Table Topics
Either Or (1-159)
50’s or 80’s music?
Alaska or Hawaii?
Alice in Wonderland or Robinson Crusoe?
Amusement Park or Day at the Beach?
Apples or oranges?
At a movie: Candy or Popcorn?
Bagels or toast?
Bananas or apples?
Bath or Shower?
Beer or Wine?
Being too warm or too cold?
Big Party or Small Gathering?
Blinds or Curtain?
Blue or green eyes?
Blue or Red?
Boat or plane?
Book or eBook?
Book or movie?
Books or magazines?
Breakfast or dinner?
Brown or black hair?
Burgers or tacos?
Cake or Pie?
Camping or Binge Watching Shows at Home?
Car or motorcycle?
Car or Truck?
Card Game or Board Game?
Cardio or Weights?
Cars or trucks?
Cat or dog?
Chocolate or vanilla?
Circles or squares?
City or Countryside?
Classical Art or Modern Art?
Coca-Cola or Pepsi?
Coffee Cup or Thermos?
Coffee or Tea?
Coke or Pepsi?
Comedy or drama?
Comedy or horror?
Comic Book or Comic Strips?
Computer games or video games?
Console Gaming or PC Gaming?
Cookies or cake?
Couch or Recliner?
Cups in the cupboard: Right Side Up or Up Side Down?
Day or night?
Digital watch or analog?
Dine In or Delivery?
Doctor Who or the Walking Dead?
Facebook or Twitter?
Facebook or Twitter?
Family or friends?
Fire or ice?
Flowers or trees?
Football or Basketball?
Form or Function?
Freedom or hope?
French or Spanish?
Frozen yogurt or ice cream?
Fruits or vegetables?
Glasses or Contacts?
Go skiing or snowboarding?
Gold or silver?
Google or Bing?
Hamburger or Taco?
Hamburgers or hot dogs?
High-tech or Low-tech?
Honesty or Other’s Feelings?
Horror Movie or Comedy Movie?
Hot chocolate or coffee?
Ice Cream Cone or Snow Cone?
Iced Coffee or Hot Coffee?
International Vacation or a New TV?
iOS or Android?
Jogging or Hiking?
Ketchup or mustard?
Leather or lace?
Library or museums?
Lions or Bears?
Living room or bedroom?
Love or money?
Mac or PC?
McDonald’s or Burger King?
Meat or Vegetables?
Milk or juice?
Mobile Games or Console Games?
Money or fame?
Money or Free Time?
Morning or evening?
Most important in a partner: Intelligent or Funny?
Motorcycle or Bicycle?
Mountains or beach?
Movie at Home or Movie at the Theater?
Netflix or YouTube?
New Clothes or New Phone?
Nice Car or Nice Home Interior?
Ocean or Mountains?
Online shopping or in-person shopping?
Painting or drawing?
Pancake or Waffle?
Pandas or whales?
Paper or plastic?
Passenger or Driver?
Pasta or pizza?
Pen or Pencil?
Phone Call or Text?
Phone or computer?
Piercings or tattoos?
Pop music or Rock music?
Pop or Indie?
Puzzles or board games?
Rain or snow?
Reading or writing?
Receive: Email or Letter?
Rich Friend or Loyal Friend?
Roses or daisies?
Sandals or sneakers?
Save or Spend?
Scooby Doo or Tom and Jerry?
Shower or tub?
Singing or dancing?
Sitting or standing?
Skates or bike?
Sneakers or Sandals?
Snow White or Cinderella?
Soup or Sandwich?
Steak or chicken?
Straight or curly hair?
Stuff animals or dolls?
Summer or winter?
Superman or Batman?
Sweater or Hoodie?
Sweet or salty?
Swim in a pool or in the sea?
Swimming or Sunbathing?
T-Shirts or sweaters?
Tablet or Computer?
Tea or coffee?
Text message or call?
Theater or cinema?
Toast or Eggs?
Toilet paper: Over or Under?
Train or Plane?
TV or Book?
TV Shows or Movies?
Watch or play sports?
Weird or crazy?
What’s up or Viber?
What’s worse: Laundry or Dishes?
When sleeping: Fan or No Fan?
While walking: Music or Podcasts?
Wild animals or domestic animals?
Winter or Summer?
Witches or wizards?
Work Hard or Play Hard?
Working Alone or Working in a Team?
Writing poetry or reading poetry?
Inside the Actor's Studio Questionnaire - Lipton/Pivot/Proust
What is your favorite word?
What is your least favorite word?
What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
What turns you off?
What is your favorite curse word?
What sound or noise do you love?
What sound or noise do you hate?
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
What profession would you not like to do?
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
Would you rather? (1-211)
2. Would you rather lose the ability to read or lose the ability to speak?
4. Would you rather be covered in fur or covered in scales?
5. Would you rather be in jail for a year or lose a year off your life?
7. Would you rather have one real get out of jail free card or a key that opens any door?
8. Would you rather know the history of every object you touched or be able to talk to animals?
10. Would you rather be able to talk to land animals, animals that fly, or animals that live under the water?
11. Would you rather have all traffic lights you approach be green or never have to stand in line again?
12. Would you rather spend the rest of your life with a sailboat as your home or an RV as your home?
13. Would you rather give up all drinks except for water or give up eating anything that was cooked in an oven?
14. Would you rather be able to see 10 minutes into your own future or 10 minutes into the future of anyone but yourself?
15. Would you rather have an easy job working for someone else or work for yourself but work incredibly hard?
16. Would you rather be the first person to explore a planet or be the inventor of a drug that cures a deadly disease?
17. Would you rather go back to age 5 with everything you know now or know now everything your future self will learn?
18. Would you rather be able to control animals (but not humans) with your mind or control electronics with your mind?
19. Would you rather have unlimited international first-class tickets or never have to pay for food at restaurants?
20. Would you rather see what was behind every closed door or be able to guess the combination of every safe on the first try?
21. Would you rather be an average person in the present or a king of a large country 2500 years ago?
22. Would you rather be able to dodge anything no matter how fast it’s moving or be able to ask any three questions and have them answered accurately?
23. Would you rather be forced to dance every time you heard music or be forced to sing along to any song you heard?
24. Would you rather have all your clothes fit perfectly or have the most comfortable pillow, blankets, and sheets in existence?
25. Would you rather 5% of the population have telepathy, or 5% of the population have telekinesis? You are not part of the 5% that has telepathy or telekinesis.
26. Would you rather be an unimportant character in the last movie you saw or an unimportant character in the last book you read?
27. Would you rather move to a new city or town every week or never be able to leave the city or town you were born in?
28. Would you rather be completely insane and know that you are insane or completely insane and believe you are sane?
29. Would you rather travel the world for a year on a shoestring budget or stay in only one country for a year but live in luxury?
30. Would you rather suddenly be elected a senator or suddenly become a CEO of a major company? (You won’t have any more knowledge about how to do either job than you do right now.)
31. Would you rather live in virtual reality where you are all powerful or live in the real world and be able to go anywhere but not be able to interact with anyone or anything?
32. Would you rather have whatever you are thinking to appear above your head for everyone to see or have absolutely everything you do live streamed for anyone to see?
33. Would you rather be only able to watch the few movies with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 95-100% or only be able to watch the majority of movies with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 94% and lower?
34. Would you rather wake up as a new random person every year and have full control of them for the whole year or once a week spend a day inside a stranger without having any control of them?
35. Would you rather know how above or below average you are at everything or know how above or below average people are at one skill/talent just by looking at them?
36. Would you rather live until you are 200 but look like you are 200 the whole time even though you are healthy or look like you are 25 all the way until you die at age 65?
37. Would you rather be a reverse centaur or a reverse mermaid/merman?
38. Would you rather your only mode of transportation be a donkey or a giraffe?
39. Would you rather only be to use a fork (no spoon) or only be able to use a spoon (no fork)?
40. Would you rather every shirt you ever wear be kind of itchy or only be able to use 1 ply toilet paper?
41. Would you rather have edible spaghetti hair that regrows every night or sweat (not sweet) maple syrup?
42. Would you rather have to read aloud every word you read or sing everything you say out loud?
43. Would you rather wear a wedding dress/tuxedo every single day or wear a bathing suit every single day?
44. Would you rather be unable to move your body every time it rains or not be able to stop moving while the sun is out?
45. Would you rather have all dogs try to attack you when they see you or all birds try to attack you when they see you?
46. Would you rather be compelled to high five everyone you meet or be compelled to give wedgies to anyone in a green shirt?
47. Would you rather have skin that changes color based on your emotions or tattoos appear all over your body depicting what you did yesterday?
48. Would you rather randomly time travel +/- 20 years every time you fart or teleport to a different place on earth (on land, not water) every time you sneeze?
49. Would you rather there be a perpetual water balloon war going on in your city/town or a perpetual food fight?
50. Would you rather have to fart loudly every time you have a serious conversation or have to burp after every kiss?
51. Would you rather become twice as strong when both of your fingers are stuck in your ears or crawl twice as fast as you can run?
52. Would you rather have everything you draw become real but be permanently terrible at drawing or be able to fly but only as fast as you can walk?
53. Would you rather thirty butterflies instantly appear from nowhere every time you sneeze or one very angry squirrel appear from nowhere every time you cough?
54. Would you rather vomit uncontrollably for one minute every time you hear the happy birthday song or get a headache that lasts for the rest of the day every time you see a bird (including in pictures or a video)?
55. Would you rather eat a sandwich made from 4 ingredients in your fridge chosen at random or eat a sandwich made by a group of your friends from 4 ingredients in your fridge?
56. Would you rather everyone be required to wear identical silver jumpsuits or any time two people meet and are wearing an identical article of clothing they must fight to the death?
57. Would you rather be a famous director or a famous actor?
58. Would you rather be a practicing doctor or a medical researcher?
59. Would you rather live in a cave or live in a tree house?
60. Would you rather be able to control fire or water?
61. Would you rather live without the internet or live without AC and heating?
62. Would you rather be able to teleport anywhere or be able to read minds?
63. Would you rather be unable to use search engines or unable to use social media?
64. Would you rather be beautiful/handsome but stupid or intelligent but ugly?
65. Would you rather be balding but fit or overweight with a full head of hair?
66. Would you rather never be able to eat meat or never be able to eat vegetables?
67. Would you rather have a completely automated home or a self-driving car?
68. Would you rather be an amazing painter or a brilliant mathematician?
69. Would you rather be famous but ridiculed or be just a normal person?
70. Would you rather have a flying carpet or a car that can drive underwater?
71. Would you rather never be stuck in traffic again or never get another cold?
72. Would you rather have a bottomless box of Legos or a bottomless gas tank?
73. Would you rather be forced to eat only spicy food or only incredibly bland food?
74. Would you rather be a bowling champion or a curling champion?
75. Would you rather be fantastic at riding horses or amazing at driving dirt bikes?
76. Would you rather never be able to wear pants or never be able to wear shorts?
77. Would you rather live the next 10 years of your life in China or Russia?
78. Would you rather live on the beach or in a cabin in the woods?
79. Would you rather be lost in a bad part of town or lost in the forest?
80. Would you rather have a horrible short-term memory or a horrible long-term memory?
81. Would you rather be completely invisible for one day or be able to fly for one day?
82. Would you rather never be able to use a touchscreen or never be able to use a keyboard and mouse?
83. Would you rather have unlimited sushi for life or unlimited tacos for life?
84. Would you rather get one free round trip international plane ticket every year or be able to fly domestic anytime for free?
85. Would you rather be able to be free from junk mail or free from email spam for the rest of your life?
86. Would you rather give up bathing for a month or give up the internet for a month?
87. Would you rather give up watching TV/movies for a year or give up playing games for a year?
88. Would you rather never be able to drink sodas like coke again or only be able to drink sodas and nothing else?
89. Would you rather have amazingly fast typing/texting speed or be able to read ridiculously fast?
90. Would you rather live under a sky with no stars at night or live under a sky with no clouds during the day?
91. Would you rather have free Wi-Fi wherever you go or be able to drink unlimited free coffee at any coffee shop?
92. Would you rather take amazing selfies, but all of your other pictures are horrible or take breathtaking photographs of anything but yourself?
93. Would you rather never get a paper cut again or never get something stuck in your teeth again?
94. Would you rather never have another embarrassing fall in public or never feel the need to pass gas in public again?
95. Would you rather lose your best friend or all of your friends except for your best friend?
96. Would you rather it never stops snowing (the snow never piles up) or never stops raining (the rain never causes floods)?
97. Would you rather never be able to leave your own country or never be able to fly in an airplane?
98. Would you rather never have a toilet clog on you again or never have the power go out again?
99. Would you rather earbuds and headphones never sit right on / in your ears or have all music either slightly too quiet or slightly too loud?
100. Would you rather be the best in the world at climbing trees or the best in the world at jumping rope?
101. Would you rather never run out of battery power for whatever phone and tablet you own or always have free Wi-Fi wherever you go?
102. Would you rather never have to clean a bathroom again or never have to do dishes again?
103. Would you rather eat an egg with a half-formed chicken inside or eat ten cooked grasshoppers?
104. Would you rather only wear one color each day or have to wear seven colors each day?
105. Would you rather eat rice with every meal and never be able to eat bread or eat bread with every meal and never be able to eat rice?
106. Would you rather travel the world for a year all expenses paid or have $40,000 to spend on whatever you want?
107. Would you rather be able to go to any theme park in the world for free for the rest of your life or eat for free at any drive-through restaurant for the rest of your life?
108. Would you rather be the absolute best at something that no one takes seriously or be well above average but not anywhere near the best at something well respected?
109. Would you rather it be impossible for you to be woken up for 11 straight hours every day, but you wake up feeling amazing, or you can be woken up normally but never feel totally rested?
110. Would you rather have everything in your house perfectly organized by a professional or have a professional event company throw the best party you’ve ever been to, in your honor?
111. Would you rather have unlimited amounts of any material you want to build a house, but you have to build the house all by yourself or have a famed architect design and build you a modest house?
112. Would you rather never sweat again but not be more prone to heat stroke or never feel cold again but cold still physically affects you (i.e., you can freeze to death)?
113. Would you rather super sensitive taste or super sensitive hearing?
114. Would you rather have constantly dry eyes or a constant runny nose?
115. Would you rather never lose your phone again or never lose your keys again?
116. Would you rather have out of control body hair or a strong, pungent body odor?
117. Would you rather be unable to have kids or only be able to conceive quintuplets?
118. Would you rather clean rest stop toilets or work in a slaughterhouse for a living?
119. Would you rather lose all your money and valuables or all the pictures you have ever taken?
120. Would you rather find your true love or a suitcase with five million dollars inside?
121. Would you rather not be able to see any colors or have mild but constant tinnitus (ringing in the ears)?
122. Would you rather have chapped lips that never heal or terrible dandruff that can’t be treated?
123. Would you rather live without hot water for showers/baths or live without a washing machine?
124. Would you rather be alone for the rest of your life or always be surrounded by annoying people?
125. Would you rather be locked in a room that is constantly dark for a week or a room that is constantly bright for a week?
126. Would you rather accidentally be responsible for the death of a child or accidentally be responsible for the deaths of three adults?
127. Would you rather know when you are going to die or how you are going to die? (You can’t change the time or method of your death.)
128. Would you rather have everything you eat be too salty or not salty enough no matter how much salt you add?
129. Would you rather never have to work again or never have to sleep again (you won’t feel tired or suffer negative health effects)?
130. Would you rather never use social media sites/apps again or never watch another movie or TV show?
131. Would you rather be fluent in all languages and never be able to travel or be able to travel anywhere for a year but never be able to learn a word of a different language?
132. Would you rather be put in a maximum-security federal prison with the hardest of the hardened criminals for one year or be put in a relatively relaxed prison where wall street types are held for ten years?
133. Would you rather have everything on your phone right now (browsing history, photos, etc.) made public to anyone who searches your name or never use a cell phone again?
134. Would you rather be an amazing artist but not be able to see any of the art you created or be an amazing musician but not be able to hear any of the music you create?
135. Would you rather have everyone laugh at your jokes but not find anyone else’s jokes funny or have no one laugh at your jokes but you still find other people’s jokes funny?
136. Would you rather wake up in the middle of an unknown desert or wake up in a rowboat on an unknown body of water?
137. Would you rather always have a great body for your entire life but have slightly below average intelligence or have a mediocre body for your entire life but be slightly above average in intelligence?
138. Would you rather be in debt for $100,000 or never be able to make more than $3,500 a month?
139. Would you rather have the police hunting you for a murder you didn’t commit or a psychopathic clown hunting you?
140. Would you rather be constantly tired no matter how much you sleep or constantly hungry no matter how much you eat?
141. Would you rather live a comfortable and peaceful life in the woods in a small cabin without much human interaction or a life full of conflict and entertainment in a mansion in a city?
142. Would you rather walk around work or school for the whole day without realizing there is a giant brown stain on the back of your pants or realize the deadline for that important paper/project was yesterday, and you are nowhere near done?
143. Would you rather be so afraid of heights that you can’t go to the second floor of a building or be so afraid of the sun that you can only leave the house on rainy days?
144. Would you rather get tipsy from just one sip of alcohol and ridiculously drunk from just one alcoholic drink or never get drunk no matter how much alcohol you drank?
145. Would you rather be hired for a well-paying job that you lied to get and have no idea how to do or be about to give the most important presentation of your life but you can’t remember any of the material you prepared?
146. Would you rather be feared by all or loved by all?
147. Would you rather sell all of your possessions or sell one of your organs?
148. Would you rather be infamous in history books or be forgotten after your death?
149. Would you rather be reincarnated as a fly or just cease to exist after you die?
150. Would you rather never get angry or never be envious?
151. Would you rather have a horribly corrupt government or no government?
152. Would you rather be held in high regard by your parents or your friends?
153. Would you rather be poor but help people or become incredibly rich by hurting people?
154. Would you rather humans go to the moon again or go to mars?
155. Would you rather know the uncomfortable truth of the world or believe a comforting lie?
156. Would you rather die in 20 years with no regrets or die in 50 years with many regrets?
157. Would you rather be transported permanently 500 years into the future or 500 years into the past?
158. Would you rather donate your body to science or donate your organs to people who need them?
159. Would you rather be famous when you are alive and forgotten when you die or unknown when you are alive but famous after you die?
160. Would you rather go to jail for 4 years for something you didn’t do or get away with something horrible you did but always live in fear of being caught?
161. Would you rather live in the wilderness far from civilization with no human contact or live on the streets of a city as a homeless person?
162. Would you rather live your entire life in a virtual reality where all your wishes are granted or just in the normal real world?
163. Would you rather have a horrible job, but be able to retire comfortably in 10 years or have your dream job, but have to work until the day you die?
164. Would you rather lose all of your memories from birth to now or lose your ability to make new long-term memories?
165. Would you rather always be able to see 5 minutes into the future or always be able to see 100 years into the future?
166. Would you rather be forced to kill one innocent person or five people who committed minor crimes?
167. Would you rather work very hard at a rewarding job or hardly have to work at a job that isn’t rewarding?
168. Would you rather have a criminal justice system that actually works and is fair or an administrative branch that is free of corruption?
169. Would you rather have real political power but be relatively poor or be ridiculously rich and have no political power?
170. Would you rather have the power to gently nudge anyone’s decisions or have complete puppet master control of five people?
171. Would you rather live in a utopia as a normal person or in a dystopia but you are the supreme ruler?
172. Would you rather snitch on your best friend for a crime they committed or go to jail for the crime they committed?
173. Would you rather be born again in a totally different life or born again with all the knowledge you have now?
174. Would you rather all conspiracy theories be true or live in a world where no leaders really know what they are doing?
175. Would you rather know all the mysteries of the universe or know every outcome of every choice you make?
176. Would you rather spend two years with your soul mate only to have them die and you never love again or spend your life with someone nice you settled for?
177. Would you rather have all corporations know all of your computer usage or the government know all of your computer usage?
178. Would you rather inherit 20 million dollars when you turn 18 or spend the time earning 50 million dollars through your hard work?
179. Would you rather the general public think you are a horrible person, but your family is very proud of you, or your family thinks you are a horrible person, but the general public be very proud of you?
180. Would you rather fight for a cause you believe in, but doubt will succeed or fight for a cause that you only partially believe in but have a high chance of your cause succeeding?
181. Would you rather be famous for inventing a deadly new weapon or invent something that helps the world but someone else gets all the credit for inventing it?
182. Would you rather live in a haunted house where the ghosts ignore you and do their own thing or be a ghost in a house living out a pleasant and uneventful week from your life again and again?
183. Would you rather write a novel that will be widely considered the most important book in the past 200 years, but you and the book will only be appreciated after your death or be the most famous erotica writer of your generation?
184. Would you rather have done something horribly embarrassing and only your best friend knows or not done something horribly embarrassing, but everyone except your best friend thinks you did it?
185. Would you rather your shirts be always two sizes too big or one size too small?
186. Would you rather find five dollars on the ground or find all your missing socks?
187. Would you rather have one nipple or two belly buttons?
188. Would you rather eat a ketchup sandwich or a Siracha sandwich?
189. Would you rather use a push lawnmower with a bar that is far too high or far too low?
190. Would you rather eat a box of dry spaghetti noodles or two cups of uncooked rice?
191. Would you rather eat a spoonful of wasabi or a spoonful of extremely spicy hot sauce?
192. Would you rather have hands that kept growing as you got older or feet that kept growing as you got older?
193. Would you rather not be able to open any closed doors (locked or unlocked) or not be able to close any open doors?
194. Would you rather have plants grow at 20 times their normal rate when you are near or for people and animals to stop aging when you are near them?
195. Would you rather always feel like someone is following you, but no one is, or always feel like someone is watching you, even though no one is?
196. Would you rather live in a house with see-through walls in a city or in the same see-through house but in the middle of a forest far from civilization?
197. Would you rather have every cat or dog that gets lost end up at your house or everyone’s clothes that they forget in the dryer get teleported to your house?
198. Would you rather blink twice the normal rate or not be able to blink for 5 minutes but then have to close your eyes for 10 seconds every 5 minutes?
199. Would you rather all plants scream when you cut them / pick their fruit or animals beg for their lives before they are killed?
200. Would you rather wake up each morning to find that a random animal appendage has replaced your nondominant arm or permanently replace your bottom half with an animal bottom of your choice (not human)?
201. Would you rather have a map that shows you the location of anything you want to find and can be used again and again but has a margin of error of up to five miles or a device that allows you to find the location of anything you want with incredible accuracy but can only be used three times?
202. Would you rather have all animals feel compelled to obey you if you come within 10 feet of them or be given the opportunity to genetically design a pet that will be loyal only to you with the combined DNA of three animals?
203. Would you rather have someone impersonating you and doing really amazing things that you get the credit for or find money hidden in weird places all around your house every day but you can’t figure out where the money comes from or how it keeps getting there?
205. Would you rather wake up every morning with a new hundred-dollar bill in your pocket but not know where it came from or wake up every morning with a new fifty-dollar bill in your pocket and know where it comes from?
206. Would you rather have a clown only you can see that follows you everywhere and just stands silently in a corner watching you without doing or saying anything or have a real-life stalker who dresses like the Easter bunny that everyone can see?
207. Would you rather be an amazing virtuoso at any instrument but only if you play naked or be able to speak any language but only if you close your eyes and dance while you are doing it?
208. Would you rather everything you dream each night come true when you wake up or everything a randomly chosen person dreams each night come true when they wake up?
209. Would you rather have a boomerang that would find and kill any one person of your choosing, anywhere in the world, but can only be used once or a boomerang that always returns to you with one dollar?
210. Would you rather have someone secretly give you LSD on a random day and time once every 6 months or have everyone in the world all take LSD at the same time once every 5 years?
211. Would you rather all electrical devices mysteriously stop working (possibly forever) or the governments of the world are only run by people going through puberty?
Philosophical questions:
What harsh truths do you prefer to ignore?
Is free will real or just an illusion?
Is there a meaning to life? If so, what is it?
Is the meaning of life the same for animals and humans?
Where is the line between art and not art?
If someone you loved was killed in front of you, but someone created a copy of them that was perfect right down to the atomic level, would they be the same person and would you love them just as much?
Does fate exist? If so, do we have free will?
What does it mean to live a good life?
Why do we dream?
Is it possible to live a normal life and not ever tell a lie?
Does a person’s name influence the person they become?
What should be the goal of humanity?
If you could become immortal on the condition you would NEVER be able to die or kill yourself, would you choose immortality?
How will humans as a species go extinct?
What actions in your life will have the longest reaching consequences? How long will those effects be felt?
How long will you be remembered after you die?
If a child somehow survived and grew up in the wilderness without any human contact, how “human” would they be without the influence of society and culture?
Where does your self-worth come from?
How would humanity change if all humans’ life expectancy was significantly increased (let’s say to around 500 years)?
Where do you find meaning in your life?
What do you think would be humanity’s reaction to the discovery of extraterrestrial life?
Will religion ever become obsolete?
If you could teach everyone in the world one concept, what concept would have the biggest positive impact on humanity?
Is suffering a necessary part of the human condition? What would people who never suffered be like?
Does hardship make a person stronger? If so, under what conditions and at what point is it too much hardship? If not, what makes a person stronger?
Would things get better or worse if humans focused on what was going well rather than what’s going wrong?
What benefits does art provide society? Does art hurt society in any way?
How likely do you think it will be that humans will last another 1,000 years without killing ourselves off?
What do you attribute the biggest successes in your life to? How about your largest failures?
If freedom is simply being able to do what you want, are animals freer than humans?
Would you want to know you are going to die before hand or die suddenly without warning?
Is humanity headed in the right or wrong direction?
Does the study of philosophy ever lead to answers or simply more questions?
What is the best way for a person to attain happiness?
If you had to guess, what do you think would be the most likely way you’ll die?
Is it better for a person to have a broad knowledge base or a deep knowledge base?
What is the best way to train people to see the gradients in the world around them instead of just a simplistic “this is good, that is wrong” view of the world?
Is intelligence or wisdom more useful?
Which of your beliefs are justified and which ones aren’t?
What do you contribute back to society?
What are you going to do with the one life you have?
Is it more important to help yourself, help your family, help your society, or help the world?
What life-altering things should every human ideally get to experience at least once in their lives?
What is the most important goal every person should have?
Is it better to be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond?
What are you capable of achieving?
By what standards do you judge yourself?
Can human nature be changed? Should it be changed?
How replaceable are you?
Why don’t we as a species take more advantage of the fact that we have almost infinite knowledge available to us?
What two questions would you ask to get the most information about who a person truly is?
Some people believe that if life has no purpose, then there is no reason for living. While others think that if life has no purpose, that frees a person to find/create and follow their own personal purpose. Which is a more valid point of view or are they both equally valid?
Does absolute power corrupt absolutely?
Why do we judge ourselves by our intentions but judge others by their actions?
What activities cause you to feel like you are living life to the fullest?
Does knowledge have intrinsic value or does it need to have a practical use to have value?
What would you genetically change about humans to make them a better species?
How important is play in living a healthy and fulfilling life?
Where do you think is the most worthwhile place to find meaning in life? Work, family, hobby, religion, philosophy, helping others, all the small miracles, or something else entirely?
What is the biggest waste of human potential?
Is a life that focuses on avoiding pain and seeking out pleasure a good and worthwhile life? Why or why not?
Does jealously have value in driving humans to improve themselves or is it a purely negative emotion?
What percentage of your life do you feel truly alive? When do you feel that way? How can you feel that way more often?
What do you think your future self will remember about you now?
“Know thyself” is an ancient concept going back much further than Socrates and is at the root of much of philosophy. With that in mind, what are the most important things to learn about one’s self or is all self-knowledge equal?
What do you think existed before the universe was created?
Is math something that humans created or something we discovered? Is looking at reality mathematically an accurate representation of how things work?
Is it possible for a human to fathom the true depths of reality and existence?
If the universe is finite, what would beyond the edge of the universe be like?
What is the best path to find truth; science, math, art, philosophy, or something else?
As more and more is being discovered about quantum physics, we become less and less able to comprehend the nature of reality. Is this something temporary and our minds will adapt and begin to understand this new reality or is it possible that the human mind will soon reach its limits of comprehension? If it’s only temporary, is there is a limit to what the human mind can comprehend? If we are reaching our limits, how do we continue to study our reality?
Is there inherent order in nature or is it all chaos and chance?
What in life is truly objective and not subjective?
There has always been something. Before there was something, there was only nothing. Which do you think is more likely?
Is happiness just chemicals flowing through your brain or something more?
Why are humans so susceptible to magical thinking?
If every neuron in a human was accurately simulated in a computer, would it result in human consciousness?
Is it possible that some animals are self-aware and think about their ability to think?
How do you define consciousness?
Is it possible to prove that other people besides yourself have consciousness?
How conscious do you think animals are?
Assuming evolution is correct, do you think that if humans went extinct another species as intelligent as humans would evolve? If life exists long enough on a planet, is intelligence and consciousness inevitable?
Would it be more frightening to discover that humans are the most advanced species in the universe or that we are far from being the most advanced species in the universe?
How would you define genius?
There is zero chance that ALL your firmly and dearly held beliefs are true. So, which of your beliefs are most likely to be wrong and which are most liable to be true?
How much does language affect our thinking?
Why are humans so confident in beliefs that can’t be proven?
If all your memories were erased, what kind of person would you be?
Why do humans have such a strong urge to distract ourselves from the real world?
What is the benefit of consciousness from an evolutionary stand point?
Is the concept of “you” continuous or does past “you” continually fade into present and future “you”? In other words, what part of “you” sticks around over time considering that the atoms that make up your body are constantly being replaced and your memories are always changing?
Is it possible that someone’s genes might affect their political leanings? If no, why not? If so, what would be the ramifications?
Can rational thought exist without language?
Would selectively breeding an animal such as a dog based on intelligence, increase its intelligence over time? If so, how intelligent could dogs become? If not, how does intelligence emerge in a species?
Are there limits to human creativity?
Why do we resist doing things that we know are good for our well-being while craving things that are detrimental to our well-being?
Is it be possible for humans to create something completely novel and new that is based on nothing that previously existed? Or is human creativity just rearranging and building on previous ideas?
If there existed a perfect clone of you, would it also be you? Would it act in exactly the same manner as you (like a mirror) or would it act differently? If it acted differently then would it still be you? At what point would it not be you?
Would you be able to tell if time had been altered in some way?
Your perception of the world is just what your brain constructs for you from the signals sent by your senses. Plus, there is a slight delay, so you aren’t even experiencing the simulation in real time. What would it be like if humans could perceive what the world is actually like and do it in real time? Also, what are the ramifications of every single person’s reality being a little different and unique to them?
If language influences how we perceive color, what other things could languages be changing our perception of?
Is a sense of humor a byproduct of consciousness or something else entirely?
Are intelligence and happiness tied together in any way? If you are highly intelligent, is it more likely that you’ll be more, or less happy?
Human memory has been shown to be incredibly unreliable. With that in mind, how do you know which of your memories are genuine and which have been altered or made up?
Different people and different organisms perceive reality in vastly different ways. With that in mind, what is real and what is just our perception of reality? Or does every organism live in its own personal reality?
When, if ever, is taking a human life justified?
Can animals have morals?
Without religion would people become more, less, or be equally morally corrupt?
If humanity was put on trial by an advanced race of aliens, how would you defend humanity and argue for its continued existence?
What rights does every human have? Do those rights change based on age?
Do animals have rights and do those rights extend to all animals or do the rights change based on the complexity of the animal?
Is justice a human construct or is it independent of humans?
Why do people expect a universe full of randomness to be fair?
With no laws or rules to influence your behavior, how do you think you would behave?
What’s the difference between justice and revenge?
If it was discovered that personality traits were partly genetic and could be removed with gene therapy, would it be ethical to edit out negative character traits that harm others like extreme aggression, compulsive lying, or cruelty?
If you could press a button and receive a million dollars, but one stranger would die, would you press the button? And if so, how many times?
What would be the most ethical way to give away five million dollars?
Are people ethically obligated to improve themselves?
Is privacy a right?
At what point is overthrowing a government ethical, considering all the violence a revolution usually entails?
Can morality ever be objective or is it always subjective? If it can be objective, in what instances? If it’s always subjective, how do we decide whose concept of morality is correct?
Are intentions or outcomes more important when judging whether actions are moral?
Should there be limitations on the right to free speech?
If it was discovered that most animals were conscious of their existence and eventual death, what would be the ramifications of that discovery?
Should euthanasia be legal? Why or why not?
If scientists could accurately predict who was more likely to commit crimes, what should society do with that information?
Do business owners have the right to refuse service to customers?
If babies are considered innocent, when do people cease to be innocent?
Why do humans often associate beauty with morality?
If you can save another’s life and don’t because doing so would break the law, are you ethically justified in your decision?
Are all individuals morally obligated to save another person’s life if they are able? What if that person lives in another country?
Is it just and right to deny entry to a country when doing so probably means death for the immigrant and their family?
Should we terraform planets if it means that we may be destroying undiscovered microscopic alien life?
Does anonymity encourage people to misbehave or does it reveal how people would choose to act all the time if they could?
What is the most fertile soil for hatred? Fear, ignorance, jealousy, or something else entirely? Is it possible that some people are genetically predisposed to hatred?
If doing something good for others makes us feel good, can there ever be such a thing as pure altruism?
What is your definition of evil?
Do all people have equal value regardless of their actions or is a person’s value based on their actions?
Why are humans so fascinated by mass murderers if their actions are universally considered evil and vile?
As people, we feel our moral obligation weaken with physical as well as emotional distance from individuals in need. For example, you’re more likely to help someone dying of hunger at your feet than someone dying of hunger in another country. How does this human trait of morality dependent on distance shape our world?
If I steal a loaf of bread from you and eat it, when does the bread itself cease to be yours and becomes mine?
How much effort should an individual put into not offending others?
If you could start a country from scratch, what would it be like?
Would a government run with algorithms, A.I., and statistics be better or worse than the government we have now?
Would the world be a better or worse place if everyone looked the same?
What causes the most harm in the world, but is completely avoidable?
How far should governments go to prevent its citizens from causing harm to themselves?
Do people in wealthier countries have a moral obligation to help those in poorer countries?
What should the role of a government be, what boundaries and limitations should it have?
Is poverty in society inevitable?
How should we measure the productivity of a society?
What would a utopia be like, how would it function and continue to exist?
Do you think there will ever be a global government? If a world government did come to power, assuming it wasn’t particularly cruel or evil, would it be a good or bad thing?
What is the biggest threat to the social contract in our country?
Is it more or less difficult to be successful in the modern world than it was in the past (10, 50, 100, or 1,000 years ago)?
Could societies exist without a way to transfer value (i.e. without money or a barter system)?
What would happen if a maximum income of was implemented?
What will the economy of wealthy countries look like in 50 to 100 years?
What do you think the long-term effects of so many people being glued to their screens will be?
If all humans want the same basic things, why is there so much violence and strife between people?
Is the human tendency to create groups an overall positive or a negative trait in terms of general human flourishing?
What would happen to a society in which no one had to work, and everyone was provided enough food/water/shelter/healthcare for free?
Is the cultural trend of individualism and the rejection of collectivism a beneficial or detrimental trend?
Considering that the technology exists to enable a real democracy, would a true democracy (every single person can vote on every single legislation) be advantageous or detrimental?
If everyone said what they were actually thinking, what would happen to society?
What are the benefits and drawbacks of diversity in society?
Under our government are there any rights that you have but shouldn’t? How about rights you don’t have but should?
What is the most important right our government allows for?
Has social media been a net positive or a net negative for our society? Why?
How would society change if men were able to get pregnant and men and women both had an equal chance of getting pregnant?
Why have many societies begun to place such a high value on emotions and being emotional?
Is it right or wrong that everyone seems to be accustomed to the fact that all of humanity and most of the life on Earth could be wiped out at the whim of a handful of people?
In an ideal government, what should a good citizen provide to their government and what should that government provide that good citizen?
Should tax payers have the option to explicitly say what they don’t want their tax dollars spent on?
Can a society exist without laws?
Will humanity ever be able to escape tribalism and the creation of in and out groups? Should it?
How much privacy are you willing to sacrifice for safety?
How would the world change if there was an accurate measure of aptitude?
Is hierarchy necessary for all successful human communities?
Is some degree of censorship necessary?
What are the biggest moral dilemmas your country is facing now?
Was the agricultural revolution and the explosion of civilizations that came from it an overall good thing for humans or a negative? In other words, would it have been better or worse for people to stay in small tribes?
What will be/are some of the by-products to society of everyone having the ability to take pictures or a video at any time?
Does marriage as an institution need to be updated or is it fine how it is?
If you were given the ability to reform how your country’s leaders were chosen and how they serve, what would you change?
At what point is a technologically enhanced human not a human anymore?
Does the modern age make global conspiracies more or less feasible?
Is technological advancement a net positive or a net negative?
Is technological progress inevitable as long as humans exist or can it be stopped?
Is true artificial intelligence possible with our current technology and methods of programming?
What scientific breakthrough would have the biggest effect on humanity?
Why did technology progress more slowly in the past than it does now?
Will we keep leaping to even greater technological and scientific breakthroughs that radically change society, or will the rate of progress slow and humanity’s progress be limited to incremental improvements?
If a robust and cheap genetic engineering industry existed, would you have your genes edited? If so, what genetic changes would you choose to make? If not, why not?
Assume that in the future there will be huge leaps in human augmentation. Given a scale from completely human to completely machine, how far would you choose to augment yourself with robotics? What parts would you augment and why?
If the transporters in Star Trek existed and you used it, your particles would be disassembled and then reassembled, do you die every single time? Are you ever alive at two places at once? Are you ever completely dead?
Should full access to the internet be a fundamental human right?
Has the invention of the atomic bomb made the world a more peaceful place?
Do you think the singularity will occur? If so, what time frame do you think it will happen in?
If emotions are the product of biochemical reactions, then in the future we will be theoretically able to control them. If we could control emotions through technology, should we?
Is there a limit to what humans can create through technology and science?
Deep Conversation Topics:
Personal Questions (1-8)
What are the highest and lowest points of your life?
How have your strengths help you to succeed? How have your faults hindered you?
What are your biggest goals for your life? What progress have you made in attaining them?
Who are you really? Who is behind the mask that you show to the rest of the world?
What is holding you back from being the person you want to be?
Where’s your life headed?
How do you think you will die?
How would you react if there was irrefutable proof that God doesn’t exist? How about if there was irrefutable proof that God does exist?
Human Nature Questions (1-12)
Is human nature constant or is it molded by culture? Can human nature be completely changed by culture or society?
Are humans better at creation or destruction?
What are the best and worst parts of human nature?
If pressing a button meant you received 5 million dollars but it also killed 5 people somewhere in the world, would you press it? What if it killed only 1 person or killed 20 people? What if the people were people you knew?
If you had to sum up the whole human species in 3 words, what would those words be?
What aspects of humans have made us a successful species?
Is what we perceive reality or just a construct of our minds? Can our minds correctly interpret reality or is reality subjective?
What is the best way to explore human nature: psychology, philosophy, or biology?
Is tribalism and people separating themselves into “us” and “them” groups, a learned or genetic trait? Can it be overcome? If so, how?
How does tribalism and creating in groups and out groups (e.g. race, religion, sport team fans, people with a hobby, etc.) help and hurt society?
What makes people believe absurd conspiracy theories?
What’s something terrifying that we’ve all come to accept as a fact of life?
Society, culture and the World (1-15)
Should governments make laws to protect people from hurting themselves?
What is the most uplifting thing happening in the world right now? What is the most tragic thing?
What does honor mean to you? How important is it to you? Does your culture value honor? What exemplifies honor in your culture?
How important are morals in a healthy society? What are the most important morals for citizens to have?
In the distant past, a person’s life was very similar to their grandparents’ and grandchildren’s lives. How has the rapid pace of technological advancement changed society?
What is a miracle that happens every day?
How important is freedom of the press to a healthy society?
What are the most important factors in maintaining a well functioning society? What does it mean for a society to function well?
Should the government be involved in making laws to regulate moral behavior? If so, to what extent?
With the invention of the internet and the advent of big data and crowd sourcing, it’s finally possible for citizens to govern themselves directly. Is it a good idea for the masses to directly govern themselves or is governance something better left to professional politicians?
What is the purpose of art in society?
Do people have an obligation to help others or should people be responsible for helping themselves?
Can people with vastly different cultural backgrounds live together peacefully? How?
What would be different if the 9/11 terrorist attack never occurred?
What would a perfect city be like?
Life and death (1-12)
What is a year of life worth? How about a day?
What is the purpose of a human life?
If sacrificing your own life would save the lives of a specific number of strangers, how many strangers would need to be saved for you to sacrifice your own life? What if the people were friends? How about family?
If you died today, how would you be remembered?
Are some lives more valuable than others?
What does the ideal life look like?
What does it mean to die well?
How would you like to die? Comfortably in bed surrounded by family, doing something you love, or some other way?
Who do you know who is living life to the fullest?
If you were given an envelope with the the time and date of your death inside, would you open it?
If you died today, what regrets would you have about your life?
Is taking a life ever justified? If so, where is the line? When is a person’s life considered forfeit?
Future of the human race (1-6)
What do you think about the singularity? The idea that eventually artificial intelligence will advance to the point where computers are more intelligent than humans.
What are the pros and cons of colonizing other planets? How could this help or hurt the human race?
What is most likely to bring about the extinction of the human race? How can it be avoided?
Will humans as a species ever be able to work together as a whole to achieve a goal? What is holding humans back from working together on a global scale?
Will humanity continue to advance technologically or will we fall back to how we lived for thousands of years or fall back further to how we lived for a hundred thousand years ago?
What would be the best possible scenario for how the world will develop in the next 25 years? What do we need to do to get there?
Emotions (1-5)
Do animals experience emotions? If so, do they experience emotions in the same way humans do? If not, how do they experience the world and what dictates their behavior?
How are emotions useful for humans and the human race?
Are emotions necessary for human survival? Why or why not?
What is the most beneficial emotion? How about the most destructive?
Do people have a right to be happy or should they have to earn it?
Miscellaneous (1-46)
What is the most important object you own?
What simple change could you make in your life that would have the biggest positive impact?
What is something that many people take seriously but shouldn’t?
If you were falsely convicted of a crime, how would you adapt to prison life?
What piece of media (book, movie, TV show, etc.) changed the way you viewed the world? In what way?
When have you been with a person and thought you were equals, but then discovered they were on a whole different level?
What is the most bad-ass quote from a real person you know of?
Which historical figure wins the award for being most hardcore?
What issue do most people think is black and white but you think there is a lot nuance to?
If you have children what career do you hope they peruse and what career would you never want them to get into?
What is your dream job and what makes it so amazing?
What event in your life would make a good movie?
What job would you be absolutely horrible at?
What movie has everyone else seen but you haven’t?
What’s the next big thing?
What commercial convinced you NOT to buy the product they are pushing?
What is the most useless major in college?
What is something most people do easily but you find very difficult?
What job doesn’t exist but should?
What TV news story is getting more attention than it should?
What is the most impressive thing you know how to do?
Do you think that humans as a species have gotten better through the generations or worse? Why?
What are some examples of small changes that can be made that really improve the lives of a country’s citizens?
What or who would you sacrifice your life for?
What is the most important thing a person can do to improve themselves?
What single event has had the biggest impact on who you are?
Do you think the future will be better than the present? Why?
Do you think human morality is learned or innate?
What’s the most crucial thing for a healthy relationship?
What lies do you most often tell yourself?
Do you think the present is better than 50 years ago? Why?
What much is a human life worth and are some lives worth more than others?
Will humans spread out among the stars or just be a brief blip in Earth’s history?
Do you think that war is inevitable or can it be ended completely?
What makes a person truly evil? Are they born that way or did their environment make them that way?
Why have apocalyptic games, movies, shows, and books become so popular in the past few years? What does it say about our culture or society?
Is there any way for governments to avoid power corrupting its politicians? If so, how? If not, what part of human nature makes corruption unavoidable?
If science makes it possible to predict which people will be more likely to commit crimes, should the highest risk individuals be jailed or killed before they can commit crimes?
Why are there so many people who are lonely? Why is it so hard for people to make real connections when almost everyone wants to make real connections?
What are the most common road blocks that stop people from achieving their dreams?
Why are people so bad at judging risks? For example: people are terrified of murders, terrorists, and flying but they are much more likely to die driving to the store.
What keeps you up at night?
What’s the most extreme example of poverty you have seen?
What are some examples of outside behaviors that are symptoms of inner emotional scars?
What do a lot of parents do that screws up their kid?
Why does society place such a high value on beauty when it serves no functional purpose?
21 questions game:
2-5 people
1 person answers 21 questions
The person can pass on two questions.
1. What is the TLDR version of your life?
2. What should they teach in school, but don’t?
3. What inscription do you want on your gravestone?
4. What is a cause that is worth dedicating your life to?
5. What should parents stop teaching their children?
6. Is it okay to sacrifice one life to save ten?
7. How much do you change when you know no one is around?
8. How useful would you be in a zombie apocalypse?
9. How much do you know about the world outside your country?
10. Which movie or book do you think is ridiculously overrated?
11. Who would you most like to sit next to on a 10 hour flight and why?
12. What are two things you know you should how to do but don’t?
13. What is something you’ve done that you wish you could undo?
14. What do most people think about you that is absolutely not true?
15. What is something that can’t be taught and can only be learned with age?
16. Do you think the convenience of technology is worth the loss of privacy that comes with it?
17. What are the consequences of everyone having instant distraction at their fingertips?
18. What makes you say “What was I thinking?” when you look back on your life?
19. If you could live your life again knowing what you do now, what would you change?
20. You have $100 to burn, all your friends are busy and you have the whole day to yourself, what do you do?
21. If you could be born again and choose what nationality, gender, and race to be, what would you choose?