Speed of light finally broken?

Anton Afanasyev

Jim Crafton wrote:

Or was this just the typical misrepresentation of science by a journo unable to comprehend beyond the 6th grade?

That more like the truth. I still dont get how they can teach that "it turns back time". All that happens is that you start seeing things that happened some time ago, is all. You dont actually "turn back time", you just see the lighting that happened some time ago. Though even that is not _really_ possible, since light goes out in all direction from Earth, and since you cant just make an object(of a relatively large size) move at the speed of light immediately, the object will start moving at that speed somewhere in space, beyond Earth, where it just wont be able to see "object" as it does on Earth - they would be distorted due to light travelling in all directions. Not sure if what I said made sense, since its only my interpretation based on what I know/understand, but essentially it doesnt turn back time, you just start seeing objects as they appeared some time ago.

:badger:

Nathan Holt at EMOM

Jim Crafton wrote:

"Travelling faster than light also, in theory, turns back time. According to conventional physics, an astronaut moving beyond light speed would arrive at his destination before leaving." Does anyone know if this is *really* what current theories about this state? Or was this just the typical misrepresentation of science by a journo unable to comprehend beyond the 6th grade?

It's an over simplification. The special theory of reletivity describes how things traveling at different speeds have time going in different directions. If someone traveled faster than light to alpha centauri, he could easily arrive after he left from our view point, but someone traveling at near light speed in the right direction would see him arrive before he left. It is true that any means to travel faster than light can be used to travel back in time. Nathan Holt

Dan Neely

It is. When added relativistically your speed in space and speed in time equal the speed of light. If your speed in space is greater than C your speed in time actually is negative. It's not just outracing your photons you really could go back in time and try to kill your father before you were born.

-- You have to explain to them [VB coders] what you mean by "typed". their first response is likely to be something like, "Of course my code is typed. Do you think i magically project it onto the screen with the power of my mind?" --- John Simmons / outlaw programmer

Jorgen Sigvardsson

You have to give the photon some extra boost. Speed = c does not violate causality. It will only violate the law of energy conservation. Since you have mass, you will have infinite kinetic energy, which means that all the energy in the universe will be in/on/with you (what is the proper preposition anyway?) Perhaps that is how big bang started? Some moron managed to travel at c :-D

-- Smell-o-vision users, insert nostril tubes now

Jorgen Sigvardsson

Atkins diet?

-- From the Makers of Futurama

Paul Watson

Chris Maunder wrote:

causality

Don't you love the way The Merovingian says that word? Monica Belluci is gorgeous and all but he makes that one word sexier than she can ever hope to be. Errr... back to that speed of light thing...

regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa

Shog9 wrote:

And with that, Paul closed his browser, sipped his herbal tea, fixed the flower in his hair, and smiled brightly at the multitude of cute, furry animals flocking around the grassy hillside where he sat coding Ruby on his Mac...

Paul Watson

I'm guessing it is more that unlike Chris and a few others on planet Earth, to us mortals it is rocket science. The journalist is a mere mortal too[^]. Tough to write about that which you don't understand.

regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa

Shog9 wrote:

And with that, Paul closed his browser, sipped his herbal tea, fixed the flower in his hair, and smiled brightly at the multitude of cute, furry animals flocking around the grassy hillside where he sat coding Ruby on his Mac...

codemunkeh

It's not something I've given much phot-on recently. If Joke_Unclear Then Phot_on = "Thought On"

Ninja (the Nerd)
Confused? You will be...

codemunkeh

Summoning energy? Soon, we're going to have the equivalent of a UAC to control energy elevations of various objects for every object in the universe. If Microsoft have anything to do with it it'll likely crash the universe.

Ninja (the Nerd)
Confused? You will be...

Mike Hankey

Is nothing sacred? If that is true then the laws of Physics will need some updating. By the way if you get younger when traveling faster than light when does the next ship leave? Mike

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. "George Carlin"

Rocky Moore

Yeah, it is hard to imagine anyone believes that anymore.

Rocky <>< Latest Code Blog Post: www.TheWPFDirectory.com site launched! Latest Tech Blog Post: Vista ReadyBoost!