Dr. Who had his Tardis, H.G. Wells had his Time Machine and Harry Potter well, he just used magic. But UBC Okanagan has a real-life time lord91裸聊视频攎athematics and physics instructor Ben Tippett.
After some serious number crunching, Tippet has come up with what he says is a mathematical model for a viable time machine.
In a recently published study about the feasibility of time travel, Tippett, whose field of expertise is Einstein91裸聊视频檚 theory of general relativity, and who studies black holes and science fiction when he91裸聊视频檚 not teaching, used math and physics to create a formula that describes a method for time travel.
91裸聊视频淧eople think of time travel as something fictional,91裸聊视频� said Tippett. 91裸聊视频淎nd we tend to think it91裸聊视频檚 not possible because we don91裸聊视频檛 actually do it. But, mathematically, it is possible.91裸聊视频�
Ever since H.G. Wells published his book Time Machine in 1885, people have been curious about time travel91裸聊视频攁nd scientists have worked to solve or disprove the theory. In 1915, Albert Einstein announced his theory of general relativity, stating that gravitational fields are caused by distortions in the fabric of space and time. More than 100 years later, the LIGO Scientific Collaboration91裸聊视频攁n international team of physics institutes and research groups91裸聊视频攁nnounced the detection of gravitational waves generated by colliding black holes billions of light years away, confirming Einstein91裸聊视频檚 theory.
The division of space into three dimensions, with time in a separate dimension by itself, is incorrect, said Tippett. The four dimensions should be imagined simultaneously, where different directions are connected, as a space-time continuum. Using Einstein91裸聊视频檚 theory, Tippett explains that the curvature of space-time accounts for the curved orbits of the planets.
In 91裸聊视频渇lat91裸聊视频� or uncurved space-time, planets and stars would move in straight lines. In the vicinity of a massive star, space-time geometry becomes curved and the straight trajectories of nearby planets will follow the curvature and bend around the star.
91裸聊视频淭he time direction of the space-time surface also shows curvature. There is evidence showing the closer to a black hole we get, time moves slower,91裸聊视频� said Tippett.
91裸聊视频淢y model of a time machine uses the curved space-time91裸聊视频攖o bend time into a circle for the passengers, not in a straight line. That circle takes us back in time.91裸聊视频�
While it is possible to describe this type of time travel using a mathematical equation, Tippett doubts that anyone will ever build a machine to make it work.
91裸聊视频淗.G. Wells popularized the term 91裸聊视频榯ime machine91裸聊视频� and he left people with the thought that an explorer would need a machine or special box to actually accomplish time travel,91裸聊视频� Tippett said.
91裸聊视频淲hile is it mathematically feasible, it is not yet possible to build a space-time machine because we need materials91裸聊视频攚hich we call exotic matter91裸聊视频攖o bend space-time in these impossible ways, but they have yet to be discovered.91裸聊视频�
For his research, Tippett created a mathematical model of a Traversable Acausal Retrograde Domain in Space-time (TARDIS). He describes it as a bubble of space-time geometry which carries its contents backward and forward through space and time as it tours a large circular path. The bubble moves through space-time at speeds greater than the speed of light at times, allowing it to move backward in time.
91裸聊视频淪tudying space-time is both fascinating and problematic. And it91裸聊视频檚 also a fun way to use math and physics,91裸聊视频� says Tippett. 91裸聊视频淓xperts in my field have been exploring the possibility of mathematical time machines since 1949. And my research presents a new method for doing it.91裸聊视频�
Tippett91裸聊视频檚 research was recently published in the IOPscience Journal Classical and Quantum Gravity.
