Time Travel... soon?

[jmood88]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

I wouldnt consider myself anywhere near an expert on the subject, bit I took Astronomy last semester and the professor simply that the best arguement against time travel is that you've never met anyone from the future.

That just might be the most asinine thing I've ever heard. How would someone know if they met someone from the future anyway, outside of that person telling them that they were from the future?

[NovaStar]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

There is no way to necessarily state that all life branches off from a tree that begins with the utilization of a certain compound. The big bang begins with a universal beginning, but that could have feasilbly headed in different directions once different ecosystems/chemical environments were created. That is to say that life could have begun in multiple locales, at (theoretically) different times with different (albeit similar) elements.. D2O/MRN-100 instead of H20.. Utlilizing silicon instead of carbon, phosphorous instead of nitrogen, sulfur instead of oxygen... etc.. all of these elements form chemical bonds with similar electronegative properties, etc., that could be interchangable in some instances... or perhaps elements were utilized that have yet to be discovered by human science.

The tendency to imagine water as the basis of all life is natural because it is the nature of our existence, but it bears little weight in terms of scientific exclusivity.

I hear what you are saying Dallas. But I would say that within the confines of our solar system all of the planets that are remotely capable of sustaining life have to adhere to similiar life sustaining processes of our own. Why, as I mentioned above commonality of beginning and the fact that the sun and all of its life sustaining properties shines on all of the planets in our SS. I would think then that photosynthesis and hydrolysis take place where our common sun shines in this SS. Now, if there is another SS with a different color sun that has life within its realm, then I wholeheartedly agree with you.

[CMH]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

Now, if there is another SS with a different color sun that has life within its realm, then I wholeheartedly agree with you.

That is exactly what I meant. I don't think it is possible in this solar system. But, I do feel the possibility is open in other solar systems that we may have not even discovered.

I wouldnt consider myself anywhere near an expert on the subject, bit I took Astronomy last semester and the professor simply that the best arguement against time travel is that you've never met anyone from the future.

Well, this is the question.

If someone from the future told you they were from the future, what would you say?

John Titor attempted that and there are people that believe him, but probably more that consider him absolutely crazy.

Then there is the whole notion of traveling back. We don't know what would eventually allow time travel. It could be something that we either won't or are unable to produce or recreate in this specific time period. Perhaps, it's impossible to take that "thing" back into the past. Or maybe, time travelers have decided to visit different time periods and consider this one unimportant to the future.

There are too many variables, really.

[jfsolo]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

So you have created (singlehandedly?) a parallel universe (we'll call this universe number 2), in which you have placed yourself (for example, in the past), with no apparent way to return to the first universe. Given that you cannot exist in two universes simultaneously, what happens to "you", and more importantly, the primary universe, when you enter universe number 2?

For example, say you are a 35 year old car dealership owner with two kids, who goes back 10 years in time to prevent the war in Iraq. Once you enter the second dimension, what happens to that first universe? You have completely changed the reality of the present (in which you, and presumably - your children and your car dealership, the war in Iraq, and the casualties associated, in some capacity, do not exist). What becomes of the first universe? Once you pop through that time machine, do your children disappear? Do soldiers start rising out of their graves? Does your car dealership vaporize?

Can the original universe - not just speaking of yourself anymore - exist at all?

http://www.zamandayolculuk.com/cetinbal/primertimetravel.htm

When one thinks about it, in reality, travel to a parallel world is not really time travel at all. So if the many quantum universes do exist, they are all parallel to each other, and there is no way to get from one to another except by going backward in time and then "up" another branch. For example, in the Back To The Future movies, when Marty McFly goes back in time, he makes a change that alters the future (his original present). His new present is now a new branch, while his original present (without him) continues on in a parallel universe. In other words, his worldline was really going down one branch of time and forward up another branch, so that he continues his life in a different quantum universe, never to return to his original universe again.
How does parallel universe resolve paradoxes? Consider the Grandfather Paradox once again. Suppose you travel back in time and accidentally kill or cause the death of your grandfather before he reaches puberty. You can't get born because your mother or father can't get born, right?
The answer to this is that in this parallel world sequence where you kill your younger grandfather, quantum wave streams result in a universe where you are not born. However, the original universe where your grandfather lived to a ripe old age and sired your mom/dad still exists, thus allowing you to be born. So Everett's version of the Many World theory of quantum mechanics allows history-changing events.
This means that there are many interlacing world histories, so that if anyone went back in time and killed their grandfather when he was a kid, it would just cause space-time to branch off into a new parallel universe that is different from the one that we know. A new generation of parallel universes is created each time a time traveler reenters the time stream.

One has to accept the hypothesis of quantum universes, so in that vein the car dealership owners original universe goes on without him. In the old universe he's dead, his "death" just occuring in a non conventional way which precludes the recovery of his body. His 35 years of existance in that universe is not erased though.

[Chief Illinimac]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

That just might be the most asinine thing I've ever heard. How would someone know if they met someone from the future anyway, outside of that person telling them that they were from the future?

Really? THE most asinine thing ever? It's not like it's a totally illogical idea. Hyperbole is not always required to make a point.

Anyway, time travel will never exist the way you see it in movies like Back to the Future or Donnie Darko. About as far as it will go in our lifetimes is the ability to move forward or backward a few seconds, if that.

[jmood88]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

Really? THE most asinine thing ever? It's not like it's a totally illogical idea. Hyperbole is not always required to make a point.

Anyway, time travel will never exist the way you see it in movies like Back to the Future or Donnie Darko. About as far as it will go in our lifetimes is the ability to move forward or backward a few seconds, if that.

And that is based on...?

As far as the other thing, yes it is a totally illogical idea. There is no way of absolutely knowing that someone is from the future unless somehow humanity ends up looking different later on, otherwise the only way you would be able to know is if someone told you and you believed them.

[SPTO]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

http://www.zamandayolculuk.com/cetin...timetravel.htm





One has to accept the hypothesis of quantum universes, so in that vein the car dealership owners original universe goes on without him. In the old universe he's dead, his "death" just occuring in a non conventional way which precludes the recovery of his body. His 35 years of existance in that universe is not erased though.

That's basically what I was going to say but you made it a lot easier. However the text from the link you supplied is a bit rigid. I mean if you travel into the past and change something then doesn't that create a parallel timeline/universe?

[Chief Illinimac]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

And that is based on...?

As far as the other thing, yes it is a totally illogical idea. There is no way of absolutely knowing that someone is from the future unless somehow humanity ends up looking different later on, otherwise the only way you would be able to know is if someone told you and you believed them.

Look at it this way... If time travel was possible, and eventually is discovered, couldn't and wouldn't someone come back in time to show how it is done and make it possible now? I'm not gonna go look up a bunch of scientific data to back up my point which I will say is partially my opinion, but the fact of the matter is paradoxes like this basically prove its not gonna happen. Time travel as you see in the movies is just that, an idea for a movie. Implying that people are idiotic and illogical for having opposing views of the topic is pretty weak. There is by no means enough evidence to prove that it can happen, so I'm not sure why you ride this high horse about it.

[TarHeelBorn]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

That just might be the most asinine thing I've ever heard. How would someone know if they met someone from the future anyway, outside of that person telling them that they were from the future?

I mean its really not, If I went back to 1776 right now Im pretty sure that I wouldnt talk the same way, dress the same way, etc. they might not know that I was from the future unless I told them but you would notice that something is very different.

[jmood88]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

Look at it this way... If time travel was possible, and eventually is discovered, couldn't and wouldn't someone come back in time to show how it is done and make it possible now? I'm not gonna go look up a bunch of scientific data to back up my point which I will say is partially my opinion, but the fact of the matter is paradoxes like this basically prove its not gonna happen. Time travel as you see in the movies is just that, an idea for a movie. Implying that people are idiotic and illogical for having opposing views of the topic is pretty weak. There is by no means enough evidence to prove that it can happen, so I'm not sure why you ride this high horse about it.

It's not about riding a high horse it's about the ignorance of someone saying that it's not possible because you haven't met anyone from the future. You could say that about any scientific theory(which has been done many times before) but that doesn't make it true or logical at all. Nowhere did I say he was idiotic however that statement is ridiculous.

[triplej96]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

I wouldnt consider myself anywhere near an expert on the subject, bit I took Astronomy last semester and the professor simply that the best arguement against time travel is that you've never met anyone from the future.

Not sure I understand? Just because you have never met anyone from the future? One could say have you ever seen a million dollars? NO. Well I guess a million dollars isn't real. Not the best arguement at all epsecially for an educator.

[TarHeelBorn]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

The Easter Bunny, Big Foot and the Tooth fairy would agree with you.

[triplej96]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

The Easter Bunny, Big Foot and the Tooth fairy would agree with you.

Yeah, since scientists across the world work on thoeries about the tooth fairy and the easter bunny. Thats the same thing as time travel or Quantum thoery. Good point.

[TarHeelBorn]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

Neither is a person's ability to see a million dollars

[Chief Illinimac]

Re: Time Travel... soon?

It's not about riding a high horse it's about the ignorance of someone saying that it's not possible because you haven't met anyone from the future. You could say that about any scientific theory(which has been done many times before) but that doesn't make it true or logical at all. Nowhere did I say he was idiotic however that statement is ridiculous.

Ignorance is relative. His point had merit. You felt it didn't, we do. It's subjective. I think I would notice someone from 200 years in the future. If they were from, say, 2 years? Maybe not. So depending on how you look at it, he has a very valid point. To say that we/he is ignorant is pretty ignorant in itself. I never said you said he was idiotic, I said you implied it, and to me, idiocy is pretty close to ignorance, and you're just talking semantics right now, which is just trying to distract people from the point that your argument that time travel will happen is just as ignorant as ours that it won't. Until it happens, all you have is a belief that it will happen based on evidence, and yours is no truer than his or my belief that it won't happen based on what you may believe is "lesser" evidence. I'm not saying anyone is right, I'm just saying we have the right to think what we want without being told we are ignorant.

And while I haven't been spitting out citations backing up my ideas, I just want to say that I do understand the basic theory behind time travel. If you really believe that people can travel faster than the speed of light and not melt or something instantly, well I just have to say I'll believe that when me **** turns purple and smells like rainbow sherbet. Not even to mention traveling so much faster than light that you could go more than a few seconds into the future.