Perspectives on Faster-than-Light ("warp drive") and Time Travel Technologies, circa 2400 AD-2450 AD
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BACK to timeline contents: 2301 AD-2500 AD in Perspectives...
Following the item on FTL technologies is a piece on the possibly deeper structures of reality itself, and how they may or may not be amenable to exotic manipulations (such as time travel and FTL travel) by sentient beings.
2400-2450: Einstein's Run and the first "Uniques" are under construction; The secrets of faster-than-light technologies-- including certain elements of time travel-- are beginning to be unraveled
'Super-structural' projects are underway, mostly via star fish 'super bush' construction. Projects include more skyhook towers, new power generators about the gas giants, accelerated terra-forming of planets and moons, solar system scale gravity wave telescopes, and bridges between some stabilized asteroids...
But probably one of the more important super-structural projects now under construction is a maneuverable one-way electro-magnetic launcher and special class of vehicles meant to make an assault on the light barrier for deep space penetration.
Popularly known as the "Einstein Run", the device is the largest single construction ever attempted by humanity, with a planned length of more than 10 times the diameter of the entire solar system. Though its energy consumption is gargantuan even by 25th century standards, the expected benefits should make it well worthwhile.
The vehicles meant to be hurled through this mind-boggling device are no less remarkable. Designed to accomodate at most a few star fish beings and the minimal components required for construction of both a 100% lightspeed station and a Realtime ERP transport station (as well as items required for surveys relating to eventual construction of a new and improved ER cannon in the local vicinity), the craft are streamlined for the aerodynamic needs of a not quite empty void, and are the strongest and most complex single objects ever built in history, meant to withstand G-forces of 2000 or more on virtually any vector without significant permanent damage. Though the craft amply protect their contents, even their prodigious buffer fields cannot be expected to fully cope with the enormous stresses which may be involved. Therefore, only specially configured star fish entities will ever ride aboard such ships. No biological forms at all are permitted onboard, except in pure data form (for instance, as a mind within a star fish form, or genetic info with which to build biological forms molecule-by-molecule).
Why the hugely expensive and difficult nature of this project? To achieve .99c-- 99% the speed of light. Which will allow humanity to install both Realtime ERP and 100% lightspeed transporter/communications stations at a much faster clip (and much more conveniently), over a much wider region of space, than is possible now.
These deep space vessels possess the first true Bussard ramjet concept fusion drives ever built by major industrial entities-- but as brakes rather than propulsion. Once the craft nears the destination desired, it gradually unfurls some of the strongest, most immense buffer fields ever known, to collect and funnel sufficient hydrogen from the void to burn in fusion flame ahead of its flight. Behind the collection fields are another set of buffer fields, forming a vast solar sail even larger and more spectacular than the Bussard buffers, to enlist photonic drag as well. If mortal eyes could behold the craft at .99c opening its folds to brake against unimaginable velocities, it would resemble an opening flower of a size to rival a small planet....
The power plant at the core of these remarkable vessels? Antimatter is only a weak backup power source for this compact and robust a design. No, these vessels boast singularities wrapped in a continuous TME shift transport station shell, at their core. That is, elsewhere in space engineers have set up a TME shift transport station sufficiently near to a singularity so that the ballistic children of Einstein's Run may tap directly into the vast energies generated at that remote singularity via other devices, by simply flipping a switch. Immense energies are available via this medium (though the transfer media is highly inefficient, the gross magnitudes of the energies available make that inefficiency less relevant). At least, all this is true if and when the fickle TME technologies decide to operate....(TME is proving difficult to master-- but the alternatives are all poor replacements for missions such as these). Fortunately however the vessels primarily utilize their TME power sources for maximum Bussard buffer field extension for braking-- so if and when the TME source fails, the craft simply suffers decreased braking capacity. If there's collision concerns, the ship may still undertake some evasion manuevers with no TME power whatsoever.
Very few spacecraft of this time sport such singularity power sources-- mostly prototypes for other deep space explorers, and advanced warships. All craft boasting such power sources are lumped into the category of Uniques during this time. One reason for the title is that each of these vessels also possesses the most advanced intelligence available of the time onboard as the ship's 'mind', so that the vessels are more like biological organisms than any of their predecessors.
Due to the complexities of current human/AI laws and regulations, as well as the growing unease about AIs in general, the intelligences of Uniques are usually a network of an entire union of once-human minds that previously inhabited star fish forms for at least several years or more. Yes, this means the 'mind' of a Unique vessel is often the collaborative result of what once was a large family/organization of human beings somewhere in known space.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Though installation of one's mind into a wholly inorganic form like a fractalized starfish or a spacecraft may seem abhorrent to late 20th/early 21st century observers, the circumstances are far better for such sentients there than they were for, say, an average human being living in 1999 in USAmerica.
How so? Well, let's begin with virtual immortality and perfect health, both physical and mental. Near invulnerability to any significant harm or injury. Like it so far? Add in vast new mental and physical powers no biological human could ever hope to possess or wield. And if you ever became nostalgic for your Old Days as a biological human, you could always experience them anew-- via virtual reality. VR so real neither you or someone still ensconced in biological human form could tell the difference. But with VR most all tragedies, mistakes, or disasters can be undone-- unlike in realtime.
Plus, you can also choose to move your mentality out of its starfish or spacecraft form, and into a humanoid android body. Or join in a much larger community of virtual entities like yourself-- those of modern society who have chosen to forego any physical form whatsoever (at least temporarily). Or, lastly, you may even have yourself a fresh biological human body grown from scratch, and your essential neural patterns written into its brain. But sorry, only a small part of you can do this, as no human brain can contain more than a fraction of the intelligence and vast memory you've become and enjoyed as a virtual entity. So if you decide to return to frail and limited human form once more, you are born again as a much younger, ignorant, and inexperienced version of yourself-- who is also afflicted with a major case of permanent amnesia about the time spent as a much greater intelligence and store of living knowledge. END NOTE.
After the Bussard ramjet has sufficiently slowed the craft, the ship will maneuver via ramjet and/or anti-matter drives towards the nearest convenient gravity well(s) to bleed off still more speed there.
Once the vessel has slowed sufficiently, its crew will set about constructing a local Realtime ERP transport/communications station, thereby allowing humanity to 'leapfrog' enormous distances across the galaxy...each Einstein Run Unique will help speed the process via use of its own internal TME shift transporter (when it's working). The Unique's TME shift transporter may also provide fuel for local mobility to the Unique (shifted in from home base), on-the-fly. This means E.R. Uniques potentially enjoy an inexhaustible fuel supply. Of course, for all their fuel advantages, E.R. Uniques still are unable to get much past .5c physically without the aid of Einstein's Run. As the TME shift technology cannot be routinely used to provide certain necessary supplements to ERP transport and communications, 2-way ER cannon are also planned for construction at many sites far removed from Sol system.
Though everything about this project is awesomely expensive and complex, the expected rewards more than justify its existence...
Realtime (ERP) stations utilize technologies based on concepts first explored in so-called
Einstein-Rosen-Podolsky pairs, as early as the 20th century.
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-- "Experiment Could Be Step Toward 'Quantum Computers'" (about emerging ERP (Einstein-Rosen-Podolsky Pairs technology) By DAVID L. CHANDLER
of The Boston Globe ["http://www.globe.com"], with the datestamp apparently 12-11-97 or thereabouts.
Scientists have confirmed that perfect teleportation is indeed possible in theory, but with the restriction that the original item to be transported is destroyed-- similarly as to how the science fiction transport depicted in Star Trek entertainments is accomplished. One of the past sticking points in perfect teleportation theory was the uncertainty principle of quantum mechanics, which pretty much would prevent a complete and comprehensive scan of an original object in order to determine its composition at a very low level of existence. In brief, the scanned object would itself be ruined by the process before the scan could be completed. However, the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen effect can be utilized to bypass this difficulty, by splitting the information flow directed to a new location into higher level and lower level streams. In the earliest theoretical experiments EPR was used to move the most delicate and easily lost or destroyed information, while more conventional means were used for the remainder. Few scientists and engineers around 2000 AD expected teleportation such as described above to be accomplished with human beings any time soon. -- Quantum Teleportation, Teleportation ["http://www.research.ibm.com/quantuminfo/teleportation/"]; Tips on teleportation ["http://www.ibm.com/news/ls960202.html"], found on or about 3-6-2000 |
Of course, the successful teleportation of humans might not require the destructive ultra-low level scans many scientists assumed circa 2000 AD.
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-- "A fun talk on teleportation ["http://www.research.ibm.com/quantuminfo/teleportation/braunstein.html"]", Samuel L. Braunstein, schmuel@tangelo.phys.unm.edu, 5 February, 1995
found on/about 5-28-98
A pair of ERP-entangled photons must be created from the same photon mother. Full ERP entanglement also is not an either/or situation: entangled particles can become only partially entangled in less than ideal conditions, such as when the newly twinned particle(s) come into existence at slightly different spacetime coordinates, one from the other. Using entangled photons' wave function to scan the electron states of individual atoms is proving to be a surprisingly precise and efficient process. -- Harnessing the weird properties of entangled photons [author is possibly Michael Brooks], UK Contact: Claire Bowles claire.bowles@rbi.co.uk 44-20-7331-2751 US Contact: New Scientist Washington office newscidc@idt.net 202-452-1178 New Scientist, 27 OCTOBER 1999, New Scientist issue date: 30th October 99, EurekAlert! http://www.newscientist.com |
Following is a brief examination of the obstacles to instant transport via ERP technologies, as well as faster-than-light communications/travel in general, as perceived in the late 20th/early 21st centuries-- and some possible hints of how they may be overcome:
Problem: Sure, individual members of ERP-style entangled pairs both react instantly to measurement of one of the two particles, over infinite distances. However, this single action also destroys the entanglement so far as any subsequent use is concerned. Therefore entangled pairs are consumed/destroyed in the process of obtaining the instant-signal-over-infinite-distance result.
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Note that the pair entanglement ends with the single initiating scan (with both particles thereafter oscillating amongst different and wholly unsynchronized states), so the ERP properties are lost. Ergo, ERP pairs are consumables.
-- New Scientist: Space timing ["http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns223826"] by Justin Mullins, From New Scientist magazine, 13 May 2000. Could quantum entanglement be a quality which could be created, stored, and widely distributed, all over a network? Could creation of a quantum internet actually be possible? Some believe so. The first three nodes are expected to be in place and operational by sometime in 2003 or 2004. The network looks to require optical fiber, for the transmissions of photons. Such fiber would have to extend 'the last mile' too, into user's homes or offices, and be directly connected to suitable quantum computing equipment there (such an apparatus would need super cooling capacities for atomic size containers, among other items). The equipment essentially translates the entanglement carried by the photons into an entanglement of local atoms, which makes the entangled state much easier to shield against magnetic and electrical interference. Detecting the local atoms' absorption of photons crucially does not disturb the entanglement. Such a process would for the first time allow quantum computers in remote locations to share results with one another-- in effect, it would make quantum computing practical for many research labs around the world. The network would allow the crude quantum computers spread across the globe today to work together in a parallel process arrangement to create a more powerful computing device overall. This would enable unbreakable encryption processes for users on either end of such a quantum connection. It could also enable a whole new computing paradigm, with downloadable quantum states which could 'upgrade' individual quantum computers. Researchers worldwide could transmit complex molecules to one another for collaborative studies. One day, even biological components might be shared in the same fashion. The downside to such an entanglement network is that entangled information shared upon it is as consumable as such things can get. That is, it's by nature solely a single-use item. Using it destroys the entanglement, and along with it all the magical properties which make it valuable. In other words, entanglement is like the ultimate copy-protection. -- Entangled web by Justin Mullins, From New Scientist magazine, 20 May 2000 |
Possible solution(s): Note that it's relatively easy and cheap to make all the entangled pairs you want. So make untold trillions upon trillions of them. Ship as many ERP singles as you can to each far destination station, and let the first shipment be only the first of a streaming transport of resupply of entangled pair singles over the lightyears, to minimize disruptions in the infinite communications/transport over infinite distances between any two stations. Perhaps one resupply package might arrive every one to ten years, depending on the usage of the route. All these would likely require launches from ER cannon. Yes, this will be very expensive. But so long as the streaming resupply can keep pace with the demand for instant comm/transport on a given route, the link will remain open and far more cost-effective than any possible alternative.
Then be very stingy with how you use the entangled pairs, forcing users to exploit immense computing power and massive, comprehensive databases at both ends of a route to reduce redundancy in signals to an absolute minimum, as well as compress the datastream ruthlessly to its utter and briefest essence.
Other methods of ERP pair conservation may be enabled via advanced means of non-destructive monitoring of an entangled single, perhaps by way of "quantum mirage" techniques.
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Scientists have devised a way to possibly observe atoms/elementary particles without disturbing them. It involves something like a mirror reflection of the particle's properties, or a "quantum mirage". An elliptical enclosure of other atoms is used to attain the feat, due to the dual points of foci in the geometric shape. With the real atom occupying one foci, a false image of the atom will exist at the other.
The strange nature of quantum physics at this level offers some intriguing possibilities for utilization of the quantum mirage. -- 'Mirror' Creates Atomic Reflection By Discovery News Brief, Feb. 4, 2000, http://www.discovery.com/ Recent experiments have proven that at least in terms of on-site information storage and retrieval via the quantum states of particles, the theoretical Holevo maximum may be achieved by adhering to a particular technique of data storage or encoding in the states. Such encoding overcomes even distortions brought on by environmental noise. Three different methods are suggested in the article cited here. Utilizing long strings of photons to send messages in block fashion is one. But a more reliable means might be to utilize only a few different quantum state values, spread far from one another, much like radio frequencies well separated from one another to reduce interference-- and build a code on that. Another technique would be for message recipients to measure a large quantity of particles simultaneously to obtain the quantum states, in order to obtain a finer information filter. As of 1997 only two particles at a time could be measured by man-made instruments. -- Channeling quantum information efficiently by I. Peterson, June 28, 1997, Science News Online, http://www.sciencenews.org/ It turns out that entanglement can be accomplished with more than two particles at once. Three or possibly more particles may be susceptible to entanglement with one another-- but entangling more than two particles at once appears considerably more difficult than creating a pair. -- deflating ["http://www.scitec.auckland.ac.nz/~king/Preprints/book/upd/umar99/cosinf/def.htm"], citing Spooky trio by Mark Buchanan, New Sci 5 Dec 98 14, found on or about January 15, 2000 Quite a few different types of particles might be suitable for use in an entangled ERP pair-- but not neutrinos. No two neutrinos can ever share the same quantum state-- in the entire universe. At least under the laws of physics as understood in the late 20th century. Other particles which belong to the same family (fermions) may present similar obstacles to use in entangled pairs. Neutrinos are also more difficult to capture than other particles. -- deflating ["http://www.scitec.auckland.ac.nz/~king/Preprints/book/upd/umar99/cosinf/def.htm"], citing Space Oddity by Stephen Battersby, New Sci. 16 Jan 99 24, found on or about January 15, 2000 |
Problem: People or devices on both ends of a transport require either a wholly other communications channel upon which to compare measurement notes in order to confirm various elements of the signal transfer, or else a mutually agreed-upon and iron-clad protocol for conducting their separate single ERP measurements, created long before the stations are brought online, as well as a way to perfectly synchronize their ERP-related actions time-wise, free of all conceivable spacetime distortions.
| -- New Scientist: Space timing ["http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns223826"] by Justin Mullins, From New Scientist magazine, 13 May 2000 |
Possible solution(s): Create and rigorously test and trouble-shoot just such an absolute protocol and full back-up contingencies for use in the system before implementation, so that little or no independent verification of procedures should be necessary. Also look for and investigate methods by which the timing free of spacetime distortions might be accomplished by other natural or artificial means, or some combination of both. Another useful element here might be occasional lightspeed updates (electromagnetic transmissions) of procedures and confirmations of past transmissions from the original departure/launch station to the destination station. Note that such confirmations would likely lag the related ERP transport of objects or persons by years, decades, or even centuries.
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Could it be that two separated ERP particle stations would simply have to have a mutually agreed upon system for modifying or reading their local particle(s), in order to keep them in alignment? If so, then the real problem would lie in creating a set of protocols which could be independent of spacetime distortions. Something like the reverse of this process looked feasible in mid-2000 (perfectly synchronizing clocks aboard satellites via ERP pairs).
Two ERP-entangled atoms could be separated, one aboard satellite #1 and another on satellite #2. Both satellites are deployed to their desired spacetime locations, perhaps one on one side of the universe and one on the other. In a carefully planned action one satellite would scan its atom, causing both it and its remote twin to change quantum states. Both satellites would then begin counting time passage immediately as the first change was detected in each atom. As the change occurs simultaneously in both locations, no matter the distance, both the satellite clocks would from that moment on be perfectly synchronized. -- New Scientist: Space timing ["http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns223826"] by Justin Mullins, From New Scientist magazine, 13 May 2000 |
Another option might be to encode the ERP data stream at the source so that natural local lightspeed or alternative quantum phenomena at the destination could play a part in its verification, rather than a separate lightspeed datastream from the source ERP station (which would necessitate a slowing of materialization of ERP-sent signals to a pace no better than lightspeed transmissions from the distant source). Of course, setting such a system up would require thorough initial examination and frequent updates of the local phenomena, with the data sent back to the source station for proper encoding of messages. All this would add much time and complexity to the ERP system itself-- even if it could be made to work.
Problem: Despite all our efforts we fail to find a way to get ERP pairs to send more than a single 'beep' style signal through their medium.
Possible solution(s): Wake up. A simple, reliable beep signal is all we need.
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Note that given a sufficient starting supply of such consumable ERP pairs, suitably divided among two mated stations, much repetition of the signal process between stations would be possible. By destructively scanning subsequent particles either individually, or in pairs, binary signals could theoretically be sent between stations. Ones and twos. Much like the zeros and ones of the language of modern (21st century) digital computers and telecommunications.
-- New Scientist: Space timing ["http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns223826"] by Justin Mullins, From New Scientist magazine, 13 May 2000 |
Problem: Despite all our best efforts, we find we still require some sort of independent signalling channel by which to make ERP technology practical.
Possible solution(s): Find a loophole in quantum physics or elsewhere that allows faster-than-light transfers of at least minimal amounts of information, such as simple signals, wholly or largely unrelated to ERP theory. Note that there was great prejudice against the notion that this could be done, circa 2000 AD. But at the same time there were hints that it might be possible never-the-less.
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The speed of light is not constant. It is slowed by various materials it passes through. Its maximum speed is commonly judged to be that through a vacuum.
But the speed of light may also be increased to above that of the commonly expressed maximum (speed through a vacuum), by special lab procedures. Light expressed in pulses of evanescent waves will exceed the theoretical maximum for very short distances (several wavelengths of light). AUTHOR'S NOTE: "Evanescent" means a tendency to fade or disappear; sometimes a tendency to do so gradually; sometimes rapidly. END NOTE. In the latest experiments however, Italian scientists have managed to stretch this distance to about 30 wavelengths, or a meter, using microwave radiation as the means of propagation. Calculations indicate the speed of light through vacuum was exceeded by somewhere between five and seven percent in the experiment. Many theorists believe lightspeed may indeed be exceeded, but not while carrying information, or a signal. This is referred to as the 'causality' problem. If a signal can indeed be sent faster than light it qualifies as effective time travel, in that it could be used to send a message into the past. Thus, while circa 2000 mainstream science may accept brief stints of light traveling faster than its theoretical maximum, it will not accept the light in such instances also carrying a signal, without extraordinary proof for the matter. -- physics : Faster than light ["http://helix.nature.com/nsu/000601/000601-5.html"] by PHILIP BALL, (two different date-stamps exist on this article: 30 May 2000 and 6-1-2000, Macmillan Magazines Ltd 2000 - NATURE NEWS SERVICE In a different report from America, other scientists claimed to have achieved light pulses displaying 300 times the normally accepted theoretical maximum for light speed. In effect, the light appeared to travel forward in time, actually exiting the test area before it had completed its entry into same. AUTHOR'S NOTE: If my quick and dirty calculations are right, this would mean that with a transport medium of such speeds, only around five days would be required to reach the nearest star! And under 90 years to reach the galactic core! At top speed anyway, and not allowing for the acceleration or braking at either end which a physical spacecraft of such capabilities would require. Such speeds would theoretically put something like 190 star systems only a month or less travel time from Earth [According to Marshall Savage's book "The Millennial Project" (1992, 1994, Little, Brown, and Company publisher), there's 190 stars within 25 lightyears of Sol.]. Again, I'm not adding the extra time required by a physical spacecraft at such speeds to accelerate or brake at either end. On the other hand, a beaming system (where no spacecraft was necessary) would suffer no such limitations. END NOTE. The same article states that the Italian experiment actually achieved velocities of around 25% faster than accepted lightspeed, compared to the lower numbers given by the article cited above. Other theoreticians are speculating that signals/information may indeed be sent faster than lightspeed, but the time required to translate them might match any time saved due to the speed-- thereby negating any advantage, and therefore not violating the principle of causality. It could be the current discoveries will help more at accelerating computer dataflows at or near microscopic levels or smaller, rather than enabling things like time travel ventures or faster-than-light transport or communications. -- Eureka! Scientists break speed of light ["http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/2000/06/04/stifgnusa01007.html"] by Jonathan Leake, Science Editor, June 4 2000, The Sunday Times Another article reports a 5% faster-than-lightspeed number for the Italian experiments. It also casts doubts on the results, pointing out that at press time they had not been independently verified, and that due to their difficulty might be rife for potential errors and miscalculations. The writer also mentions historical astronomical observations of apparently faster-than-light (or superluminal) phenemona which were later explained due to external relativistic observational quirks of far off events which are occuring at a sizeable fraction of lightspeed locally. -- Faster than a speeding light wave ["http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_781000/781199.stm"] By BBC News Online science editor Dr David Whitehouse, 7 June, 2000, BBC News Contrary to popular scientific belief (and even many reference works), the portion of the theory of relativity limiting the maximum speed of everything in the universe to lightspeed in a vacuum pertains not to group velocity, but to an imaginary ideal of 'front velocity', or the edge of a pulse of light which is suddenly and instantaneously emitted from a source. Another term for such an event is an infinitely abrupt pulse. However, such ideal abrupt light pulses have never been created or observed in labs; for no one knows how to make one. It is known how to produce the opposite to such infinitely abrupt pulses-- or infinitely smooth pulses-- but theories about the information they contain do not yet exist. The most recent experiments seem to show a light pulse being rephased by its passage through a particular medium so that the movement of only some 40% of the pulse through the medium is sufficient to represent the essence of the entire pulse in detectors. Some aspect of optical physics allows a minority of the pulse to emerge as if it were the majority of the pulse. -- Scientific American: Science and The Citizen: Unlimited Light: September 2000 ["http://www.sciam.com/2000/0900issue/0900scicit6.html"] by DAVID APPELL Some scientists believe that decades of experiments proving the standard lightspeed of Einstein's day can be surpassed also indicate that information can indeed travel faster than light. In 1995 scientists sent Mozart's 40th symphony to a receiver at almost five times the traditional speed of light. However, it seems some dissenting scientists do not consider a musical score to be information (huh?). -- Light pulses flout sacrosanct speed limit ["http://www.sciencenews.org/20000610/fob7.asp"] BY P. Weiss, From Science News, Vol. 157, No. 24, June 10, 2000, p. 375 |
Problem: Instant or faster-than-light transfers of information are thought by some to be dangerous-- i.e., they might in some way enable a form of time travel, of information if nothing else, thereby damaging the universe's 'timeline'.
Possible solution(s): Hello? The infamous 'grandfather paradox' of time travel has been proven not to exist at all(the most famous example is that of a time traveler disrupting causality by killing their grandfather before they themselves are born). Thus, it doesn't seem that creating our own faster-than-light communications or travel could possibly harm our own universe.
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Quantum theory does away with the 'grandfather paradox' of time travel by always directing travelers into the past towards a different universe from the one they left. Time travel essentially is equivalent to travel between alternative dimensions of reality, or parallel timelines.
In the book "Timeline", novelist Michael Crichton utilizes the concept of digitized explorers being fed through a wormhole between universes by a supercomputer, to achieve the deed. Rotating black holes and other gravitic anomalies may house wormholes in their vicinity. Closer, more accessible sources of wormholes may lie in a quantum foam underlying all of physical reality. But mind boggling amounts of power would be required to use such quantum foam in this manner. -- 'Timeline's' travel may not be far-fetched By MATT CRENSON, Nando Media/Associated Press, December 5, 1999, http://www.nandotimes.com Time travel into the past or future is looking more and more possible. AUTHOR'S NOTE: Keep in mind we are all naturally traveling into the future from the present at the speed of light, throughout our entire lives. END NOTE. Quantum particles travel backwards in time naturally. Anti-matter essentially behaves the same as normal matter which is traveling backwards in time. Theoretically, miniscule wormholes only some 0.000000000000000000000000000000001 centimeters in diameter may proliferate through a quantum foam underlying all reality, with each one offering a possible gateway to any time or place in the universe-- and perhaps others as well. Besides the very narrow physical opening serving as a barrier to practical use, there's also the likely high instability; each wormhole may appear and then vanish again with infuriating regularity. Probably too fast for much to pass through it, even if a traveling entity were small enough to do so. The periodic opening and closing and general instability of these wormholes may also mean a traveler could easily be stranded forever in their destination universe, or at least find it very difficult to return to the particular universe or timeline from which they originated. Then, there's the energy cost. Successfully pushing something into one of these wormholes could require lots of power. Enormous, gargantuan amounts of power. Other sources of information for these subjects may be found at "http://www-spires.slac.stanford.edu/find/hep" -- A rip in time By Stephen Reucroft and John Swain, Northeastern University, Globe Correspondents, 1/3/2000; page C01, the Boston Globe;1/3/2000; Globe Newspaper Company, and other sources -- Making a wormhole just got easier...but it's no simple matter. ["http://www.nature.com/nsu/030527/030527-12.html"] by PHILIP BALL; nature.com; 2 June 2003 -- On a macroscopic traversable spacewarp in practice General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology, abstract gr-qc/0511086 ["http://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0511086"] by Mohammad Mansouryar; 16 Nov 2005, seems to be a nice presentation on theories related to wormhole usage for FTL. Some points of the concept presented in more laymen-friendly terms seem to be available at "http://www.mansouryar.com" Another, less exotic way the grandfather paradox could be resolved lies in the difficulty a single individual might have in changing history even with the advantage of historical knowledge. That knowledge will almost certainly be incomplete in several important details, therefore ham-stringing any would-be timeline tweaker in that fashion. MIT professor Jay Forrester found in an analysis of corporate operations for example that typically there were only a small number of people involved who could truly change the course of events in a given complex process-- everyone else was powerless. Certainly virtually any time traveler will not be one of these select personnel for a given event, nor able to adequately impersonate them to affect the change-- even where they can successfully identify just who those people are. If somehow the critical personnel in a given timeline event can be identified, and the critical action or decision they will take regarding that event be ascertained as well, then the time traveler might try to persuade one or more of them to act or think differently in respect to the event, before it takes place. But there would appear to be lots of hard-to-control variables involved in such an effort. -- Crichton's Latest Novel Goes Back in Time By Aleksandrs Rozens, Reuters/Yahoo! Entertainment Headlines, December 2, 1999 Many inventions and innovations of history came about in two or more parallel, virtually simultaneous developments, often with none of the participants aware of the other's efforts, and sometimes separated by hundreds or thousands of miles from one another. So it could be many important historical events possibly have several locations and sets of circumstances from which they may emerge at the same time or close to it, rather than only one. Thus, even if one local event could be stymied, a 'backup' might bring the unwanted result to realization anyway. -- history of transportation ["http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/1/0,5716,120011+4,00.html"], Encyclopedia Britannica, 1999, Britannica.com, and others "The answer is that there isn’t such a thing as an instant in time in nature, and that it’s something entirely subjective that we project onto the world around us. That is, it’s the outcome of brain function and consciousness." -- Peter Lynds -- Amateur solves 2,500-year-old mystery of motion ["http://www.thescotsman.co.uk/international.cfm?id=827792003"] by JOHN INNES; 1 Aug 2003; thescotsman.co.uk -- Amateur mathematician's time theories published at last ["http://www.nzherald.co.nz/latestnewsstory.cfm?storyID=3515588&thesection=news&thesubsection=general"]; 31.07.2003; nzherald.co.nz Though I'm getting increasingly afield from the main topic here, this seems as good a place as any to bring up one element regarding theoretical time travel that often is overlooked in popular fictions: that of likely asychrony between space and time itself during time travel jaunts; that is, a time traveler on Earth zapping back even just a few days is likely to find himself stranded in space, gasping for breath-- for Earth exists in widely different locations in space from one day to the next. If this movement through space over time is not compensated for somehow in a time travel device, the user is bound to suffer sooner rather than later. For everything is changing location in the universe over time. And even if the traveler's natural momentum tended to be in the same direction as his world at time of jump, and the traveler was headed for the future, he would still miss the target since it is unlikely normal physics would apply to him while in the time jump. For the reason above (and others) it would seem wise to only perform station-to-station time transports. That is, travel from one established time travel station to another (or the same one situated elsewhere time-wise), rather than trying to go somewhere that no time station exists at all. In this way could you avoid the problems of destinations not being anchored to the necessary space coordinates. Of course, it may be that station-to-station time travel is the only way it can be done, period, similar to ERP transports. At least to achieve somewhat practical and desirable results. The physics of time travel may demand this as well, but that means no one will ever be able to travel further back in time than exists a compatible time travel destination station. I.e., the moment the first time travel booth is built will also be the earliest moment in the past that can ever be subsequently visited. And even in that case it would theoretically be possible for multiple time travelers to create new problems for themselves, as this earliest possible destination moment in the past might be so prized as to cause gory disasters in the time travel booth itself, as way too many travelers attempt to transport in during the earliest possible moment, and find that only so many physical bodies can materialize at once in a small enclosed space without ghastly consequences. AUTHOR'S NOTE: If ERP or TME or other exotic faster than light technologies do come online at some point, they might in some way offer the same possibilities as a dedicated time travel station, therefore enabling time travelers from the future to suddenly begin emerging from such stations shortly after their construction. Since it appears future time travelers will not be concerned about affecting their own timeline by making changes to ours, they might feel free to interfere greatly with our affairs, both covertly and overtly. Thus, creation of any device which might open such portals must be contemplated with this in mind. Organized time travelers might prove a much greater threat than the random ventures of individuals. For example, an organized effort might delay travelers until such a time that many suitable portals exist, so that they may suddenly enter our reality in force, and at many different points simultaneously, thereby thwarting most efforts to stop or minimize such an invasion. Such travelers, possibly armed with vastly superior knowledge and technology, could result in the human race of this timeline facing subjugation-- or worse. And it might even be that we couldn't detect them emerging from the booths. END NOTE. There's also the possibility of real elements of fate or destiny unexpectedly interfering with the plans of time travelers-- some weird congruence of cosmic forces which nudges a time traveler one way or another, either in time or space coordinates. In such cases the traveler might find there's only one time and/or place he can go, no matter how powerful his time traveling device may be. Such 'destined' coordinates of course might seem pretty unlikely, from a general scientific perspective-- but on very rare occasion could theoretically occur, brought about by one or more of the universes involved to resolve some paradox that is irritating the nether regions of some or all. Perhaps the most likely destination in such instances would be something like a cosmic trash bin-- a netherworld where some particularly troublesome time travelers are stranded forever simply because they are too much trouble for the universe to deal with in any other way. It also appears likely that time travel into the past (and possibly the future as well) spawns all new universes not necessarily on the same path as the one the time traveler starts from. This may be how the universe deals with potential time travel paradoxes-- travelers are diverted to other, perhaps similar but not indentical realities in which to play, so that they cannot disturb the equilibrium of an original universe. In this manner the universe can offer an infinitude of possibilities without screwing up any particular reality, cosmically-speaking. -- ABOUT FACE IN TIME AND SPACE ["http://www.anomalist.com/afiles/timetravel.html"], The "A" Files... A Column by Charles Miller, 1999, The Anomalist "The universe might actually be able to fine-tune itself." -- Science hopes to change events that have already occurred by Patrick Barry; January 21, 2007; sfgate.com |
Problem: No matter what we do, we are unable to wring every last bit of uncertainty, error, and risk out of our brand new, infinite range, instant messaging and transport system.
| -- "More of your questions, answered by the author of 'The Physics of Star Trek'", Lawrence Krauss, NEW SCIENTIST, found on the web on or about 1-14-99 |
Possible solution(s): Hello? When has humanity ever possessed a form of communication or transport that was totally free of uncertainty, error, or risk? The first stone wheels surely crushed or injured some ancient bystander. As of the early 21st century we often misunderstood one another even in face-to-face conversations, and stumbled while walking. Some of us broke our necks riding horses. Others were killed in auto accidents, train derailments, and airplane crashes. Line noise sometimes obscured our phone conversations, and broke our internet connections. Our cable or satellite TV often failed without warning.
As humanity has historicially not waited for absolute perfection in its communications or transportation technologies before putting them into the widest possible use, I doubt they will postpone implementation of instant communications and transport technologies until they are perfected, either.
END of brief examination of obstacles to instant transport via ERP technologies, etc., circa the 20th/21st centuries.
According to Marshall Savage's book "The Millennial Project" (1992, 1994, Little, Brown, and Company publisher), there's 190 stars within 25 lightyears of Sol. The first successful mission of Einstein's Run establishes a new major Realtime ERP transport station near the outer boundaries of this sphere of approximately 1900 cubic parsecs. Other similar stations are built elsewhere near the perimeter of the sphere relatively quickly in the wake of the first, in a deployment pattern designed for maximum efficiency of subsequent colonization and industrialization efforts. Note that the first and farthest E.R. expeditions are specifically targeted in the direction of our galaxy's core, although for other shots the deployment pattern is more generalized. This means the first ER-derived base established 24 lightyears from Earth lies on a vector roughly pointing towards the core. Soon the E.R. station near Sol system has its core shots taken over by Base 24-ER nearer the core, allowing ER1 to turn all its shots towards serving a more general deployment pattern. Over coming decades and centuries dozens of new ER cannon are planned to be built at various ERP transport stations within 30 lightyears of Sol.
The first experimental inter-dimensional TME shifters will begin operation in decades to come. One failing of single station TME
shifting is that the destination is utterly random within the Universe, although it is instantaneous; specially configured dual stations are always required for travelers to enjoy some certainty of destination (elements of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle seem at play here).
Note that this new transport technology is derived from the previous "True Matter Elimination" technology discovered as a by product of the PEP (Priori Elementary Particle) Survey. The initial name of the concept turned out to be somewhat misleading, as the matter involved is not truly eliminated, but rather 'shifted' in its quantum state signature from its original spacetime existence to another. In some configurations, such shifts seem to actually push objects from our own universe into another-- while in others, items might only be instantaneously transported to a random location somewhere in the same Universe from which they started. Such shifts appear to exploit a spongy substrata of quantum wormholes underlying perhaps an infinite number of different Realities, including our own. With proper tuning, the sub-atomic (quarkian) structure of a target object may be induced to 'fall' through the quantum foam into a different location, or an entirely different universe. The process requires enormous amounts of energy, and painfully precise timing.
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-- "Tracing Evolution of Cosmos From Its Simplest Elements", by CLAUDIA DREIFUS, 4-28-98, The New York Times
-- "Anything goes", New Scientist, 6-6-98, and Max Tegmark's "theory of everything" ["http://www.sns.ias.edu/~max/toe.html"] -- QUANTUM BALLS, In Brief, New Scientist, 16 October 1999 -- "Physical Laws Collide in a Black Hole Bet" by GEORGE JOHNSON, April 7, 1998, the New York Times Power laws may help determine the energy levels required to open doorways to other universes, or in time itself. The probability of a given event (like the opening of an interdimensional portal) occuring may be related to a power of its size. Self-organised criticality is one characteristic of phenomena adhering to the principles of power laws. In self-organized criticality, many small packets of potential energy become stored within a given location or circumstance, in such a way as to be all linked with one another in terms of big changes in all being possibly triggered by a small change to just one or a few of the packets or particles involved. In general, the larger such an event, the less likely that it will occur naturally. I.e., large earthquakes or avalanches take place less often than small ones. Note that particles may often pass between universes and even perhaps travel through time at the quantum level, routinely. But larger objects built of these same particles (such as human beings), do not seem to naturally do so in anything less than geologic time (timespans much longer than an individual human life span). Observation of still larger bodies such as stars and planets indicate no such mobility in those either, over a period of centuries at least. If the power laws have any sort of relationship to locality (which at least in some cases it appears they do), then some regions of the universe-- or points along the timeline-- may be more prone than others to allow jumps between universes or time periods for large objects like people or vessels . Another implication of this may be that far less power would be required to move a single human being across such barriers, than a large spacecraft or other massive object. And a tiny nanotechnology spaceprobe would be perhaps the smallest useful device we could send through, while also costing us the least in terms of power expenditures. This might also be true for aliens thousands of lightyears distant, or an alternative human civilization a few universes over from our own. Note that if something significantly less than infinite power is required for any size object to shift through the barriers, then theoretically objects of almost any conceivable size could be pushed through-- as it appears that technological advances will eventually provide such power levels to a given society so predisposed (at least in very brief releases). But of course we're discussing extremes here-- it would likely be rare that anyone would have a good or benevolent reason to shift a star or planet through such barriers. So relevant goals would likely encompass much smaller masses-- surely nothing larger than the mass of a small moon or large asteroid or comet, for instance. And usually much smaller masses, such as a large spacecraft. But there might be still other ways to lessen the power requirements for such shifts. For example, the strange properties of certain types of harnessed singularities may prove useful-- although it remains to be seen how such mini-alternate universes in their own right might interact with the larger universes we hope to breach. Specifically, the boundary layers or related effects between our own universe and the mini-universes of trapped or artificial singularities may be manipulated to use gravity or other elemental forces to aid our quest for inter-dimensional and/or timeline travel, as is described elsewhere in this document. One of the desired effects might include a method to lessen the effective mass of the object undergoing dimensional shift. There's perhaps several ways to accomplish this, but the most useful might depend upon modification of the boundary layers between universes. A capacity to scale down the effective mass of an object for shift should reduce the power requirement. Indeed, such an effect might be essential to enable shifting actions whatsoever. A few of the circa 2000 AD concepts possibly relevant to this include shadow mass, Q-balls, negative gravitic energy, dark matter, exotic matter, Van Den Broeck strange bubbles, and Alcubierre spacetime warps.
Something else to consider is this: as human technology becomes ever more powerful and efficient, at ever smaller scales (including the quantum), self-organised criticality may become a more important factor, reducing certainty and reliability related to our most advanced technologies-- such as TME transport. For as we drive our technologies to operate at every smaller levels, we also increase the probability of encountering cascade failures and numerous other glitches, since we'll be pushing our devices ever closer to the threshold of reaching self-organised criticality. -- WLO: November/December 1999: Lessons from the sand-pit by Robert Matthews, November/December 1999, (http://www.weforum.org may be a related URL); and other sources -- "Warp factor one" by Robert Matthews, New Scientist, 12 June 1999 -- New Scientist: Star trekking ["http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns223420"] by Robert Matthews From New Scientist magazine, 15 April 2000; Source: http://xxx.lanl.gov/ (archive gr-qc, abstract 0003092) -- In Lab's High-Speed Collisions, Things Just Vanish ["http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/29/science/29blac.html?ei=5058&en=bbf76f8ed7bacbfb&ex=1112763600&partner=IWON&pagewanted=print&position=] By KENNETH CHANG; March 29, 2005 |
After some experimentation (including losses of ships and crews), it's found that shifter craft may automatically return to the original Universes/times from which they launched, so long as the original energy application for transport is not relaxed until return is desired, and certain other aspects are also manipulated in particular ways. Of course, this makes for a mind boggling power drain for the vessel in question, so long as it remains within a foreign universe or time frame, but this drain also seems to help insure its safe return home, as well as a measure of protection from inadvertant visits to Universes with physical laws incompatible with our own (TME tech seems compatible across-the-board of realities, but the same is not necessarily true for other technologies making up our vessels, or even for our most basic biological functions).
The discovery of the requirement for an immense and constant power drain on the shifters early on results in specially designed expeditionary craft being outfitted with exotic power sources unlike any others ever built into mobile objects smaller than moons or planetoids (at this time). These power sources are Pacop-Hostel star reactors. Artificial miniature stars bound within a combination of powerful magnetics and advanced buffer fields. Such power sources come in two intimately orbiting pairs, along with a fifth unpaired star to complete the cycle. Within the pairs, one star powers the buffer field which contains the other in its pair, and vice versa. The singular star is left to other means, allowing necessary adjustments to the entire group. The mini orbits of all five are tight and fast, which help keep the device reasonably compact while also reducing certain other problems related to the technology. The miniature stars differ significantly from the natural nuclear furnaces found in space. They are almost negligible in mass compared to their natural cousins, and burn heavier elements more typical of older stars than younger ones. A combination of the slow fusion burn and fast flash fission techniques are cleverly utilized in them to make their temperatures and other characteristics more manageable via existing buffers and other means. Usually extracted energy is drawn off only the fifth stage star in the cycle, and the cycle as a whole is periodically fed via appropriate raw mass applied to the first stage star of the five. The other stars draw their own replenishment with plasma/gas exchanges among themselves and the first and fifth stage stars in the group.
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-- Sources include a FAQ (list of Frequently Asked Questions) on an early version of author and physicist Dr. Michio Kaku's web site; eventually he established a new site at "http://www.mkaku.org/", but I have not verified if all the content of the original was transferred there.
-- Tests show 'artificial sun' is reliable ["http://www.physorg.com/news88097920.html"] by United Press International; January 15, 2007; physorg.com |
The "stars" utilized in Pacop-Hostel star reactors are actually relatives to "Q-balls" theorized in the late 20th century: spheroids of unusual quark associations, which externally resemble anomalous stars, but internally are close kin to singularities, with physical laws inside varying from those outside in proportion to the Q-ball's overall size and other factors. One of the earliest discoveries about Q-balls was that bombarding a good-sized one with protons offered a substantial energy yield as a result. This technology is surprisingly versatile, ultimately becoming to energy storage and generation what nanotechnology is to electro-mechanical devices and operations. Pacop-Hostel reactor technology can be scaled up and down almost infinitely, eventually ranging from tiny P-H power packs the size of 20th century pinheads supplying gnat-sized individual buffer field units for years at a time, to behemoth complexes the size of small 20th century Earth cities powering entire worldlets or particular types of extreme machines for centuries or even millennia without maintenance.
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-- Some Q-ball references from New Scientist (date stamp 8-30-97)
As of early 2002, humanity may have found natural variants of Q-balls or quark stars in space. -- Quark stars point to new matter ["http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1922000/1922574.stm"] By Richard Black, 10 April, 2002; BBC News Online -- Two Stars Defy Current Theories ["http://www.latimes.com/news/science/wire/sns-ap-bizarre-star0410apr10.story?coll=sns-ap-science-headlines"] By PAUL RECER, Associated Press; April 10 2002, Los Angeles Times -- APOD: 2002 April 14 - RX J185635-375: Candidate Quark Star ["http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020414.html"] by Robert Nemiroff and Jerry Bonnell, NASA -- Collapsed Stars May Aid Understanding of Matter ["http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-000026845apr15.story?coll=la-news-science"]; April 15 2002; Los Angeles Times -- Strange Stars Odd features hint at novel matter Science News Online, April 20, 2002 ["http://www.sciencenews.org/20020420/fob8.asp"]; www.sciencenews.org Could there be 'mirror' star systems and life forms among the outer rim of our galaxy which are practically invisible to us? These entities, which seem to resemble Q-balls in some ways, may exist under a set of physical laws somewhat removed from that to which we are accustomed. That is, they still are affected by gravity, yet may not exude photons like normal star systems as they burn (and other differences could exist as well, such as a far faster burn-through of fuel and shorter lifespan overall; most mirror stars may well have burnt out and collapsed into black holes long ago throughout the universe). It appears the maximum stable mass of such a mirror star would be around half that of our own Sun-- and this determination seems to match nicely with the phenomenon known as MACHOS (which is the label applied to these bizzare mirror masses). The mystery of MACHOS may well continue for another century, due to the difficulty involved in resolving the questions they raise. -- "There Could Be Whole Worlds Of Invisible Matter Out There" Author: Hazel Muir New Scientist magazine, issue 13th Feb. 1999 It may be possible to create medicine ball-sized electronic black holes in the lab-- and relatively easy, at that. Such black holes in theory would not pose a danger to ordinary matter or light, but only electrons-- i.e., electrical energy brought near the beast might disappear into it forever, but nothing else. The more familiar matter-eating type of black hole created in the same setting could devour the entire Earth in less than an hour after its birth. -- BBC News | Sci/Tech | The home-made black hole By Dr David Whitehouse, November 16, 1999, http://www.bbc.co.uk/ The traditional notion of a black hole may be wrong. Another explanation for the phenomena may be gravastars. Gravastars could be strange bubbles of very dense matter: shells of cold, dense matter, filled with an exotic type of space. The exotic space would repel any matter falling into the shell, forcing it back into the shell itself. Outside the shell, an enormous gravitational field emanating from it would pull mass in just like a theoretical black hole. So the outer shell would be like a strange porous windshield-- some things might splatter on the outside, while things with greater momentum might get inside for a bit, then bounce back to splatter against the interior side of the shell after all. The shell might be much like a standing wave of gravitational shock energy in space-time, separating the normal space outside from the exotic space inside. The idea of gravastars may pose fewer unsolved mathematical and physical problems than the concept of black holes. The creation of gravastars might also be an explanation for the source of gamma ray bursters. The entire visible universe could possibly be inside one enormous gravastar. One difference between black holes and gravastars would be gravastars would allow the escape of more energy than black holes, as matter fell into them. -- Black holes fact or fiction? by Hazel Muir; 16-Jan-2002; New Scientist; Contact: Claire Bowles; claire.bowles@rbi.co.uk 44-207-331-2751; New Scientist; 19th January 2002 ; RELATED URLS: www.arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0109035 and http://www.newscientist.com |
TME shifting itself is intimately related to the peculiarities of Q-balls, thereby making Pacop-Hostel power sources and TME shifting convenient bed-fellows in many craft and experimental TME technologies over a period of centuries. P-H faux stars must be of a certain critical mass/size to enable the shifting phenomena commonly associated with TME-tech -- i.e., the P-H power packs of hand weapons and home generators do not typically allow shifting (though there is a somewhat humorous episode in history where some alarm is raised that they might, via some sort of accident). Realtime shifts (same universe) require at least one faux star roughly 120 meters in diameter (based on reasonable mass expectations of the scale), while interdimensional shifts (to alternate universes) require at minimum one faux star .69 km in diameter. Increasing the number of faux stars involved diminishes the size/mass required somewhat in individual reactor stars of the group. The shifting capacity of a critical mass faux star is prodigious...therefore TME tech access must be tightly regulated to avoid planet-size catastrophes...
Another pertinant item in regards to TME shifting appears to be that the alternative dimensionality of the universe as a whole adheres to a "fractal" structure (which allows a surprising 'scaling up and down' of Realities, while also insuring a certain consistency about some matters across Universes), while alternative timelines related to any particular moment or event within a single Universe follow a "chaos" pattern short term "downstream" (or into the future), which thereafter settles into an "anti-fractal" or "Bejan" distribution (branching like a tree or stream) in the intermediate and long term future (the well known wave/particle duality and Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle also applies to these matters) -- with rules of interplay between the two mediums apparently staggeringly complex, involving various cosmological elements and an intriguing, seemingly self-organizing matrix (referred to by some as "First Cause") which seems intimately related to biological lifestreams and rarefied sentience-derived event wells (probability-based warping of biomass-related destinies, similar to the gravity wells of spacetime, but apparently 'further down the food chain'-- that is, spacetime gravity wells are often dependent on the much more subtle event wells for their structure and development) spanning all Universes-- and beyond our present capacities to resolve. However, the potential for some form of practical time-travel too seems to be implied in the mathematics...with exploitation of high level biomass tracks across generations offering something akin to "wormholes" suitable for travel into the past via uninterrupted historical bloodlines....of course, not all these details are yet known in 2500.
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Four mathematical laws govern many structures, and cycles of growth and recession in nature/the physical world. The "Renormalization Group Theory" offers humanity one way to tap into these relationships in a practical manner. One short term implication of these findings is that engineers may be able to make do with smaller destructive sample sizes to determine the useful life of something like an automotive battery.
--- Natural Cyclical Events Seen To Follow Fractal Pattern ["http://unisci.com/stories/20002/0419002.htm"] By Jonathan Sherwood , unisci.com, 19-Apr-2000 -- EurekaAlert! concerning Duke University's Adrian Bejan's tree and watershed structures possibly being anti-fractal geometry in terms of progression and development (on or about 7-1-97) -- "Anything goes", New Scientist, 6-6-98, and Max Tegmark's "theory of everything" ["http://www.sns.ias.edu/~max/toe.html"] Applying Quantum Mechanics to Bees and Honey, by MALCOLM W. BROWNE, April 7, 1998, the New York Times The new book Quantum Evolution by Dr. Johnjoe McFadden observes that the DNA of life imposes order down to the very level of the molecular structure itself. Which means that the essence of life also may reach into the strange realm of quantum mechanics. "In quantum mechanics, everything that can happen will happen." The quote above offers profound implications for any system based upon or interacting with the universe on the quantum level. Elementary particles like electrons and photons act as both waves and particles, and when offered a choice of paths take them all simultaneously. Only when they are measured or otherwise interfered with do their wave functions collapse, coalescing into a single particle and its determinate path in our spacetime. It may be that there are many universes, with such multiple personality particles/waves occupying them all simultaneously until forced to choose only one. Parallel realities to our own. Only recently did scientists discover that objects larger than elementary particles could also participate in this strange multi-universe existence. Namely, molecules like fullerenes. The diameter of fullerene molecules is comparable to that of the double helix of DNA, or basic constituent of life itself. Thus it appears DNA may also be able to inhabit multiple universes simultaneously. It may be that at least some mutations in life within our reality come about due in some way to the multiversal experiences of our DNA. But if so, how exactly does the DNA slip into and out of the multiversal state? Apparently it would enter the multiverse at times when it is adequately isolated from our own reality, and exit again after it has interacted somehow with the multiverse itself. The isolated state appears to involve at least at times some sort of desperate condition on the part of the DNA, such as stymied growth or reproduction: perhaps stemming from a shortage of food, and/or other stymied exchanges or input/output related to its environment. The DNA might then go multiversal, sampling many possible genetic combinations until it finds one which will dissolve the roadblock in its native universe, then return to affect the change. Experiments with bacteria seem to show just such preferential mutations in action-- at least in some cases. In a group of bacteria facing dire circumstances, typically the majority expire while-- sometimes-- a tiny minority seem to suddenly find the key to surviving the ordeal, in something (from a laboratory perspective) often as spectacular as an escape by the famous Harry Houdini. Such preferential mutations would also offer a neat solution to the mathematics that seem to prove the probability of life arising in the universe at random to be nil. Quantum accelerated evolution could be the loophole allowing life to bypass the obstacles suggested by the math. -- Is Quantum Evolution The New Science Of Life? ["http://unisci.com/stories/20001/0204006.htm"] (Katie Minton possible author), 04-Feb-2000, unisci.com, as well as other sources "...quantum effects influence objects much, much bigger than atoms, possibly even important molecules in the human body." "...even very hefty molecules can experience quantum effects -- and, thus, can literally be in more than one place at a time..." -- Spooky subatomic behavior seen on grander scale ["http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/02/22/QUANTUM.TMP&type=science"] by Keay Davidson; February 22, 2004; sfgate.com There are indications that under certain conditions existing organisms may make spontaneous quantum leaps in functionality and complexity-- all with little or no warning beforehand. And sometimes with little after-the-fact evidence of a clear transition phase, as well. -- SPONTANEOUS ORDER, EVOLUTION, AND LIFE From Science Frontiers Digest of Scientific Anomalies ["http://www.knowledge.co.uk/frontiers/"] #69, MAY-JUN 1990 by William R. Corliss, citing M. Mitchell Waldrop; "Spontaneous Order, Evolution, and Life," Science, 247:1543, 1990 |
Increasing the size/mass/number of faux stars used slightly increases the reliability of TME shifting, but quickly grows prohibitively expensive for little incremental gain as things scale up.
Of course, use of Pacop-Hostel star reactors aboard interdimensional craft-- plus the need to carry raw mass to regularly feed the reactors-- make these vessels some of the largest craft of their time overall, as well as increasing their acceleration costs to frightful heights. Fortunately, size, mass, and acceleration penalties matter far less for an interdimensional shifter than for a more typical spacecraft. After all, shifters only need move across four dimensional spacetime for very short distances-- almost always less than one Astronomical Unit (Earth's orbital distance from the Sun)-- and even that somewhat infrequently. Also, having P-H star reactors onboard provides at least an expensive way to generate anti-matter if desired, as well as plentiful fusion and ion drive fuel.
So a shifter may be a pretty big and slow spacecraft compared to many, but it can also blink entirely out of one universe and into another one to escape pursuers, and theoretically would enjoy unlimited fuel of various kinds so long as its store of raw mass held out, and/or it could obtain more mass compatible with its reactor feed process. Too, these vessels enjoy far more raw power than almost any other vessel of their period-- power roughly equivalent to that of an industrialized moon, or major warship-- along with the external buffer fields and other devices to use it.
Large P-H reactor craft enjoy an added benefit from their faux stars: considerably enhanced towing and other gross manipulation of external bodies such as other craft, or even masses such as asteroids and comets in the void (they just can't move anything very quickly-- sort of reminiscent of a 20th century tractor or bull dozer). The most powerful P-H reactor craft of this time and decades to come prove capable of even nudging small planets into detectably different orbits, WITHOUT the normal extra equipment and power sources required by lesser craft. Only natural stars and the largest planets defy the raw strength of these vessels-- and those they may just TME shift instead.
20th century scientists would note the mass of the faux stars alone isn't sufficient for this degree of gravitational manipulation-- and they'd be right. The manipulative capacities instead come from a clever exploitation of Q-ball composition, via temporary distortions of the body's integrity, which in turn bring about reactions in local spacetime (as we're essentially talking about the movements in the boundary layers between two separate universes here-- the universe inside the Q-ball singularity, and the universe outside the Q-ball). This same effect may also be used to propel a reactor vessel itself, but as of this period isn't deemed as practical as more conventional methods of propulsion.
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If our Universe is but one of many, 'contact' or limited interaction between them might occur at certain spots (such as how the surfaces of a collection of soap bubbles might touch), with results similar to hidden extra mass residing in our Universe. Such a 'shadow' mass might be perceived in a way similar to that of dark matter.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Might alien-piloted versions of these craft faraway be detected by our instruments as 'dark matter'? END NOTE. -- WHEN DIFFERENT UNIVERSES RUB TOGETHER From Science Frontiers Digest of Scientific Anomalies ["http://www.knowledge.co.uk/frontiers/"] #100, JUL-AUG 1995 by William R. Corliss, citing John Travis; "How Quixotic Is SLAC's Quest to Detect 'Crazy Particle'?" Science, 267:1424, 1995 Ten or eleven dimensions might make up the fabric underlying reality. Some theories see those dimensions beyond the four we are familiar with as being so small we might never be able to detect them. New theories suggest the extra dimensions might not be so small after all. Perhaps only a single millimeter of physical distance separates one dimension from another, in the latest concepts. It may be that gravity is the only physical force which transcends all these dimensions-- and that may explain why gravity is so weak in the four dimensions we know, compared to other forces like electricity and magnetism. Gravity is in effect diluted by the necessity to fill all the dimensions rather than merely four. It may be that locating a 'boundary area' where forces of electricity and magnetism (as well as the others peculiar to the four main dimensions) fail or decline to an effect no stronger than gravity could alert us to weak spots between our own universe and others. Then, we might find a way to exploit the common gravity among all the dimensions to punch through that spot, and that way enter an alien universe. Another detection method of such weak points might be to locate 'shadow masses', or gravity effects in our universe which may only be explained by large masses in a foreign universe. Of course, such exploitation of the ten or eleven dimensions and other universes may also relate in various ways to time travel, or faster-than-light propulsion. One bit of evidence for the ideas presented above would be if it was found that gravity is much stronger over tiny distances than it is at larger ones. For instance, higher strength over distances substantially less than a millimeter, compared to the effect over a foot, or a mile. -- Scientists dream of parallel worlds ["http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/examiner/hotnews/stories/24/cosmos.dtl"] By Keay Davidson EXAMINER SCIENCE WRITER July 24, 2000, San Francisco Examiner, URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/examiner/hotnews/stories/24/cosmos.dtl Extra dimensions (beyond 4D) underlying reality might be as large as a millimeter in size. There's a good chance that we can test this for final confirmation or falsity by 2010. The gravitational constant has only been measured down to about the distance of a millimeter as of 2000 AD. The other universes implied by these theories might be the source of the extra mass we have detected in our universe but cannot pinpoint-- dark matter. Yet another possibility if the theories prove out: By 2005 we might be able to make real black holes on Earth in certain particle colliders. -- Unseen Dimensions Could Explain Weakness Of Gravity ["http://unisci.com/stories/20003/0718001.htm"] By Paul Preuss, 18-Jul-2000, UniSci Daily, http://unisci.com/ If there are indeed more dimensions to reality than the four with which 20th century humanity are familiar, then any change occuring in one of those extra dimensions could cause variations in the physical constants which define our universe and existence (such as Newton's gravitational constant and miscellaneous others). Note that such changes in universal physical constants could be catastrophic to us and anyone else living in our Universe-- if the changes were not expressly local in nature. On the other hand, such changes specifically limited to a small locale could be very interesting. For example, they could offer a weak spot in the barriers between different Universes-- perhaps allowing objects to pass from one to the other (what might happen to such objects during and after passage is open to speculation). And what if some technology were developed which could locally change one or more of the physical constants? Then we might be able to create gateways between universes at will. However, the potential danger of such experiments cannot be over-emphasized. If such effects were not restricted to very small local regions, the entire Universe itself might dissolve. On the other hand, given the vastness of our Universe and its 10 billion plus years past history, wherein a huge variety of cosmological phenomena have already occurred and continue to occur, and such local changes of certain universal constants likely take place periodically, with no detectable ill effect, perhaps we have nothing to worry about. Maybe natural forces tend to help contain such disturbances, and repair them, automatically. In which case we could be free to do as we please in this regard. -- Is nothing sacred? by John D. Barrow, From New Scientist, 24 July 1999 Amazingly, even gravity itself weighs something, in the grand scheme of things. For instance, the gravitational energy involved in producing the Earth's gravity well amounts to some 3 trillion tons, compared to the total weight of the Earth itself (6 billion trillion tons). But the gravitic energy weight is negative-- that is, it effectively subtracts 3 trillion tons from the Earth's total weight, rather than adding to it. -- Scientific American: Science and the Citizen: The Nonnegligible Lightness of Gravity: February 2000 ["http://www.sciam.com/2000/0200issue/0200scicit2.html"] by Graham P. Collins, Physics |
The great size of interdimensional shifter craft also suit the multi-purpose nature of their design. Since many earlier TME craft were lost, these last specially designed expeditionary craft are planned to carry sufficient supplies and equipment to operate indefinitely in any reasonably hospitable Universe, should they lose the ability to return home, or be delayed for some reason. These craft are fully capable of spawning their own self-sufficient colony, under almost any conceivable circumstances, or simply continuing to explore whatever Reality they find themselves in, for literally decades, or even millennia.
Besides the P-H reactors, the shifter craft also possess more conventional power sources, but the Pacop-Hostel star reactors are the only devices capable of providing the continuous power required to maintain a safe auto-return shift.
TME shift technology seems somewhat picky concerning the initial spacetime coordinates of a shift target (It may be that proximity to intersecting dimensional membranes is significant here-- or perhaps it's simply a case of alignments between large masses in our own Universe and whichever alternate Universe a particular shift event happens to develop an affinity for at that moment). In some cases triggering a TME event seems to do nothing at all, while in others the target obviously disappears. Some theorize that the 'duds' actually are simply instances where the original target switches places with an exact duplicate from an alternate reality beyond our capacities to detect differences, or else the original target itself disappears but a 'shift clone' is also created by some obscure element of the process to take its place in our own universe.
| -- Breakthrough! #21 (on or about 11-10-97) regarding M Theory |
TME shift technology promises still more intriguing possibilities than both EM and ERP transport. How so? EM and ERP technologies both require complete conversion of objects into compatible information streams. While such information streams are very useful, they still suffer many limitations. For example, neither lightspeed EM transport or ERP transport may deliver anti-matter fuel to spacecraft; such a delivery system would greatly enhance the exploitation of deep space. EM related replicators are too inefficient to be used as fuel generators, as well. And many citizens would prefer a less intrusive transport process than the conceptually abhorrent disintegration often required in both EM and ERP transport devices.
Enter TME shift technology, which seems capable of moving objects whole (without disintegration) across infinite spacetime distances with no need for casually perceptible conversion whatsoever. Even antimatter seems to shift without undue problems, unlike with EM or ERP tech. Though TME is very resource intensive at present, theoretically it seems possible that TME shift efficiency may eventually make routine fuel supply via shift to spacecraft actually cost-effective. Better yet, TME also offers the heady possibility of simply shifting universes to attain wholly new and vast territories and resources, far nearer time-wise than the far reaches of our own galaxy. For example, there should be literally billions and billions of pristine, uninhabited Earths, along with resource-rich solar systems too in alternate Realities, all accessible via instantaneous TME shift-- according to theory, anyway.
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If the physical laws or certain critical values embedded in the foundation of our Universe were even slightly different, life as we know it could not exist at all.
-- Star Physics Prove the Delicacy of Life ["http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/astronomy/carbonstar_000607.html"] By Lee Siegel, 06 July 2000 |
The problem with TME shift technology is its complexity and seemingly irresolvable unreliability. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. You practically have to use it statistically like a cosmic game of chance to get anywhere near the goals you set for it. Objects are often lost forever in TME shifts. Crews and spacecraft too disappear without a trace in some instances, even after many prior successes had scientists and engineers convinced they had all the bugs worked out at last.
But the intense interest in the possible spin offs of reliable TME shift tech (along with the mouth-watering prospects of whole new galaxies to explore just the other side of the phenomenon, as well as a maddeningly unverifiable hint that some TME shifts offer time-anomalous destinations perhaps related to our own Universe-- i.e., expeditions may arrive between two galaxies many billions of lightyears from Earth, and a billion years in the past-- or maybe a billion in the future) drive R & D hard into this maze of complexity, surprises, and dead ends.
| -- A FAQ (list of Frequently Asked Questions) on an early version of author and physicist Dr. Michio Kaku's web site; eventually he established a new site at "http://www.mkaku.org/" but I have not verified if all the content of the original was transferred there. |
Soon virtually all expeditionary craft venturing through the TME shift medium are heavily equipped for both long term exploration and colonization-- as they might not be able to return for a long, long time (if ever). Several of these expeditions appear to survive and prosper at their destinations (the Far Colonies)-- and once established, often are able to collaborate (haphazardly) via TME shift-based communications and successfully set up two-way TME transport schedules (not recommended for sentient travel however) with their points of origin here in our Universe. The reasons why one expedition succeeds and another fails in such matters continue to elude investigators for quite some time to come. END NOTE.
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-- Is God in the Details? By Kenneth Silber, REASON, July 1999, http://www.nekotech.com/Reason/
It's getting more and more difficult to prove the impossibility of time travel into the past (and so its close relation as well: faster-than-light transport)-- at least under some pretty extreme conditions. Closed time loops (or "closed timelike curves") look possible according to quantum theory. In such loops a traveler's own perceptions of time would continue to seem normal (including the time kept on their clocks), even as they proceeded towards and ended up in the same spot/point in spacetime from which they began. In the particular type of loops investigated here, travel into the past does not/cannot change the events of the timeline. The concepts do not suggest an artificial means for time travel could be built. Instead, they may point to ways to resolve various uncertainties regarding the Big Bang which created our universe-- i.e., such loops might allow a universe to give birth to itself (and perhaps others too). -- Evading quantum barrier to time travel by I. Peterson, April 11, 1998, Science News Online, http://www.sciencenews.org/ |
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