Traveling into the future in order to travel back into the past

In summary, physicists have considered traveling into the future in order to travel back to the past but they have not yet found a way to do this. There are two theories that suggest this might be possible, but neither has been proven.
  • #1
Benzoate
422
0
Have physicists ever consider traveling into the future in order to travel back to the past? I know it sounds crazy, but one of the paradigms for time travel is Godel's closed time loop curve, where time I think is circular rather than linear. Special relativity permits travelers , if they travel at speeds closed the speed of light, to travel into the future. wouldn't travelers looped back into the past eventually as they are heading further and further into the future if time were circular?
 
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  • #2
Godel's solution only works in a rotating Godel universe, but there's no evidence that our own universe is rotating (according to the linked article it can't be totally ruled out that the universe could have a small rotation rate sufficient to allow closed timelike curves, though measurements of the cosmic microwave background do rule it out if you accept certain cosmological assumptions).
 
  • #3
But if our universe were hypothetically rotating , then would we be able to travel into the future in order to travel back into the past
 
  • #4
Benzoate said:
But if our universe were hypothetically rotating , then would we be able to travel into the future in order to travel back into the past
Yes, from what I understand this sort of thing would be possible in Godel's model. As the page I linked to said, "You enter a rocket, and you take a journey in the universe along a certain path. Then you will - after many billions of years - return to the starting point before you started."
 
  • #5
Uni

I can agree more with you guys. Einstein's general relativity equations describes the possibility of time traveling into past and future. One thing though if one were to change the past that event has already happened. I believe that for the universe is very ease to compensate for any drastic changes we make if we were to travel into the past. People come with very absurd questions: what if I kill my father before I was born and other horrible
ideas..The truth is that if one were to do so the universe would make it logical. Meaning that if you were to shoot your grandfather then the bullet will just go through him but not harm him. Or if you try stabbing him (grandfather) the knife would just go through him and you would vanish. It's like trying to stab your younger self, you would vanish but not your younger self. See how ease that is..., it's base on the laws of mass..."same mass can't occupy same space in time" Anyway, I would love hearing your argument or perspective about this...
 
  • #6
Riseneagle said:
I can agree more with you guys. Einstein's general relativity equations describes the possibility of time traveling into past and future. One thing though if one were to change the past that event has already happened. I believe that for the universe is very ease to compensate for any drastic changes we make if we were to travel into the past. People come with very absurd questions: what if I kill my father before I was born and other horrible
ideas..The truth is that if one were to do so the universe would make it logical. Meaning that if you were to shoot your grandfather then the bullet will just go through him but not harm him. Or if you try stabbing him (grandfather) the knife would just go through him and you would vanish. It's like trying to stab your younger self, you would vanish but not your younger self. See how ease that is..., it's base on the laws of mass..."same mass can't occupy same space in time" Anyway, I would love hearing your argument or perspective about this...
You might be interested in the Novikov self-consistency principle, a hypothesis that history is constrained to be consistent so a time traveler would be unable to "change" history (though he could influence it in self-consistent ways). In the case of attempting to shoot one's grandfather, this principle would suggest that instead of miraculous violations of the laws of physics like the bullet passing right through the body without affecting it, instead the time traveler would simply fail to complete his mission--maybe he would change his mind, or the gun would jam, or he'd shoot the wrong man, or the time police would stop him, etc.

But then there is also Stephen Hawking's chronology protection conjecture, which suggests that although general relativity seems to allow time travel, when quantum effects are incorporated into general relativity they will have the effect of making time travel impossible. No one can be confident whether this conjecture holds until physicists develop (and test) a theory of quantum gravity.
 
  • #7
Is anybody working on a time machine? or warm hole?
 
  • #8
Riseneagle said:
Is anybody working on a time machine? or warm hole?
You meant "worm hole" ... what you typed just opens the door for far too many bad jokes.:yuck:

And no, no one is seriously working on such things because there is no solid theoretical basis for building one. The kinds of arguments referred to in this thread are far too speculative to start trying to engineer anything.
 
  • #9
belliott4488 said:
You meant "worm hole" ... what you typed just opens the door
Well, not so much open the door, as ... relax it.
 
  • #10
But are there arguments that support a true development for a time machine anywhere in the world? Well I don't think time travel is impossible.
 
  • #11
Well, I have really deep personal reasons why I must think about building a time machine no matter what. If anybody wants to comment they are welcome to.
 
  • #12
Riseneagle said:
Well, I have really deep personal reasons why I must think about building a time machine no matter what. If anybody wants to comment they are welcome to.
Just don't be changin' nothin'. Your grandfather might have died so that my grandfather could get his job and feed his kids. You change stuff and I'll regret it...
 

What is time travel?

Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space.

Is it possible to travel into the future in order to travel back into the past?

While time travel is a popular concept in science fiction, it is currently not possible according to our current understanding of physics. The laws of physics, specifically the laws of causality, make it unlikely that such a journey would be possible.

What are some proposed theories for time travel?

Some theories proposed by scientists include the concept of wormholes, which are hypothetical tunnels connecting different points in space-time, and the theory of relativity, which suggests that time can be affected by gravity and high speeds.

What are the potential consequences of time travel?

The consequences of time travel are largely unknown and can vary depending on the theory or method of time travel. Some potential consequences could include altering the past and creating alternate timelines, paradoxes that could potentially alter the course of history, and the potential risk of causing irreparable damage to the fabric of time and space.

How do scientists study the concept of time travel?

Scientists study the concept of time travel through theoretical physics and mathematical models. They also conduct experiments using advanced technology such as particle accelerators to test the effects of high speeds and gravity on time. However, at this time, time travel remains purely theoretical and has not been scientifically proven.

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