Faster than the speed of light

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of traveling faster than the speed of light, exploring both theoretical implications and practical observations. Participants examine the nature of tachyons, the implications of superluminal speeds, and the relationship between special and general relativity.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that if one were to reach the speed of light, time would stop, and traveling faster could imply acausal motion, potentially allowing for backward time travel.
  • Others argue that tachyons, hypothetical particles that always travel faster than light, could exist, but their properties and implications remain largely speculative.
  • One participant asserts that objects with non-zero rest mass cannot reach light speed due to infinite relativistic mass, which would violate conservation of energy.
  • There is a contention regarding the observation of objects receding at speeds greater than light, with some participants emphasizing the distinction between special and general relativity in this context.
  • Concerns are raised about the confusion surrounding the statement "no speeds faster than light," highlighting the need for clarity regarding the context of special versus general relativity.
  • Participants discuss the implications of redshift and cosmic expansion as reasons for observing objects receding faster than light, while others question the validity of such observations.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express multiple competing views regarding the possibility of faster-than-light travel and the implications of such phenomena. The discussion remains unresolved, with differing interpretations of relativity and observational evidence.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the speculative nature of tachyons, the dependence on definitions of speed in different relativistic contexts, and unresolved questions about the implications of observing superluminal recession.

  • #61
Well that simply goes back to my question regarding quantum tunneling. Whether or not it is a transposition of a particle, or one "wormhole-like" surpassing time.

There was another study that I can't locate regarding separated entangled electrons and their spins, in that reversing a spin of one, will also reverse that of the other. Are these electrons communicating at a certain speed, such as c, taking 1 second to change if they are 300,000km apart? Or does it surpass time, happening immediately regardless of distance? If so how, but if it takes time, and we supposedly had an atom where two electrons would be such a distance apart, what effect does it have on the atom if for 1 second the electrons in the orbital are spinning in the same direction? Then we can apply thisw to the microscopic scale, where for an unimaginably but existent small period of time, the 2 electrons spin in the same manner. Does it possibly change the interaction of one atom with another, or does anyone have an idea onto what'll happen within that period of time?
 
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  • #62
Well my own question was answered by a friend of mine. For those of you unaware, it is Bell's theorem.

It states that due to the uncertainty of the position of an electron, it could be a light year away, and not affect any delay in a reaction, Einstein calling it "Spooky Action At A Distance."
 

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