Thoughts on Physics

Thoughts on Physics

I have some ideas on the following topics. I don’t think I need a multi-billion dollar particle accelerator to do a thought experiment. I am certainly wrong; just as so many of the “theories” out there are certainly not quite right. I will use this writing to periodically document my ideas. Remember…I know I am wrong. I am not an Einstein…..but I am allowed to ponder…

Speed of light: The problems here are numerous. First, why does light have a maximum speed? Why does light, from a moving object, appear to be moving at the same speed from a stationary observer? How can a photon have no mass? How can a photon be created from nothing and instantaneously be moving at the speed of light?

I think the speed of light, if nothing else, is a celestial fence. We can't cross into other neighborhood easily. This is not to say it is impossible. Theoretically, given enough time, we could fly to other galaxies as sub-light speed. I believe, however, that we are approaching this in the wrong way. Speed is what we are looking for and we always find things too far. I think, that someday, we will find that the farthest distances are a step away. As long as we think three dimensionally (okay 4 including time) we are prisoners.

The answer is something we do not expect. I certainly don't know what it is. But with a thought, I can place the number "4" on the surface of Jupiter. So can anyone. What does that mean? How is that different from actually standing on Jupiter and scratching out a "4"? Clearly there is a difference...between thought and experience....but what is it? The brain cannot tell the difference between a thought and an actual experience...been proven.

Wave or Particle: Look up the 2-slit experiment. Light behaves as a particle and as a wave. It cannot be both….can it? Hint: Read Flatland and then project it onto our 3d world.

In Flatland, a perfect sphere passes through a 2-dimensional world. It starts as a dot and grows to a circle and then shrinks back to a dot before disappearing. So...what would it look like if a similar 4th dimension (or 24th for that matter) passed through a 3-dimensional world?

If, a 4+ dimensional object were to pass through a 3 dimensional realm, it could start as a point and then grow into a sphere and then shrink back to a point. Now, this sphere would not have to be stationary. In fact, being stationary is just one possibility out of an infinite number of velocities that we might imagine. So, we could have a point which grows to a sphere and back to a point as it moves through our 3 dimensional realm. If you were to look at it's path, past-present-future, you might look at something similar to a string of pearls. I would call this a three dimensional wave. The interesting thing about this is that a 3-d wave will cause interference (double slit experiment) and also acts as a quanta (see origins of term). In other words, this is one way to explain how light can be both, a wave and a particle.

Where does it go when it is not here? As it shrinks back to a point, where does it go? When it grows from a point, were did it come from? I would propose dimension "c" where light exists in perpetuity. We only see it when we become "observers" (quantum mechanics again) and that calls it into existence. Just like you call your very real thoughts about this article into existence as you read along.

Two things are noteworthy in that this idea of a "string of pearls" does not contradict basic physics. First, photons are massless so their emergence and disappearance does not violate any conservation laws. Second, a photo shows up at light speed, there is not acceleration. This would not be a problem if the photon was already going that speed when we called it into existence in our realm.

When Richard Feynman saw the double slit experiment, he said, maybe all of the potential outcomes already exist and our observation of the event calls a single, most likely outcome, into existence. If you are unfamiliar with the double-slit experiment, google it.

Gravity: Opposites attract and like charges repel. This is true of electromagnetism which follows the exact same inverse square law as gravity. We have positive and negative poles to test this with EM. Where is the opposite of gravity? Find that and you have found something truly interesting. My guess is that La Grange points are important here.

Quantum Theory: Einstein as right…God does not play dice. Robert Heinlein once wrote “After an event, possible and truth are equal and probable is a measure of one’s ignorance.” I memorized that quote when I was twelve years old and only now does it start to make sense.

Time travel: I think this is possible but not in the way many would think. For a hint….read Feynman’s comment on why the double slit experiment works like it does.

Field Theory: Newton called it "action at a distance." Einstein called similar phenomena "spooky action at a distance." How can information travel instantaneously across vast space? What is the field? Are there different types? Is the 'field' of physics different from the 'field' of entangled minds?