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http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/04/05/freaky-physics-proves-parallel-universes/?test=faces
[h1]Freaky Physics Proves Parallel Universes Exist[/h1]
By John Brandon
�-FOXNews.com
Lookpast the details of a wonky discovery�by�a group of Californiascientists --�that a quantum state is now observable with the humaneye�-- and consider its implications: Time travel may be feasible.�
Universal
Inthe movie "Back to the Future," Doc Brown builds a time machine into aDelorean. New research brings that vehicle one step closer to reality.
Lookpast the details of a wonky discovery�by�a group of Californiascientists --�that a quantum state is now observable with the humaneye�-- and consider its implications: Time travel may be feasible.�DocBrown would be proud.�
The strange discovery by quantum physicists at the University of CaliforniaSanta Barbara means that an object you can see in front of you mayexist simultaneously in a parallel universe -- a multi-state conditionthat has scientists theorizing that traveling through time may be muchmore than just the plaything of science fiction writers.�
And it's all because of a tiny bit of metal -- a "paddle" about thewidth of a human hair, an item that is incredibly small but stillsomething you can see with the naked eye.�
UC Santa Barbara's Andrew Cleland cooled that paddle in arefrigerator, dimmed the lights and, under a special bell jar, suckedout all the air to eliminate vibrations.�He then plucked it like atuning fork and noted that it moved and stood still at the same time.
That sounds contradictory, and it's nearly impossible to understandif your last name isn't Einstein. But it actually happened. It's afreaky fact that's at the heart of quantum mechanics.
AUC Santa Barbara physicist has found a way to move this tiny metalpaddle into two states simultaneously, such that it both vibrates andholds still.
How Is That Possible?�
To even try to understand it, you have to think really, reallysmall. Smaller than an atom. Electrons, which circle the nucleus of anatom, are swirling around in multiple states at the same time --they're hard to pin down. It's only when we measure the position of anelectron that we force it to have a specific location. Cleland'sbreakthrough lies in taking that hard-to-grasp yet true fact about theatomic particle and applying it to something visible with the naked eye.
What does it all mean? Let's say you're in Oklahoma visiting youraunt. But in another universe, where your atomic particles just can'tkeep up, you're actually at home watching "The Simpsons." That maysound far-fetched, but it's based on real science.
"When you observe something in one state, one theory is it split theuniverse into two parts," Cleland told FoxNews.com, trying to explainhow there can be multiple universes and we can see only one of them.�
The multi-verse theory says the entire universe "freezes" duringobservation, and we see only one reality. You see a soccer ball flyingthrough the air, but maybe in a second universe the ball has droppedalready. Or you were looking the other way. Or they don't even playsoccer over there.
Sean Carroll, a physicist at the California Institute of Technologyand a popular author, accepts the scientific basis for the multi-verse-- even if it cannot be proven.�
"Unless you can imagine some super-advanced alien civilization thathas figured this out, we aren't affected by the possible existence ofother universes," Carroll said. But he does think "someone could devisea machine that lets one universe communicate with another."
It all comes down to how we understand time.
Carroll suggests that we don't exactly feel time -- we perceive itspassing. For example, time moves fast�on a rollercoaster and veryslowly during a dull college lecture. It races when you're late forwork . . . but the last few minutes before quitting time seem likehours.
Back to the Future�
"Time seems to be a one-way street that runs from the past to thepresent," says Fred Alan Wolf, a.k.a. Dr. Quantum, a physicist andauthor. "But take into consideration theories that look at the level ofquantum fields ... particles that travel both forward and backward intime. If we leave out the forward-and-backwards-in-time part, we missout on some of the physics."
Wolf says that time -- at least in quantum mechanics -- doesn't movestraight like an arrow. It zig-zags, and he thinks it may be possibleto build a machine that lets you bend time.�
Consider Sergei Krikalev, the Russian astronaut who flew six space missions.Richard Gott, a physicist at Princeton University, says Krikalev aged1/48th of a second less than the rest of us because he orbited at veryhigh speeds. And to age less than someone means you've jumped into thefuture -- you did not experience the same present. In a sense, he says,Krikalev time-traveled to the future -- and back again!
"Newton said all time is universal and all clocks tick the sameway," Gott says. "Now with Einstein's theory of Special Relativity weknow that travel into the future is possible. With Einstein's theory ofgravity, the laws of physics as we understand them today suggest thateven time travel to the past is possible in principle. But to seewhether time travel to the past can actually be realized we may have tolearn new laws of physics that step in at the quantum level."
And for that, you start with a very tiny paddle in a bell jar.
Cleland has proved that quantum mechanics scale to slightly largersizes. The next challenge is to learn how to control quantum mechanicsand use it for even larger objects. Do so -- and we might be able towarp to parallel universes just by manipulating a few electrons.
"Our concepts of cause and effect will fly out the window," says BenBova, the science fiction author. "People will -- for various reasons-- try to fix the past or escape into the future. But we may nevernotice these effects, if the universe actually diverges. Maybe somebodyalready has invented a time machine and our history is being constantlyaltered, but we don’t notice the kinks in our path through time."
I find this very interesting, not because of the science behind...but because there have been very similar and well documented experiments that have proven this same point that are AT LEAST 5 to 10 years old. I'm curious as to why the mainstream media chose to pick up on this one, but for some this will probably be their first time hearing about theories/experiments of this nature.
Regardless, I'm glad that this has gotten widespread coverage, and I'mquite certain this is the tip of the proverbial iceberg. We can't evenbegin to fathom the things that our consciousness is about to uncover...
[h1]Freaky Physics Proves Parallel Universes Exist[/h1]
By John Brandon
�-FOXNews.com
Lookpast the details of a wonky discovery�by�a group of Californiascientists --�that a quantum state is now observable with the humaneye�-- and consider its implications: Time travel may be feasible.�
Universal
Inthe movie "Back to the Future," Doc Brown builds a time machine into aDelorean. New research brings that vehicle one step closer to reality.
Lookpast the details of a wonky discovery�by�a group of Californiascientists --�that a quantum state is now observable with the humaneye�-- and consider its implications: Time travel may be feasible.�DocBrown would be proud.�
The strange discovery by quantum physicists at the University of CaliforniaSanta Barbara means that an object you can see in front of you mayexist simultaneously in a parallel universe -- a multi-state conditionthat has scientists theorizing that traveling through time may be muchmore than just the plaything of science fiction writers.�
And it's all because of a tiny bit of metal -- a "paddle" about thewidth of a human hair, an item that is incredibly small but stillsomething you can see with the naked eye.�
UC Santa Barbara's Andrew Cleland cooled that paddle in arefrigerator, dimmed the lights and, under a special bell jar, suckedout all the air to eliminate vibrations.�He then plucked it like atuning fork and noted that it moved and stood still at the same time.
That sounds contradictory, and it's nearly impossible to understandif your last name isn't Einstein. But it actually happened. It's afreaky fact that's at the heart of quantum mechanics.
AUC Santa Barbara physicist has found a way to move this tiny metalpaddle into two states simultaneously, such that it both vibrates andholds still.
How Is That Possible?�
To even try to understand it, you have to think really, reallysmall. Smaller than an atom. Electrons, which circle the nucleus of anatom, are swirling around in multiple states at the same time --they're hard to pin down. It's only when we measure the position of anelectron that we force it to have a specific location. Cleland'sbreakthrough lies in taking that hard-to-grasp yet true fact about theatomic particle and applying it to something visible with the naked eye.
What does it all mean? Let's say you're in Oklahoma visiting youraunt. But in another universe, where your atomic particles just can'tkeep up, you're actually at home watching "The Simpsons." That maysound far-fetched, but it's based on real science.
"When you observe something in one state, one theory is it split theuniverse into two parts," Cleland told FoxNews.com, trying to explainhow there can be multiple universes and we can see only one of them.�
The multi-verse theory says the entire universe "freezes" duringobservation, and we see only one reality. You see a soccer ball flyingthrough the air, but maybe in a second universe the ball has droppedalready. Or you were looking the other way. Or they don't even playsoccer over there.
Sean Carroll, a physicist at the California Institute of Technologyand a popular author, accepts the scientific basis for the multi-verse-- even if it cannot be proven.�
"Unless you can imagine some super-advanced alien civilization thathas figured this out, we aren't affected by the possible existence ofother universes," Carroll said. But he does think "someone could devisea machine that lets one universe communicate with another."
It all comes down to how we understand time.
Carroll suggests that we don't exactly feel time -- we perceive itspassing. For example, time moves fast�on a rollercoaster and veryslowly during a dull college lecture. It races when you're late forwork . . . but the last few minutes before quitting time seem likehours.
Back to the Future�
"Time seems to be a one-way street that runs from the past to thepresent," says Fred Alan Wolf, a.k.a. Dr. Quantum, a physicist andauthor. "But take into consideration theories that look at the level ofquantum fields ... particles that travel both forward and backward intime. If we leave out the forward-and-backwards-in-time part, we missout on some of the physics."
Wolf says that time -- at least in quantum mechanics -- doesn't movestraight like an arrow. It zig-zags, and he thinks it may be possibleto build a machine that lets you bend time.�
Consider Sergei Krikalev, the Russian astronaut who flew six space missions.Richard Gott, a physicist at Princeton University, says Krikalev aged1/48th of a second less than the rest of us because he orbited at veryhigh speeds. And to age less than someone means you've jumped into thefuture -- you did not experience the same present. In a sense, he says,Krikalev time-traveled to the future -- and back again!
"Newton said all time is universal and all clocks tick the sameway," Gott says. "Now with Einstein's theory of Special Relativity weknow that travel into the future is possible. With Einstein's theory ofgravity, the laws of physics as we understand them today suggest thateven time travel to the past is possible in principle. But to seewhether time travel to the past can actually be realized we may have tolearn new laws of physics that step in at the quantum level."
And for that, you start with a very tiny paddle in a bell jar.
Cleland has proved that quantum mechanics scale to slightly largersizes. The next challenge is to learn how to control quantum mechanicsand use it for even larger objects. Do so -- and we might be able towarp to parallel universes just by manipulating a few electrons.
"Our concepts of cause and effect will fly out the window," says BenBova, the science fiction author. "People will -- for various reasons-- try to fix the past or escape into the future. But we may nevernotice these effects, if the universe actually diverges. Maybe somebodyalready has invented a time machine and our history is being constantlyaltered, but we don’t notice the kinks in our path through time."
I find this very interesting, not because of the science behind...but because there have been very similar and well documented experiments that have proven this same point that are AT LEAST 5 to 10 years old. I'm curious as to why the mainstream media chose to pick up on this one, but for some this will probably be their first time hearing about theories/experiments of this nature.
Regardless, I'm glad that this has gotten widespread coverage, and I'mquite certain this is the tip of the proverbial iceberg. We can't evenbegin to fathom the things that our consciousness is about to uncover...
