Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Share What They'd Do If They Could Learn Anything In Half An Hour

People Share What They'd Do If They Could Learn Anything In Half An Hour
Soira Photography/Unsplash

When we think of things that can happen in half an hour, typically our minds go to things like "watching an episode of a TV show" or "having a pizza delivered"—in the 90s, it takes about an hour now, let's be honest—or maybe even "deep conditioning treatment."

You probably don't think about mastering a new skill.

But what if you could?


Reddit user Fair__Bear asked:

"If you could learn anything in half an hour, what would you learn?"


It's not exactly a wish like a genie—work is still required—but only for 30 minutes. Reddit certainly had a lot to say about what they'd learn if they only had to put in a half hour of effort.

And they swung BIG.

All Of It

"All of math."

- YUHANYI

"Good answer math can be applied in literally every aspect of life."

- Rude_Security7492

"All of math that we have discovered so far or ALL of math?"

"The second might kill you or something lol. That or you'll break out of the simulation."

- 2iDent17y

"All of the math we know is still incomplete though. The unknown, forbidden knowledge will probably get you kidnapped by the lizard people."

- srnthvs

Giphy

The Language Lovers

"Another language"

"French, or Spanish would be a good start, usually being fluent in those can carry you pretty far in today's world"

- no1needed2know

" Japanese, cause of how insanely difficult it is"

- AbyssalRedemption

"Yep this."

"Romanian for me. Nearly all of my closest friends are Romanian immigrants and I’d love to be able to converse with them in their native language."

- 5tr4nGe

"Agreed, my mother's side of the family speaks Spanish but not me, would love to learn."

"But I know myself and I won't learn the language without either having a girlfriend that mostly speaks Spanish or going/staying for a long period of time in a place where they only speak Spanish."

"Tried it before and because I lack motivation the interest to learn dies quickly."

- Drogonno

Learning To Learn

"I’d like to learn how to learn anything in half an hour."

- AlunWH

"How to download new skills into your brain like in the Matrix?"

- underwear11

"Unfortunately, many important things in life can’t be learnt! You’ll probably 'learn' about this soon enough when your wish is granted."

- iamappleapple1

"Ohhhhh big brain energy right here."

- Enano_reefer

Players Gonna Play

"I would learn how to play the piano."

- ImaginationLow252

"Learning an instrument is very different from mastering one."

"Learning the piano is fairly simple, I’d say you’ve learned the piano when you can play an easy Mozart sonata."

"However, master is very difficult, and will require decades of constant practice and work to master the piano. I’ve been playing for 11 years, and I still don’t consider myself a master."

- PitCrewBoi559

"Same."

"I've loved the piano from a very young age, and if I would be beyond thrilled if I could learn how to play it masterfully within just half an hour."

- justalittleparanoia

Be Done

"To learn the entire field of medicine so I can be DONE with med school."

- Sos13

"Same here, and I’m not even in med school, nor will I ever be."

- Smooth-Midnight

"Imagine learning things that are not yet discovered and having a fight with your professor about how eating 100 bananas a day cures cancer."

- lovelyladydo

"But why not just do ALL of medicine? Including the parts that are not yet researched?"

"Depending on how you act going forward, you could definitely get a medical doctor's degree, become a professor/researcher, become the greatest hero in history, live off research grants while doing effectively nothing and still giving more to society than most researchers, cure cancer or any other disease, become the greatest practicing doctor in existence, or any mix-and-match combination of the above."

- SoldRIP

Giphy

History's Mysteries

"The entire history of the world."

- SalamanderCrosswalk

"In the interpretation of which country? Or history as it originally existed?"

- Fair__Bear

"The actual, unaltered, factual history. How crazy and awesome it would be to be able to compare the actual event to our historical representation?"

"Find out that Jesus was actually like Life of Brian, Napoleon and/or Caesar were actually just figure heads that took credit, see what dinosaurs really looked like. That would be pretty cool."

- underwear11

"Learning how society keeps making the same mistakes over and over again will likely cause you to plummet into a deep depression"

- lovelyladydo

Jump To The End

"How to cure diabetes."

"I’m 18, and a T1 since I was 3, so I know how much it can suck. My dads also a type one, and I had a friend who passed away almost six years ago because of it."

"I’m starting university next year and my hope is to go through biomedical engineering and potentially work on a prosthetic pancreas, or some kind of device that cures diabetes completely, or at least helps make life with it easier."

"I’m more focused on trying to improve or make new devices to help diabetics deal with it instead of trying to cure it cause I think it’s a much more feasible goal."

"Would be nice to skip all the learning and jump to the end."

- Frobun11

You Can't Unsub

"The ability to read minds."

- flyinhawaiian02

"Doesn't it scare you that you'd find a lot of things you'd rather not know about?"

- Fair__Bear

"Yeah dude imagine not being able to log out/unsub etc. from the sh*ttiest sh*t post you ever seen and it was constantly like that."

- That-Interview-3096

Wasting Time

"How to not waste the next half hour on Reddit and go to bed."

- frog_o_mine

"Help its 3 am and I got shit to do at 6 am!"

- SnooChipmunks9342

"Delete the app."

- Bulky_Fox_7642

"I'm in this picture and i dont like it."

- EyangKodok

Giphy

Heal Thyself

"How to teach people to heal trauma."

"It would be great for me to be able to heal people’s trauma. Being able to spread that ability would be amazing."

- popejubal

"I feel this one."

"I am in school to be a therapist because I want to be able to do this even better after someone did it for me. It would be nice to skip all the years of schooling in one hour."

- Raelyvant

"Having dealt with a life upending event I spent an entire year and a half in what I'd call a manic episode. Someone with this gift would have been nothing less than a god to me."

"Only people who've been there know the struggle, I hope you get through yours!"

- paythefullprice

So now that you know what Reddit wants, it's your turn to learn.

So what would YOU choose to learn if you could master something in 30 minutes or less?

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Ryan Gosling; Jake Hamilton
Jake's Takes/YouTube

Ryan Gosling's Reaction To Being Interviewed By Journalist Who Is Stranded In The Desert Is All Of Us

Celebrities get interviewed from all kinds of places, but the side of the road in a desert? That's not typically one of them.

But for a recent sit-down with Ryan Gosling, that's exactly where Good Day Chicago reporter Jake Hamilton ended up asking his questions. From the side of the road, no less.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Sheldon Whitehouse and Kristi Noem
PBS News

Kristi Noem Blasted For Trying To Play Dumb After Being Shown Photos Of Bedroom On Her Luxury Jet

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was called out after appearing dumbfounded this week after Rhode Island Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse grilled her about her use of a luxury jet by showing her images of its bedroom.

On Monday, Noem testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about the DHS recent funding lapse. Last month, reports surfaced that Noem’s department had sought approval from the Office of Management and Budget to purchase a luxury Boeing 737 Max 8.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Hillary Clinton; Donald Trump
@GOPoversight/X; Kay Nietfeld/Picture Alliance via Getty Images

Hillary Clinton Was Asked If Trump Should Be Deposed About Epstein—And Her Blistering Response Is Spot On

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave a blistering response during her deposition in the House Oversight Committee's Epstein investigation when asked about whether or not she thinks President Donald Trump should also be deposed.

Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, testified separately behind closed doors last week before the House Oversight Committee regarding their connections to Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier, pedophile, and sex trafficker. Video recordings of the depositions were released by the committee on Monday.

Keep ReadingShow less
screenshots of friendly fire incident with US F-15 over Kuwait
@CNN/Instagram

Video Of Kuwaiti Locals Rushing To Help American Pilot Shot Down In Friendly Fire Incident Goes Viral

Video of Kuwaitis hurrying to check on the condition of a United States Air Force pilot who ejected from an F-15 fighter jet went viral online.

It has been reported by United States Central Command (CENTCOM) that three U.S. military jets were accidentally shot down over Kuwait as a result of "an apparent friendly fire incident" by Kuwaiti air defenses. Initial reports attributed the crashes to Iranian military forces.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Trump Was Spotted With A Huge Rash On His Neck—And Nobody Is Buying The Explanation

President Donald Trump's health and fitness are once again in the spotlight after he was spotted with a red rash on his neck to go along with the bruises on his hands—and the White House physician's explanation for the matter isn't satisfying anyone.

A reddish mark could be seen on Trump's neck during a Medal of Honor ceremony on Monday, extending above his shirt collar and ending just beneath his ear.

Keep ReadingShow less