Space: Time Travel

Time travel is an interesting idea, but immediately brings to mind a whole array of potential paradoxes, the most prominent of which is the “Grandfather Paradox”. It states that if we could time travel, any of us could effectively go back in time and kill our grandfather before our parents were born. Then if our parents were never born, how could we have been born, and thus how could we have killed our grandfather.

Paradoxes such as these are generally hints that Mother Nature or the laws of physics have a problem with what we want to do and probably won’t allow it. However, when it comes to time travel the strange thing is that there seem to be no laws in physics to prevent it and even some that make it theoretically possible. Of course if you’d read my blog yesterday you’d know about my scepticism regarding science. They probably messed up somewhere and all the laws of physics are wrong anyway but let’s continue anyway.

The reason most of us look at these paradoxes and see a huge problem is that most of us don’t fully understand the way time works. It’s not simply the one way linear street, inexorably moving forward, that we all think it is. In reality it is far closer to the three dimensions of space we all see every day. It is the fourth dimension existing just as the three dimensional world around us. And in this world we are free to go back and forth as we choose, so why not the same for time?

In actual fact we all do a bit of time travelling every day. If you are in a moving car time actually moves slower for you then for a pedestrian. The difference is so tiny that we would never notice but it’s there. In fact the faster you move the more time slows down. If you were to travel at the speed of light time would almost come to a standstill.

But with speed we can only move forward in time, not backwards. So we have no problem with our grandfather paradox just yet. However, gravity also effects time and this is where things start to get really interesting. Even on our planet slight differences in gravity make a difference to time.

If you and a friend were to work in a tall building one near the ground floor and the other near the top, time would move at a different speed for the two of you. Of course the difference in gravity is tiny so it makes almost no difference, but out in space, there are things that begin to really mess with gravity.

Black holes. Once only a part of Einstein’s theory we have now found them. Black holes as we all know have gravity so intense that even light cannot escape. So what about time? Well before we get there it’s important to note another thing about Einstein’s theory. His theory sees space and time as dimensions as I have said but it also allows for them to be bent and warped. Of course it turns out to be gravity that does the warping. For the most part its subtle but around black holes things get really messed up. Black holes twist space and time so violently that it twists into a spiral, like the eye of a storm. Of course in terms of time travel, a black hole is useless, because there’s no coming back. It’s a one way ticket for probably a very short ride.

Another possibility thrown up by Einstein’s theories, though yet to be found is wormholes. Worm holes occur where space time folds over on itself and a black hole of sorts unites the two pieces. This is where time travel gets potentially useful. Theoretically you could enter the one side of the worm hole at one place and time and come out the other side in a totally different place and time. Of course scientists are yet to find a worm hole and there still are some other theoretical problems to with radiation killing anything trying to go through. You never know though, at one time black holes were a theory even thought ridiculous and impossible by Einstein himself.

Time travel is likely to remain fantasy for the foreseeable future and yet it is far more possible then most of us would ever realise. Physicists still haven’t found a law to prevent it so we might just one day be able to move back and forth in time as we do in space. Of course it’s just as likely that Mother Nature will chuckle silently to herself and find some way to strike down misbehaving humanity in some way.

Science vs. Religion

Touchy topic I know, but here’s my opinion from the almost neutral position of not believing in either.

A few months ago I read a book on Quantum physics and the universe. It was a really good book, giving an overview of all the major parts of current physics and an explanation of how they all work and what they mean. The book gave me a general understanding of the ideas of people like Einstein and Newton, but what I really took away from the book is an edgy sort of feeling that these guys don’t actually have a clue as to what’s really going on.

Anyway in relation to religion which is my main point for this post there are a few things I have realised about science I’d like to highlight. First off, almost everyone out there except our “brightest minds” knows almost nothing about the cutting edge of science. We all know a bit of the old stuff, and have a grasp on some of the new stuff but in reality when it comes to the latest ideas we don’t have a clue. We simply read about the latest advances, accepting what we are told by scientists for no real reason other than they are telling us.

We personally have no way to verify their results. We do not understand the inner workings. So what we are doing is accepting it all on faith. There comes the magic word, faith. Now that’s starting to sound a little more like religion isn’t it?

Now it’s not quite the blind faith of religion. Believing in that which cannot be proved or disproved, having faith in a greater power. It is similar though.

Now to my next point. Science has always been an evolutionary process. It builds on previous ideas, correcting or replacing them when proven wrong or adding to them over time. Newton developed the idea of gravity. It was accepted and built upon, piece by piece, until hundreds of years later Einstein comes along and proves it all wrong, replacing it with his own theory. So what happens to everything everyone has done for a hundred years. Einstein’s just proved them all wrong. But eventually someone will come along and replace his theory and the cycle will continue. Apart from the fact that this begs the question as to when science will actually ever be right if they keep proving themselves wrong it reminds me of religion as well.

Religion has a remarkably similar way of adapting and building on itself although it can be much more subtle. I once saw a documentary on Islam and how it was founded by Muhammad. Now it was a while ago so please don’t hold it against me if I’m fuzzy on the details.

Basically Islam was founded on the basis of Christianity and Judaism but was adapted because they felt they all got it horribly wrong. Just like one theory replacing another in science. But it does not end there. Muhammad with his lovely new ideology proceeded to adapt it over time to meet what was needed. At first it preached peace and forgiveness, but as threats loomed bits were added to the Koran about war and defending your people.

Science also builds on its ideas as new bits are needed. We have been building on Einstein’s theories for 70 years, just like we were building on Newton’s for hundreds of years before that.
It doesn’t matter whether its science or religion. We all accept either with some degree of faith. They way they build on their ideas bears remarkable similarity. A theory is formed and built on piece by piece until it’s no longer adequate. Then we form a completely new idea a start the whole process again.

In my opinion science and religion are fundamentally the same thing. They are attempts to make sense of the world around us. We keep building on their ideas to try and build ourselves a better picture. The only difference for me is the direction they approach this problem. Science attacks it from what it already knows. It builds on its knowledge slowly adding and reshaping ideas. Science starts from the unknown position of God and builds the world around Him, but they meet somewhere in the middle.

Personally I put little faith in either. I admit I believe in what science has done. I’m not going to sit here and argue that all science is wrong and could never possibly have come up with the ideas needed to make this computer I’m typing on. I also believe in God. Not a Christian God or anything but something. I don’t use either one to make sense of anything though. The world is because it is. It works because it does. I am because I am.