The Flip Side

[tom]

On January 1, 2004 (there, that makes it an ATL) pieces of our world began switching places with the flip side. Each piece is a few square miles, and is bordered such that buildings or people do not get bisected (considerate ASB). The flip side has the same geography as OTL, and the inhabitants speak the major languages of OTL...incredible, given the other differences. The inhabitants are divided up into several hundred "clades", each a species of anthropomorphic mammal. The flip side had had a written history of over 12,000 years, more than twice ours, but is equivalent to OTL 1004 rather than 2004 in terms of technology (for the "furries" out there, think "Spellsinger" without the magic). Religion, nations, etc. have no correspondance to OTL. The psychology of the flip side is human, colored by the temperment of their species. They manage to get along about as well as races do in American society...any worse tends to result in wars or damage to a culture to the extent that they are replaced by more tolerant ones. Any particular point has about a one percent per annum chance of switching, and having once switched is no protection against doing so again...over a life time you have about a 50-50 chance of being transported.
How does our world react over days? Months? Decades?

[NapoleonXIV]

We humans all instantly invade the catpeople sections and turn them into sex slaves, if you go by the Internet :)

Since any of our sections might flip at any time I expect that we will make preparations. A network of power sources and computers with most useful human knowledge will be placed strategically along with weapons, tools etc and maybe even a specially trained 'block warden' type who will oversee any transition and make sure we come out on top. Study of one or another survival skill will become de rigeur for everybody. Naturally the reason behind this phenomena will receive close study. (ASB's always put up some kind of scientific cause to protect themselves from detection, yes??)

A 12,000 year history and the tech of 1004? What's wrong with these people? To us they will be curiousities once we get over our initial shock, certainly no problem. How will they react to us? Will we see minotaurs with briefcases on Wall Street?

[Grey Wolf]

what is the flip side ? Is this a book ?

Grey Wolf

[tom]

Nap14:
Futurama shows the internet is still like that in Y3K.
Grey Wolf:
The name comes from an old SatAM cartoon "Kidd Video", but the idea is mine.

[tom]

The Flip Side is a world with our world's geography. The inhabitants
speak the major languages of our world, but they are all
anthropomorphic mammals. They are "grey" instead of "black-n-white",
to use a non-mammal example, an antropomorhic fish would look like
the Creature from the Black Lagoon, not a Mermaid. Humans do not
exist, even as myth. The Flip Side's history goes back to 10,000 BC
(although they do not use that dating). Since there are a couple
hundred species, or "clades", writing was developed early to help
different clades communicate...while there are widespread languages,
they have different dialects and accents among different clades,
because of different vocal tracts. However, like the Hare against
the Tortoise, they have fallen behind OTL in technology. Part of
the reason is that they were not lucky enough to have the chain
of lucky breaks that helped us ignite a scientific-industrial
revolution, part is that it took them many millennia to learn
how to get along with each other well enough to go beyond
tribes and city-states. Migration finally made many areas
inhabited by so many different clades, each at such low levels,
that a few evolved such societies, and these have been
successful enough that much of the world now features such cultures.
They are roughly at a Medieval level now. Here are clades which
make up 99% of the population (as OTL genus names and lay terms):
CERVUS (deer)
FELIS (cat)
CRYPTOPROCTA (fossa)
GENETTA (genet)
HERPESTES (mongoose)
MUNGOS (banded mongoose)
SURICATA (meerkat)
CROCUTA (laughing hyena)
PROCYON (raccoon)
CANIS (wolf or coyote)
VULPES (fox)
URSUS (bear)
MUSTELA (weasel)
GULO (wolverine)
MEPHITIS (skunk)
LUTRA (otter)
PTEROPUS (these bats can slow their fall from a height, but not fly)
MYRMECOPHAGA (anteater)
DASYPUS (armadillo)
ERINACEUS (hedgehog)
TALPA (mole)
DIDELPHIS (opossum)
THYLACINUS (thylacine)
MACROPUS (kangaroo)
ORNITHORHYNCHUS (platypus)
TACHYGLOSSUS (echidna)
MANIS (pangolin)
ZALOPHUS (sea lion)
LEMUR (lemur)
ORYCTEROPUS (aardvark)
SCIURUS(squirrel)
TAMIAS (chipmunk)
CASTOR (beaver)
RATTUS (rat)
ERETHIZON (porcupine)
DELPHINUS (these dolphins look a little like long snouted UFOnauts)
The inhabitants of the Flip Side will think we are some strange clade
from some other continent at first. When they realize parts of their
world are being switched with ours, and catch on to our technology,
they will likely think we are some world of wizards. Don't be too
eager for a fight if you go there...your gun doesn't even make a
decent club once you run out of bullets, and a lot of species
(like wolverines or opossums) can take BIG punishment before dropping.

[tom]

Here's another take on the idea:
Everyone on this board has a probability portal (two meter square) entering onto the flip side, at a location analogous to your place of residence. How do you handle this? How do you prepare for possible visits by live action animated cartoons? How could we take advantage and profit by this situation?