Scientists have created a mathematical model of the time machine. Physicists have proven the possibility of creating a time machine. Scientists confirm the reality of time travel
Theoretical physicist Ben Tippett of the University of British Columbia, along with University of Maryland astrophysicist David Zang, have created what they say is a working mathematical model of a "time machine" that exploits the curvature of the universe's spacetime. The study and the findings of the scientists were published in the journal Classical and Quantum Gravity.
Scientists based on the general theory of relativity derived a mathematical model, which they called TARDIS or Traversable Acausal Retrograde Domain in Space-time (“Passable acausal retrograde zones in space-time”). But do not rush to rejoice at the opportunity to visit your long-dead grandmother in the past, scientists say. There is a problem that does not allow you to check the correctness of their mathematical model, but more on that later.
“People think of time travel as science fiction. In fact, we think it's impossible only because we haven't actually tried it yet," says theoretical physicist and mathematician Ben Tippett.
“However, a time machine is possible, at least mathematically,” adds the scientist.
The model of scientists is based on the idea that there is a fourth dimension of the Universe, which is time. In turn, this suggests the existence of a space-time continuum in which different directions of space and time are connected by the fabric of the universe.
Einstein's theory of relativity links the gravitational effects of the universe to the curvature of spacetime, the phenomenon behind the elliptical orbits of planets and stars. In the presence of "flat" or non-curved space-time, the planets would move in a straight line. However, the theory of relativity says that the geometry of space-time becomes curved in the presence of very massive objects, causing them to spin around stars.
Tippett and Tsang believe that not only space can be curved in the Universe. Under the action of an object with a large mass, time can also be curved. As an example, they cite the space around black holes.
“The course of the movement of time within space-time can also be curved. An example is black holes. The closer we get to them, the slower time begins to flow for us,” Tippett says.
“My model of a time machine uses curved space-time to make time for passengers a circle instead of a straight line. And moving in this circle can send us back in time.”
To test the hypothesis, scientists propose to create something like a bubble that can carry everyone who will be in it through time and space along a curved path. If this bubble moves at a speed faster than the speed of light (according to scientists, this is also mathematically possible), then this will allow everyone who will be in the bubble to move back in time.
The idea becomes clearer if we look at the scheme proposed by Tippett. It has two actors: one is inside the bubble/time machine (person A), the other is an external observer outside the bubble (person B).
The arrow of time, which under normal conditions (that is, in our Universe) always moves forward, in the presented diagram makes the past become the present (indicated by black arrows). According to the scientist, each of these people will feel the movement of time differently:
“Inside the bubble, entity A will see events B periodically change and then reverse. An observer B outside the bubble will see that two versions of A exit from the same location: the hour hand turns to the right and the other to the left.”
In other words, an outside observer will see two versions of objects inside the time machine: one version will evolve forward in time, the other backward.
It all sounds very interesting, of course, but Tippett and Zang say we have not reached such a level of technology that this hypothesis can be tested in practice. We simply do not have the materials suitable for building such a time machine.
“While mathematically it might work, we can’t build such a machine to travel within space-time because we don’t have the materials to do it. And the materials here will require exotic. They will allow you to bend space-time. Unfortunately, science has not yet invented anything like this,” says Tippett.
The idea of Tippet and Zang echoes another idea of a time machine, the so-called Alcubierre bubble, which should also be based on exotic materials to move in space and time. Only in this case we are not talking about circular motion in the field of space-time, but about motion by compressing the space in front of you and expanding it behind.
Theoretical physicist Ben Tippett of the University of British Columbia, along with University of Maryland astrophysicist David Zang, have created what they say is a working mathematical model of a "time machine" that exploits the curvature of the universe's spacetime. The study and the findings of the scientists were published in the journal Classical and Quantum Gravity.
Scientists based on the general theory of relativity derived a mathematical model, which they called TARDIS or Traversable Acausal Retrograde Domain in Space-time (“Passable acausal retrograde zones in space-time”). But do not rush to rejoice at the opportunity to visit your long-dead grandmother in the past, scientists say. There is a problem that does not allow you to check the correctness of their mathematical model, but more on that later.
“Think of time travel as science fiction. In fact, we think it's impossible only because we haven't actually tried it yet," says theoretical physicist and mathematician Ben Tippett.
“However, a time machine is possible, at least mathematically,” adds the scientist.
The model of scientists is based on the idea that there is a fourth dimension of the Universe, which is time. In turn, this suggests the existence of a space-time continuum in which different directions of space and time are connected by the fabric of the universe.
Einstein's theory of relativity links the gravitational effects of the universe to the curvature of spacetime, the phenomenon behind the elliptical orbits of planets and stars. In the presence of "flat" or non-curved space-time, the planets would move in a straight line. However, the theory of relativity says that the geometry of space-time becomes curved in the presence of very massive objects, causing them to spin around stars.
Tippett and Tsang believe that not only space can be curved in the Universe. Under the action of an object with a large mass, time can also be curved. As an example, they cite the space around black holes.
“The course of the movement of time within space-time can also be curved. An example is black holes. The closer we get to them, the slower time begins to flow for us,” Tippett says.
“My model of a time machine uses curved space-time to make time for passengers a circle instead of a straight line. And moving in this circle can send us back in time.”
To test the hypothesis, scientists propose to create something like a bubble that can carry everyone who will be in it through time and space along a curved path. If this bubble moves at a speed faster than the speed of light (according to scientists, this is also mathematically possible), then this will allow everyone who will be in the bubble to move back in time.
The idea becomes clearer if we look at the scheme proposed by Tippett. There are two actors in it: one is inside the bubble/time machine (person A), the other is an external observer located outside the bubble (person B).
The arrow of time, which under normal conditions (that is, in our Universe) always moves forward, in the presented diagram makes the past become the present (indicated by black arrows). According to the scientist, each of these people will feel the movement of time differently:
“Inside the bubble, entity A will see events B periodically change and then reverse. An observer B outside the bubble will see that two versions of A exit from the same location: the hour hand turns to the right and the other to the left.”
In other words, an outside observer will see two versions of objects inside the time machine: one version will evolve forward in time, the other backward.
It all sounds very interesting, of course, but Tippett and Zang say we have not reached such a level of technology that this hypothesis can be tested in practice. We simply do not have the materials suitable for building such a time machine.
“While mathematically it might work, we can’t build such a machine to travel within space-time because we don’t have the materials to do it. And the materials here will require exotic. They will allow you to bend space-time. Unfortunately, science has not yet invented anything like this,” says Tippett.
The idea of Tippet and Zang echoes another idea of a time machine, the so-called Alcubierre bubble, which should also be based on exotic materials to move in space and time. Only in this case we are not talking about circular motion in the field of space-time, but about motion by compressing the space in front of you and expanding it behind.
Physicists have managed to create a mathematical model of a time machine using the space-time curve and prove the theoretical possibility of traveling to the past or future, reports Science Alert.
Photo: sciencealert.com / B. K. Tippett
The trick is that with the help of a space-time curve, the selected time segment "bends" around hypothetical passengers placed in a capsule that slips into the past or future, moving at the speed of light.
Experts note that the device should be in the form of a "bubble" or "box" in which passengers can be and move in time.
The model rejects the idea of looking at the Universe as a three-dimensional space with a separately existing fourth dimension, and calls to cover all four dimensions simultaneously. This allows one to imagine a space-time continuum where different paths in the fabric of space-time are connected to each other.
Einstein's theory of relativity relates gravitational effects in the universe to the curvature of space-time. If spacetime were flat, the planets would move in straight lines. However, in accordance with the theory of relativity, the geometry of space-time is curved near objects with high mass, which causes the planets to revolve around their stars.
“People used to think of time travel as science fiction. And we also tend to think so, because in reality we do not. But mathematically it is possible,” said theoretical physicist Ben Tippett of the University of British Columbia in Canada.
Tippett and Tsang believe that not only can physical space warp, but the fabric of time also changes direction near objects of high mass. Astrophysicists already know that as you get closer to a black hole, time moves more slowly.
Together with fellow astrophysicist David Tsang of the University of Maryland, Tippett applied Einstein's general theory of relativity to create a mathematical model of a time machine called TARDIS.
The principle of operation of the device is similar to the Alcubierre bubble. However, in this case, the car must move along a closed curve, and an external observer will be able to see two versions of the journey: when, on the one hand, time flows as usual, and on the other, it goes in the opposite direction (photo above). Currently, scientists are concerned with how space-time can be curved.
Researchers are sure that creating a tangible "time machine" like Doc from the movie "Back to the Future" is not so difficult. It remains to find materials that have not yet been discovered by mankind.
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Theoretical physicist Ben Tippett of the University of British Columbia, along with University of Maryland astrophysicist David Zang, have created what they say is a working mathematical model of a "time machine" that exploits the curvature of the universe's spacetime. The study and the findings of the scientists were published in the journal Classical and Quantum Gravity.
Scientists based on the general theory of relativity derived a mathematical model, which they called TARDIS or Traversable Acausal Retrograde Domain in Space-time (“Passable acausal retrograde zones in space-time”). But do not rush to rejoice at the opportunity to visit your long-dead grandmother in the past, scientists say. There is a problem that does not allow you to check the correctness of their mathematical model, but more on that later.
“People think of time travel as science fiction. In fact, we think it's impossible only because we haven't actually tried it yet," says theoretical physicist and mathematician Ben Tippett.
“However, a time machine is possible, at least mathematically,” adds the scientist.
The model of scientists is based on the idea that there is a fourth dimension of the Universe, which is time. In turn, this suggests the existence of a space-time continuum in which different directions of space and time are connected by the fabric of the universe.
Einstein's theory of relativity links the gravitational effects of the universe to the curvature of spacetime, the phenomenon behind the elliptical orbits of planets and stars. In the presence of "flat" or non-curved space-time, the planets would move in a straight line. However, the theory of relativity says that the geometry of space-time becomes curved in the presence of very massive objects, causing them to spin around stars.
Tippett and Tsang believe that not only space can be curved in the Universe. Under the action of an object with a large mass, time can also be curved. As an example, they cite the space around black holes.
“The course of the movement of time within space-time can also be curved. An example is black holes. The closer we get to them, the slower time begins to flow for us,” Tippett says.
“My model of a time machine uses curved space-time to make time for passengers a circle instead of a straight line. And moving in this circle can send us back in time.”
To test the hypothesis, scientists propose to create something like a bubble that can carry everyone who will be in it through time and space along a curved path. If this bubble moves at a speed faster than the speed of light (according to scientists, this is also mathematically possible), then this will allow everyone who will be in the bubble to move back in time.
The idea becomes clearer if we look at the scheme proposed by Tippett. There are two actors in it: one is inside the bubble/time machine (person A), the other is an external observer located outside the bubble (person B).
The arrow of time, which under normal conditions (that is, in our Universe) always moves forward, in the presented diagram makes the past become the present (indicated by black arrows). According to the scientist, each of these people will feel the movement of time differently:
“Inside the bubble, entity A will see events B periodically change and then reverse. An observer B outside the bubble will see that two versions of A exit from the same location: the hour hand turns to the right and the other to the left.”
In other words, an outside observer will see two versions of objects inside the time machine: one version will evolve forward in time, the other backward.
It all sounds very interesting, of course, but Tippett and Zang say we have not reached such a level of technology that this hypothesis can be tested in practice. We simply do not have the materials suitable for building such a time machine.
“While mathematically it might work, we can’t build such a machine to travel within space-time because we don’t have the materials to do it. And the materials here will require exotic. They will allow you to bend space-time. Unfortunately, science has not yet invented anything like this,” says Tippett.
The idea of Tippet and Zang echoes another idea of a time machine, the so-called Alcubierre bubble, which should also be based on exotic materials to move in space and time. Only in this case we are not talking about circular motion in the field of space-time, but about motion by compressing the space in front of you and expanding it behind.
Previously:Physicists from the University of Queensland in Australia have set themselves the task of
simulate a computer experiment that proves the possibility of time travel at the quantum level, predicted back in 1991.
They were able to simulate the behavior of a single photon that passes through a wormhole in space-time into the past and interacts with itself.
Such a particle trajectory is called a closed timelike curve – the photon returns to the initial space-time point, i.e. its world line becomes closed.
The researchers considered two scenarios. In the first of them, the particle passes through the molehill, returning to its past, and interacts with itself. In the second scenario, the photon, forever enclosed in a closed time-like curve, interacts with another, ordinary particle.
According to the scientists, their work will make an important contribution to the unification of two great physical theories, which until now had little in common: Einstein's general theory of relativity (GR) and quantum mechanics.
Einstein's theory describes the world of stars and galaxies, while quantum mechanics explores mainly the properties of elementary particles, atoms and molecules.
– Martin Ringbauer, University of Queensland
Einstein's GR allows for the possibility of an object traveling back in time, which then falls into a closed time-like curve. However, this possibility can cause a number of paradoxes: a time traveler can, for example, prevent his parents from meeting, and this will make it impossible for him to be born.
In 1991, it was first suggested that time travel in the quantum world could rule out such paradoxes, since the properties of quantum particles are not precisely defined, according to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle.
In a computer experiment by Australian scientists, the behavior of quantum particles in such a scenario was studied for the first time. At the same time, new interesting effects were revealed, the appearance of which is impossible in standard quantum mechanics.
For example, it turned out that it is possible to accurately distinguish the various states of a quantum system, which is completely impossible if you stay within the framework of quantum theory.
Sources:
http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1361-6382/aa6549/meta;jsessionid=F0836BB9CB9CAE5578D9E6B7E07F4CF5.c1.iopscience.cld.iop.org