Tag: faster than light

BIZARRE TACHYONS THAT MAY BE ABLE TO SEND DATA BACK IN TIME COULD BE RECONCILED WITH SPECIAL RELATIVITY

Tachyons, a mysterious variety of hypothetical particles capable of exceeding light speed, could play a more significant role in our understanding of the universe and its causal structure than scientists previously realized.

Not only have tachyons been revealed to be potentially compatible with Einstein’s special theory of relativity, but now, according to an international collaboration of physicists from the University of Warsaw and the University of Oxford, these curious particles could also help shed light on remaining questions regarding our understanding of the quantum world.

EXCEEDING THE UNIVERSAL SPEED LIMIT

Tachyons, which derive their name from the Greek word tachýs, meaning fast or quick, are theorized to exist under conditions where their minimum speed would be the speed of light. This effectively means that they should only be capable of traveling at velocities that exceed this universally recognized speed limit.

Ordinary particles, by comparison, move at subluminal or slower than light speeds. As Einstein’s theory of relativity dictates, the universal laws of physics prevent anything from being capable of accelerating to the speed of light from a slower speed. The same isn’t necessarily true for tachyons, though, since they are theorized to be born at speeds that already exceed light. Hence, the opposite would seem to be the case for these unusual particles, which hypothetically should be incapable of slowing down to light speed or slower speeds.

The idea of such superluminal particles has its origins in theoretical studies conducted back in the 1960s by physicist Gerald Feinberg. Although no experimental evidence has ever confirmed their existence, a theoretical framework for how these proposed particles might come to be has been developed over the decades, occasionally resulting in some rather strange paradoxes.

Among these is a curiosity that arises from their superluminal travel speeds, which indicates that tachyons may effectively be capable of sending information backward in time, giving rise to bizarre conditions under which cause and effect could theoretically become reversed.

However, new research is revealing that despite the implications of their existence, these bizarre hypothetical particles may be compatible with the special theory of relativity and could also help offer physicists significant new insights into quantum theory.

The new findings could potentially also upend long-held notions about the unlikelihood of superluminal particles, suggesting that tachyons might even play a crucial role in the formation of matter.

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WARP THEORISTS SAY WE’VE ENTERED AN EXOTIC PROPULSION SPACE RACE TO BUILD THE WORLD’S FIRST WORKING WARP DRIVE

An international team of physicists behind several revolutionary warp drive concepts, including the first to require no exotic matter, says that recent unprecedented breakthroughs in physics and propulsion have launched the world powers into a Cold War-style, 21st-century space race to build the world’s first working warp drive.

“We have a space race brewing,” said Gianni Martie, the founder of the Applied Physics (AP) think tank and co-author on a pair of forthcoming warp drive research papers, in an email to The Debrief. “There’s still a ton to discover and invent, but we have the next steps now, which we didn’t have before.”

Comprised of over 30 physicists and scientists in related disciplines, the AP team has gained a sizeable reputation in the warp theory community due to their highly regarded, peer-reviewed papers on numerous warp drive concepts. One of those concepts recently reported by The Debrief has gained significant attention, inspiring many researchers and scientists to declare the team’s “constant velocity warp drive model” as the first practical, viable warp drive concept ever proposed.

The AP team has also created the Warp Factory, a set of development and simulation tools that allow fellow researchers in this nascent field to evaluate the physics of their own models, which can greatly improve the model’s quality and viability.

In an effort to better understand the history of warp theory, the scientific viability of the most current warp drive concepts, what the media always gets wrong about this category of research, and what the next steps in this potential space race might look like, The Debrief reached out to the team at Applied Physics, resulting in an exchange that suggests the futuristic science familiar to viewers of Star Trek may be closer than we think.

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‘WARP FACTORY’ SIMULATOR FROM PHYSICS THINK TANK TO AID CREATION OF STAR TREK-STYLE WARP DRIVES

International Thinktank Applied Physics (AP) has released its “Warp Factory” simulator and toolkit to help scientists and engineers move closer to building a real-world Star Trek-style warp drive. Having already established itself in the nascent field of warp mechanics with the previous release of its “physical warp drive” design in 2021, AP is now offering its expertise to the broader community to advance the development of existing and future warp drive concepts.

The Public Benefit Corporation is also putting its money where its mouth is by offering warp field theorists a chance at $500,000 worth of grant money, a commitment the organization describes as an example of its “firm grounding in humanitarian and commercial scientific solutions.”

“Warp Factory serves as a reality check for warp drive designs,” explained AP’s Dr. Christopher Helmerich in an email to The Debrief. “By analyzing designs in a comprehensive and automated manner, we can identify unphysical characteristics more efficiently than ever before. This means we can steer the development of warp drive technology toward designs that can, hopefully, be built and operated in the future.”

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GOVERNMENT-FUNDED STUDY EXPLORES WARP DRIVES AS MEANS OF FASTER-THAN-LIGHT COMMUNICATION THROUGH “HYPERWAVES”

Exploring faster-than-light (FTL) communication, a concept rooted in science fiction has intrigued scientists and engineers for years. The proverbial little brother to FTL travel, where a spacecraft is sent at warp to a distant location, FTL communication may be a promising first step, and one theorist is shifting focus to “Hyperwaves,” a method of sending messages across vast distances faster than the speed of light.

The recent paper, partially funded by the British government’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and the Ministry of Defence, uploaded to arXiv, “Hyperwave: Hyper-Fast Communication within General Relativity,” by Dr. Lorenzo Pieri, offers a novel approach to this challenge. It suggests using “hypertubes” – structures that can manage the distribution and configuration of negative energy – to accelerate and decelerate warp bubbles, facilitating FTL communication. 

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THESE ARE THE TOP FOUR THEORIES THAT COULD BRING US CLOSER TO FASTER-THAN-LIGHT TRAVEL

Since Captain Kirk first ordered the Starship Enterprise to engage the warp drive back in 1967, fans of science fiction have dreamed of traveling to the stars at warp speed. That idea remained in the realm of science fiction until 1994, when Mexican mathematician Miguel Alcubierre proposed a mathematically viable solution for building a real-world faster-than-light warp drive.

Since then, numerous scientists and engineers have taken a swing at their own version of a viable, real-world warp drive, including an attempt to patent one of these “out there” ideas.

Here, The Debrief looks at three of the past most promising warp drive models, along with one brand new physics concept called the “Tri-Space Model,” which may hold the key to making faster-than-light travel possible.

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Scientist Suggests Feasibility of Faster-Than-Light Travel within the Boundaries of Einstein’s Physics

The idea of faster-than-light (FTL) travel has captivated human imagination for decades, fueled by science fiction’s portrayal of interstellar journeys that traverse the vast cosmos in the blink of an eye. While the concept has long been considered implausible due to Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, recent claims by a daring scientist suggest that FTL travel might not be as far-fetched as previously thought. This potential breakthrough could revolutionize our understanding of the universe and reshape the boundaries of human exploration.

Einstein’s Relativity and the Cosmic Speed Limit

Albert Einstein’s theories of special and general relativity are pillars of modern physics, setting forth the framework for understanding the fundamental behavior of space, time, and gravity. One of the most renowned consequences of these theories is the assertion that the speed of light is the ultimate cosmic speed limit – nothing can travel faster than light in a vacuum. This assertion has not only been supported by countless experiments but has also been instrumental in shaping our understanding of the universe.

The Challenge of Faster-Than-Light Travel

The idea of FTL travel, while popular in science fiction, has been met with skepticism by the scientific community. The energy required to propel an object to or beyond the speed of light using conventional methods seems insurmountable, and the associated implications, including time dilation and causality violations, challenge the very fabric of reality as we know it.

However, recent developments in theoretical physics have sparked new discussions about the feasibility of FTL travel within the framework of Einstein’s theories. Dr. Amelia Rodriguez, a theoretical physicist at the forefront of this debate, claims that there might be loopholes in Einstein’s equations that could potentially allow for FTL travel without violating the laws of physics.

Warp Drives and Alcubierre’s Theory

Dr. Rodriguez’s work draws inspiration from Miguel Alcubierre’s “warp drive” concept proposed in the 1990s. Alcubierre’s theory involves the creation of a “warp bubble” around a spacecraft, effectively contracting space in front of it and expanding space behind it. This manipulation of spacetime would allow the spacecraft to “ride” on the wave created by the bubble, potentially enabling speeds faster than light without the spacecraft itself exceeding the speed of light within its local frame of reference.

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Wormhole Tunnels in Spacetime May Be Possible, New Research Suggests

In the early days of research on black holes, before they even had that name, physicists did not yet know if these bizarre objects existed in the real world. They might have been a quirk of the complicated math used in the then still young general theory of relativity, which describes gravity. Over the years, though, evidence has accumulated that black holes are very real and even exist right here in our galaxy.

Today another strange prediction from general relativity—wormholes, those fantastical sounding tunnels to the other side of the universe—hang in the same sort of balance. Are they real? And if they are out there in our cosmos, could humans hope to use them for getting around? After their prediction in 1935, research seemed to point toward no—wormholes appeared unlikely to be an element of reality. But new work offers hints of how they could arise, and the process may be easier than physicists have long thought.

The original idea of a wormhole came from physicists Albert Einstein and Nathan Rosen. They studied the strange equations that we now know describe that unescapable pocket of space we call a black hole and asked what they really represented. Einstein and Rosen discovered that, theoretically at least, a black hole’s surface might work as a bridge that connected to a second patch of space. The journey might be as if you went down the drain of your bathtub, and instead of getting stuck in the pipes, you came out into another tub just like the first.

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The Mysterious Death of Iron Butterfly Bassist Philip Taylor Kramer

Kramer was due to pick up associate Greg Martini and Martini’s wife from the airport on Feb. 12, 1995 in L.A., and take them back to his home for a relaxing evening. But according to the Los Angeles Times, Kramer called home to make his wife aware that plans had changed, but that he would be there with a big surprise for her. He then called his old friend and band mate, Iron Butterfly drummer Ron Bushy. “He said, ‘Bush, it’s Taylor, I love you more than life itself,'” Bushy recalled in a news report, “Then he hung up.”

After that, another call was made to his wife telling her: “Whatever happens, I’ll always be with you.” Reports from his family say that Kramer had been working around the clock, and hadn’t slept for close to two weeks leading up to his disappearance. At 11:59AM, Kramer made a 911 call. “This is Philip Taylor Kramer. I am going to kill myself,” he reportedly told the operator, which was the last anybody had ever heard from him.

Police searches yielded nothing. For more thsn four years, it was as if Philip Taylor Kramer had simply vanished into thin air. “Something happened during that time – either in his head or at the terminal – that made him turn away,” said former L.A. police officer Chuck Carter, who worked on the case. “And I’ll tell you, I haven’t a clue. The guy didn’t have an enemy. The guy was a dedicated family man – I checked him out. Whatever happened in his head while at the airport, or whatever happened right in the airport, I’ve got a feeling we’ll learn from Kramer himself.”

Four years later, on May 29, 1999, Kramer’s 1993 Ford Aerostar van was spotted at the bottom of a Malibu ravine by hikers in a canyon about 1.5 miles east of the Pacific Coast Highway. His remains were found inside the vehicle, and later identified through dental records. Though his death was ultimately ruled a “probable suicide” by authorities, his family’s doubts as to the actual events have remained. “My brother would not have left his family,” Kramer’s sister said in an interview with VH-1. His widow told the L.A. Times that Kramer “would never, for any reason or under any circumstances, allow himself to completely abandon the family he loves more than life itself.”

Kramer had reportedly been working on a revolutionary method of transporting information and matter through space, and his father remained unconvinced his death was a suicide. “Taylor had told me a long time before, there was people giving him problems,” he said. “They wanted what he was doing, and several of them had threatened him. He told me ‘If I ever say I’m gonna kill myself, don’t you believe it. I’m gonna be needing help.'”

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NASA scientists achieve long-distance ‘quantum teleportation’ over 27 miles for the first time – paving the way for unhackable networks that transfer data faster than the speed of light

Scientists have demonstrated long-distance ‘quantum teleportation’ – the instant transfer of units of quantum information known as qubits – for the first time. 

The qubits were transferred faster than the speed of light over a distance of 27 miles, laying the foundations for a quantum internet service, which could one day revolutionise computing.

Quantum communication systems are faster and more secure than regular networks because they use photons rather than computer code, which can be hacked.  

But their development relies on cutting-edge scientific theory which transforms our understanding of how computers work. 

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