h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

* Are these attributes a thing of the dim and distant past? Or is it time to reintroduce the age of chivalry and respect for our fellow human?

- A nice notion but without horses how are we to be chivalrous? Anyway, those who had to wipe up the horse leavings in the stable were neither asked nor expected to fully engage with the chivalrous lifestyle!

* When was the last time someone was genuinely courteous to you?

Many times today:

1) The "System" aka the NHS accepted me for a doctor's appointment, poked and prodded me and sent me out with a box of goodies to cure my ills. The people were quite nice too and I had a nice chat in the pharmacy.
2) At work people have been unfailingly courteous. One nice young man bought in a tray of traditional sweets to celebrate Eid and the end of fasting: a gift of generosity for which he was thanked individually by many people
3) At home somebody got my breakfast ready and I put a dab of toothpaste on their toothbrush

* Holding a door open for a member of the opposite sex: outmoded sexism or just common decency?

Do you want to go through the door or not? Who is behind you? It is a 50/50 chance they will be the opposite sex, so is it more polite to wait at the head of a queue of people trying to go through a door so someone of "the opposite sex" 8 back can open it? On busses, I always allow the bus driver to open the door even if they are of the same sex.

* Do we need to invent new rules and codes to deal with a burgeoning populace?

We need new rules but, with population densities down since the "age of chivalry", many of the older rules are petty now. Modern civil engineering has stopped horse carts splashing road slush over the legs of the person "walking on the outside" and there is less incentive to pour waste water from the top floor window onto the street than there was before houses gained internal plumbing.

On the other hand new levels of intimacy between men and women necessitate asking and getting answers to questions about STDs prior to unplanned sex (without killing the moment). The ubiquity of mobile phones has made rules for their use necessary. If you are expecting a call (your mother is ill) while you are at a cafe with a friend, how should you acquaint your companion with your dilemma? It would seem unnecessarily prissy to defer hearing of your mother's death merely to avoid damaging the sensitivities of your companion by sharing your attention between them and your phone. Even with old-fashioned phones, should a receptionist answer telephone queries before in-person queries? This is nothing to do with medieval courtesy but is a proper modern manners problem.

* Could we learn more from other cultures about the way we treat each other?

Of course, there is always much to learn.

* Is a more spiritual approach to the burdens of modern life a way of taking off the pressure instead?

Are you suggesting suicide? That seems rash. Even Hamlet stepped away from that option in the end.

However, if you think we could all do with a bit more Zen then you may be right - but Zen can lead to more distance from the world at hand than is useful for common courtesy. One doesn't want to take so much pressure off, one looses touch with the pressures that caused the need doing those things that make others' lives easier.

On the other hand if you are suggesting encouraging others to spiritual enlightenment as a way of being courteous, then there is a corner of the road near Piccadilly Circus I can recommend for preaching.

* Is there a custom you'd like to see make a comeback?

Not really but I would like to see new ones come in.

* What's the rudest thing you've ever done (and do you regret it?)?

There are many things that I have done that could be the rudest. None of them are going to be described by me on a public website. Further, if I had done some of them before I was 18, it may be illegal for you to know!