition, which is why it makes bread better to eat, and how slash and burn agriculture works...
>It goes on and on.
>And this is just fire, and only the very basics of that. There are whole books dedicated to the behaviour of fire magic, let alone the dozens of other types of magic or the hundreds of pseudo-magical properties things can have.
>Generally speaking, it seems to you like most forms of energy transferal or force are described as magic. The movement of the wind or water, fire, gravity, magnetism...
>And then there's the weird properties. The books seem to differ in how they discuss these. Some call it semi-magic, others call them base properties or fundamentals. They're essentially descriptions of physical properties.
>Weight (or rather, mass), hardness, tensile strength, heat capacity and even permeability are all there, whether obviously or perhaps more subtly. All described through the interactions of magic.
>They're called things like "ground-affinity", "incorporeality", "stability".
>But the cherry on the cake, the real thing that makes your head spin, is that this is only the most widely accepted model of the universe. There are many competing 'theories'.
>These theories, they're not like scientific ones. They're more philosophical in nature. Or perhaps religious.
>Ponies believe whatever they want to believe. Whichever idea most takes their fancy, that's what they take to be true.
>No rational arguments, no evidence, no experiments. Just gut feel.
>So all this crap you just spent the last few hours reading, it's all useless. Sure, a lot of ponies will believe it the world works this way, but plenty more won't.
>Skimming a few other books has confirmed just how different these theories can be. Some mostly agree with a few minor differences, others don't even agree on the fundamentals.
>They don't compete rationally, through arguments and soundly explaining how things work. The authors just explain their belief. No justification, no refutation of the ideas of others, no discussion. Just pages and pages of crap, with the occasional passive-aggressive comment aimed at another author.
>Not only are theories of magic incredibly contrived and convoluted, they're not even unanimously believed. With so many competing and contradictory ideas, it seems like any explanation can attract a following.
>Christ, this is a mess.
>One book explains how stones sink because their natural resting place is below water, the natural resting place of which is below air. That's why rain falls, but it doesn't try to explain how rain gets up there in the first place.
>Another book helpfully explains that 'fire and water are two sides of the same coin, with air and earth making the other side of the same coin', which is wrong on so many levels you don't know where to start. Unless there's a 4-sided Equestrian coin you've yet to come across.
>You're starting to get worked up about this.
>These books are drek. They're opinion pieces, and yet there are dozens of different schools of thought on how magic works and what its role in society should be.
>The fact that rational thought and inquiry are considered immature while this crap is touted as insightful is baffling.
>Although, you feel, you should have expected something like this.
>It's kind of silly now you look back, but you expected the books to just say "Everything is magic".
>The fact that there'd be different philosophies and ideas never really crossed your mind.
>You sigh, massaging your temples
>You're going to give yourself a headache at this rate.
>Positives. Positives. What are the positives?
>Perhaps the fact that ponies are so open to hearing different theories of magic could come be useful. If you can start by phrasing the scientific method in terms they're familiar with...
>Could you lure them in with psuedoscience?
>Hmmm
>That might work, but it feels wrong. You want ponies to embrace the scientific method at face value. You want them to see how useful it is, how it can offer better answers than their current system does.
>Maybe that could be your last resort.
>You stand up, stretching out your legs
>It's been hours since you left your desk, being so engrossed in (and enraged by) the books Twilight gave you.
>You decide you need something to drink, so you head downstairs
>What else is positive about this?
>Well, the way they think magic works shows that ponies are at least aware of certain physical phenomena.
>If you can convince a few that the scientific method can explain these phenomena better, perhaps they'll spread the ideas?
>Thinking of Earth and human history, you feel like scientific revolutions happened when people had greater access to the spread of ideas.
>Maybe you could get a printing press?
>That could work. Put out a few pamphlets. There are supposedly ponies out there interested in the scientific method. Maybe they'd be interested in hearing what you had to say.
>You walk into the kitchen, almost slipping on the tiles in your socks.
"Damn!"
>One of your hands grasps at the counter, steadying yourself.
>You should put a rug down or something, you're going to fall over and kill yourself one of these days.
>As you fix yourself a drink, you consider whether Rainbow might know any other ponies who were interested in science.
>Perhaps you could start a club or something.
>Yeah. That might work. Get some material printed, spread it around a bit. Start with less offensive ideas, like the speed of sound. Things people can easily verify for themselves.
>Show them that the simple things can be explained by the scientific method, then build up slowly. Make everything super accessible.
>Standardise it all, the rigour, the methodology. Be a respected source of facts.
>You could teach classes, spread ideas.
>A scientific institute would be great.
>You could call it The Ponyville Scientific Society.
>Has a nice ring to it.
>Though the acronym is PSS, which sounds too much like 'piss'.
>You'll work on-
thud
>-it.
>You blink
>Something heavy just hit your front door.
>Or maybe a giant knocked. Once.
>Water still in hand, you saunter to the front door
>There's a frantic knocking
>"Anon? You in!?"
>Dash?
"Yeah. just coming."
>She shouts through the door, breathlessly
>"Anon!?"
"Yeah, coming!"
>You're two feet away from the door, for heck's sake. What has her so excited?
>It's not unusual for RD to drop in and say hi, but she doesn't sound her usual cool, collected self.
>You open the door
>Rainbow Dash stands there, fidgeting.
"Hey, Dash, what's-"
>"So I was moving a rogue cloud, just a little one, right?"
>Blinking, you take a moment to register her hasty words
>You don't know what a rogue cloud is.
"Uh, wha-"
>"Yeah, so I was thinking about the experiment we did with the sound, and about how you say it's important to repeat experiments and I thought I could do it with the cloud, oh it was sparking, and, yeah that's why I thought-"
>You hope it isn't important that you know what a rogue cloud is, though you can probably guess
>She stops to suck in a breath of air, and you seize your chance to speak
>You guess whatever this is is important enough to skip the normal friendly chitchat
"Sparking?"
>She beams at you, practically bouncing on the spot
>"Uh-huh, you know, making unmanaged lightning and thunder. Well, I was thinking maybe we could use the clouds next time we do an experiment because the thunder's louder and I could go further away and you could wave when the thunder happened and I started thinking maybe I could get someone over to do the experiment but then I thought..."
>She shakes her head as though to clear it, composing herself
>"Look, Anon... lightning and thunder happen at the same time!"
>You nod
"Yeah?"
>She nods back, grinning
>You stare at her blankly, not sure where she's going with this
>"At the same time!"
>She repeats herself, raising her eyebrows
"Uh..."
>"I did an experiment and proved it! I thought you'd be excited to hear!"
>You remember the glass of water you're holding and take a long sip to buy yourself a little time
>This all feels surreal. Either this is some kind of fever dream, or Dash is so excited she's making no sense. Time to clear this up.
"Right. So you did an experiment?"
>She nods
>"Yeah, I thought I could get someone to wave when the thunder went off, but then I noticed the flashes were coming at the same time as the thunder, and remembered how you said there's no delay when you're close to the sound, but further away it takes time to travel. So I thought maybe the lightning and thunder are happening at the same time. I flew away and timed it and the difference between the thunder and lightning was the same as the time it'd take the sound to move to me!"
>Ahhhh
>She worked out how long it'd take the sound to travel using the results from your other experiments and found the time between the thunder and lightning was consistent with that.
>You furrow your brow
>Do ponies not know thunder and lightning are caused by the same thing?
"So you think they happen at the same time?"
>She nods vigorously
>"Yeah! They sound like they're at different times, but that's because it takes time for the sound to travel!"
>You rub at your nose thoughtfully
>Odd, you'd have thought ponies would have noticed that. It's a pretty useful way to-
>You freeze
>Dash did an experiment!
>On her own!
>Forget about the observation skills of other ponies, this calls for a celebration.
"RD, this is great! Come in, come in!"
>You beckon the mare inside, leading her toward your kitchen
>She raises her head, proudly
>"It is pretty great, isn't it? We make a good team!"
"We?"
>She nods
>"Yeah, you helped give me the idea. I'll put you as my co-scientist if I get an award."
>With the way science is perceived here, you doubt she'll get an award. But still, you appreciate the thought
"Thanks, but I think you deserve all the credit. I want to know all about it."
>It's not a particularly interesting result, but still. You want to encourage Dash to do more experimentation.
>And the fact she's curious and thinking about natural phenomena is a good sign.
>"I made a hypothesis, and I tested it and I did it at different distances and I made a discovery!"
"You repeated it at different distances?"
>If RD grinned any wider, the top of her head would fall off.
>Dash never struck you as someone who'd be interested in experiments and nerd stuff, but here she is having kittens over making a discovery.
>Entering the kitchen, you almost slip again on the tiled floor, but Dash steps forward, leaning her body against yours to steady you
>She feels warm against you. Warm and soft
>"I gotcha."
>She lingers for a moment, making sure you're steady before she finally pulls away
"Thanks."
>Your heart's beating a little from the near fall
>Dash smiles at you, and you feel slightly embarrassed. Now you're definitely going to get a rug. Or slippers.
>Best distract her before she can get in a joke at your expense
"It's a pretty great discovery, Dash."
>"Thanks, I thought I'd come straight here and tell you about it, I thought you'd want to know."
"I do, I appreciate you coming."
>She's so flustered about all this her face has gone a little red
>"I'm going to tell the Royal Weather Corps. This could save lives!"
>You grin
>She's being melodramatic
"Oh, it could, could it?"
>She nods
>"Yeah. You're supposed to keep your distance from the bigger rogue systems. There's a couple of ponies a year that die from getting too close."
"Wait, what?"
>"Yep. Especially out near the coast. They get a big rogue system in, someone flies a little too close and BAM!"
>She stomps a hoof
>"They get hit by debris or blown out of the air. You gotta keep your distance, steer it from the edge."
>You shake your head in disbelief
"Sounds really important, then."
>Dash puffs out her chest
>It seems so odd that ponies wouldn't have noticed this before, especially if it was a matter of life and death. It's a simple observation, that the time between thunder and lightning is greater the further away you are.
>Whatever, now's not the time to worry about that.
>"My first discovery! I'm gonna write a letter, and put in the experiment so they know how I know. Then they can try it themselves and-"
>She rattles off on another breathless speech
>You nod along as you grab a couple of glasses, pouring a celebratory drink
>Whiskey.
>You hand her a glass, and she frowns, surprised you're drinking so early in the evening.
"That letter can wait, D. First, we need to celebrate!"
>Your plans for the rest of the day can be put on hold. There's plenty of time to get angry about magic later. It's not going anywhere.
>Right now, you want to celebrate with your friend.
>For a moment, Rainbow Dash's smile fades and she looks you right in the eye, going still. Just for a moment, though.
>She smirks, nodding
>"Darn right, we do!"
>She holds up her drink
>"Cheers!"
"Salud."
>You clink glasses

~

>Twilight levitates an apple to her mouth as she eyes you wearily
>"Mathematics isn't science, Anon. It's a completely unrelated field."
>Uh-huh. Pretty much what you were expecting.
>A waiter bustles past your table, levitating half a dozen trays. Somewhere nearby, a bird chirps. A couple of clouds lazily drift across the sky.
>The perfect day to talk about science.
>Just like any other day.
>You weren't sure where you stood personally on the maths is/isn't a science discussion but it was impossible to deny that, coupled with the empirical method, maths was an important tool for exploring the world around us.
>Impossible to deny unless, of course, you were Twilight
>"Mathematics is a rigorous system made of logical deductions within a well-established set of rules and laws. It's got /nothing/ in common with science!"
>You wish there were some kind of SI unit for irony.
"But maths is useful in the real world."
>Twilight takes a bite of her apple, but doesn't wait to finish chewing before she speaks
>"Sure, trigonometry has a few limited uses, mostly in construction, and numeracy is important. But anything beyond multiplication? It's purely an interesting diversion!"
>You cringe slightly at the fine spray of apple juice.
>Twilight grins sheepishly as she swallows
>"Sorry, I tend to get a bit caught up in these things."
>You wave a hand dismissively
"It's no problem, just maybe aim somewhere else next time."
>You both chuckle and take a moment to enjoy the sun on your skin.
>Well, you do. You guess Twi's enjoying it on her... fur? Hide?
>You've read the books you took out about magic, but none of them said anything about how advanced the ponies were when it came to mathematics
>Since a good grasp of maths is essential for any kind of scientific progress, you're hoping they have their shit together. It'd make your goals much easier to achieve. You cross your fingers for calculus
"When you said 'anything beyond multiplication', I'm curious what you were-"
>Twilight waves a hoof
>"Oh, you know. Algebra."
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>...
>...
>...
>?
>!
>You blink, feeling like your brain just shut down for a moment there
"Did you say algebra?"
>Twilight nods, raising an eyebrow
>"It's interesting. Just not very applicable."
>You stare blankly at Twilight for a moment
"Algebra?"
>"Yeah, algebra. You know, finding a hidden value-"
"I know what algebra is. I just..."
>Twi smiles at you pleasantly.
>You blink
"Uh. Alegbra."
>"Yes."
"Algebra isn't useful? It's just an interesting diversion? Not applicable?"
>Twilight nods
>"That's what I said."
"Yep, thought so, just checking."
>You slouch back in your chair, rubbing your chin
"Algebra."
>Wow.
>You open your mouth to ask Twilight something, but a dozen questions fill your mind and you close it again.
>Algebra. Once of the most important, useful, time-saving, powerful inventions ever.
>Nothing more than an interesting diversion.
>Again, you open your mouth to speak, then close it.
>You have no idea what to say. The idea that ponykind couldn't find a useful way to use ALGEBRA is... worrying.
>Are you being unfair? Isn't it obvious how useful it is?
"Hmmmmm."
>Where to even start.
"When you say it's an interesting diversion and not applicable, do you actually mean it's incredibly useful?"
>"Useful?"
>You stare at each other blankly
>After a moment of silence between you, Twi continues
>"How could it be useful?"
>You're not sure where to even start with that.
"I don't think there's a single field of work that doesn't benefit from the use of algebra."
>Twilight stares at you like you're mad
"You mentioned geometry! That's basically all formulae!"
>Twi's face scrunches up
>"I don't do geometry, I've just studied a little algebra."
"But- You-"
>You take a deep breath
"Twi, seriously, do you want me to give you a couple of examples of how algebra can be useful?"
>She looks at you for a long time, mulling something over.
>"Quickly then."
>You nod, then realise you don't actually have an example off the top of your head
>Toying with the idea of some basic Pythagoras theorem shit, you come up with a better idea.
"Speed! Ok, this is useful. Say you're going somewhere ten kilometres away. We can work out how long it'll take to get there based on how fast you're going."
>Twilight frowns, narrowing her eyes
>Maybe this is getting dangerously close to 'science' but you push on.
"If we divide the distance you're travelling by the speed you're travelling at, we'll get how long your journey'd take. Say you're going at ten kilometres an hour. It'd take you one hour to get where you were going."
>"This isn't algebra, Anon."
"It is. If we represent your speed with 's' and the distance with 'd', we can substitute in any values you like. Want to know how long it'd take if you were travelling at 15 kilometres an hour? Forty minutes. What if you were travelling at ten kilometres an hour, but were going a distance of forty kilometres? It'd take-"
>"Ten hours, yes."
>Twilight waves a hoof dismissively.
>"This hardly seems that useful, Anon."
"It's useful, Twi. If you're running a train company, you can work out timetables for things. It means if you're a taxi driver, you can work out a reasonable rate. The algebra lets us generalise the problem and gives us an easy way to solve it in future."
>Twilight hums thoughtfully
"What about if you're building a house? Say a metre of wall needs twenty bricks to build. If you measure how many metres of walls a building has, you can work out easily how many bricks you need, and that holds for any building!"
>Twilight rubs a hoof on her chin
>"You would be able to buy exactly the right number of bricks. Less waste."
>Hm, seems she's starting to get it.
"What about a business calculating its expenses? A cafe, say? If coffee costs ten bits a bag and croissants cost ten bits for a dozen, then-"
>"It's like... you're not solving the problem directly, but coming up with a system for solving any problem of the same type?"
"Yeah, exactly! It's a really powerful tool."
>Twilight stares through you, deep in thought
>This is... this is good.
>It seems like you've actually got through to her. Perhaps this could be the push that gets her thinking more scientifically, maybe this could bring her round! You don't want to push it today, but maybe you could get her on the topic of applications of maths to the physical world. Maybe you should-
>"Taxes."
>Twilight's eyes focus on you
>"Taxes!"
"I guess you could use algebra to-"
>"You're a genius, Anon!"
>Twilight beams at you
>"Regulating and standardising taxation will be so easy now! I can't believe no one thought of this before you!"
>You smile weakly. This is not the direction you wanted this to take.
"Well, I didn't really think of-"
>Twilight stands
>"I've got to go! I promise, Anon, I'm going to name this new tax system after you!"
"Oh, that's OK, there's really no need for-"
>"Don't be modest, Anon! I'm going to make sure everyone knows your role in this! I've got to go. See you later, thanks for lunch, bye!"
>Twilight launches off in the direction of her home, no doubt to put your name on some godawful tax law
"... shit."
>You sigh
>Still, silver lining. You have an opening.
>Next time you're chatting to Twi, you can ask about her tax thing then bring up maths in general. You could prepare a couple of examples that are more based on physics, teach her the underpinning maths before pointing out its applications.
>Yeah. That could work.
>She's not bad, is old Twilight, just a bit ignorant. It's not even really her fault, it's just the system of beliefs her society raised her with.
>Things are in a good place now, but you need to keep moving on your quest to Make Science Great Again.
>Dash is super on board, you need to have a chat with her about the next step of your master plan.
>Setting up a scientific academy.
>Of course, it won't start as an academy. You'll call it the Ponyville Science Club or something, start to tutor more ponies and spread rational ideas. A printing press would be fantastic.
>Maybe you should check whether-
>"Ahem."
>The waiter stands at your table, holding a small plate with the bill on it. He sets it down.
>You reach for your wallet to pay, but realise you didn't bring it.
>It was Twi's turn to pay for lunch
>You eye her empty seat
"Fucking taxes."
>"Excuse me?"
"Oh, sorry. I just... I forgot my wallet and my friend left early."
>Looks like you're going to be cleaning dishes for a while...
>You start rolling up your sleeves
>"Forgot your wallet, you say? No problem, I'll hold onto your bill and you can pay it next time you're in."
>You stop rolling up your sleeves.
"Oh, thanks. That's kind of you."
>"It's no problem, Anon. You're the only green biped in town and Twilight's kinda a princess. You come here every week. I don't expect you're going to disappear and not pay."
>Oh. Of course.
>You grin sheepishly
>"Just make sure you leave a good tip."