Guide for this section

might I suggest that people who think an existing topic is worthy of consideration write up a proposal for this section based on the original thread; in a researcher friendly format.

perhaps if the OP does not have time to do a proposal, they could ask another board member to do it for them. - otherwise, let the OP do the write up.

hmm... can the proposal be written up in the thread and then you can move it to its own thread, here?

So, just to make sure I understand this:

We're still going to run the Show Ideas board as we've done so far, but once an idea has been fully discussed and all the kinks worked out, the original thread is condensed into an easy to read summary of the original myth idea and all the useful contributions in the thread and then moved here for easy reading for the researchers.

Is that just about how this is going to work?

If it is, I've got a couple of questions:

- You say sources for and against the idea, possibly with links. What if we can't find any, but it's still a good idea and the good for and against arguments are made by other members? Do we just summarize the arguments and then it can still go here?

- What if we've got a really good myth idea, but we haven't come up with a 100% viable way to test it? Does it still go here in hopes that the researchers pick it up and they find a good testing method themselves?

I'm asking this because, even though I see their point (not wanting to sift through endless piles of nonsense to get to the essense of the post), I'm worried that they'll stop looking in the original Show Ideas section and just go here, meaning that good myths that we may just not have worked entirely out yet are overlooked.

In order;

Yes, that is how it is meant to work. *Edit* It is unusual to find ideas that are developed entirely by only one person. Everyone had their own way of looking at things, and even the smallest comment or point can turn an otherwise unworkable idea into something practical or end up twisting one idea into something more interesting; Glass Cannon to ice cannon for example.
Those of you who remember me from the old MBFC may recall that when/if I wrote ideas up to brought them over from the old Discovery site I always made a point of trying to credit ideas and/or points to those people who had made them. Those who don't remember that can look at the interviews on here, and notice that when I use questions I note who asked each question. If people take the time and trouble to provide useful information the least I think people can do is acknowledge that.
Another example would be the 'Poo Hits The Fan' myth from a few years back. (For those who've heard this before sorry at bringing it up again). That was something I posted on the MBFC, and which when comparing what was done on screen to what was written by myself in the thread I could justifiably claim as 'mine'. However unless I'm really ticked off with someone who thinks I have no idea what kind of things MB are looking for or would test I'll usually say it was 'my' idea with quotation marks. This is to acknowledge that while I may have written about 90% of that thread, I am well aware and willing to say that a fair chunk of those ideas were shaped by comments and ideas from other members on MBFC. I can, off the top of my head, only recall Draco and Blackwidownoir taking an active part in that thread. But they were far from the only ones. (As I recall Draco raised the question of what type of poo they would be using, or at least basing their stand in on. While BWN provided some ideas as to what the stand in material could be - fudge if I remember right. The strange conversations you can sometimes have in connection to the show....)

I should have said 'sources where possible'. Arguments for an against an idea, as in if the myth might be true or not would be included in this. There will be ideas where sources can't be found - no one really goes around throwing poo at fans, or timing how long they can resist going to the toilet with and without doing the 'potty dance' for example.
The idea is to show that you have thought though the myth in question and done a little homework, rather than just posting the first thing that came into your head then running off; As usually happened on the old Discovery Boards.

Even the best testing procedures tend to get changed by the MB's for various reasons to a greater or lesser extent. Like sources, posting ideas as to how they could test something is a sign that the idea has been thought through. As well as giving them some idea as to what it might look like on screen, and a place for them to start should they add something to the list of potential myths. So you don't need a perfect way to test something. A basic idea is fine.

In both of the above cases they can go back and look at the original thread in its entirety to see what was said about testing or sources, as long as a link is provided.

The researchers are very busy people it seems, and are not limited to looking for new ideas but also researching things that MB are planning or hoping to do in the future. They do sometimes have times when they can go take a look at the show ideas forum, but more often than not they don't have the time for more than a brief flyby and certainly don't typically have the time to read long threads. So while ideas in this section are much more likely to get read, that doesn't mean that they won't pick up or see ideas from Show Ideas.

rmc; Good point. The answer to the question is classified I'll change the permissions.

my thought would be if, say, I think the sleep cycle thread has sufficient merit, I would say, "I think this has enough merit to post as a proposal, shall I write it up for you?" at which point, you could say, "I don't think it is ready" or "yes, thank you" or "I'd like to write it up myself."