Michio Kaku and Multi-dimensional Beings

[Gold Barz]

Since I cannot post on the Michio Kaku forum, I will post this here (or a MOD could move where its more appropriate), can anybody post a link or tell me what Kaku's guesses were at how might hyperdimensional life might be like or look like (eg. will they even be physical?, will they have mass?, etc.), I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks.

 

[Mk]

I can't believe I just typed this out of hte book:

Michio Kaku, Hyperspace: pg. 45, Entering the Fifth Dimension - Mathematicians and Mystics
Some scientists, marveling at the elegance of Riemann's work, tried to find physical applications for such a powerful apparatus. While some scientists were exploring the applications of higher dimension, other scientists' asked more practical, mundane questions, such as: How does a two-dimensional being eat? In order for Gauss's two-dimensional people to eat, their mouths would have to face to the side. But if we know draw their digestive tract, we notice that this passageway completely bisects their bodies. In fact, any tube that connects two opening si n their bodies will separate them into two unattached pieces. This presents us with a difficult choice. Either these people eat like we do and their bodies break apart, or they obey different laws of biology.

Is this what you were looking for?
The current understanding of hyperdimensional physics is that it is impossible to visualize something with four-dimensions.

 

[Gold Barz]

So basically anything is possible in multi-dimensional space and life is not precluded as some people say? (no stable atoms let alone orbits)

 

[Mk]

Well, for a being residing in four spatial dimensions, I guess the limits of your imagination can be achieved. Are you begging me to quote the book again? Well not this time because his part on this subject is two or three pages, and I won't type it in.

 

[Gold Barz]

Heres a question do you think that a universe with FOUR spatial dimension would follow the same laws of physics that our universe (3 spatial dimensions) has? Or would having a fourth one completely change it up?

 

[ahrkron]

This is a side issue, but anyway:

I read sometime agot the argument you mentioned (of why a digestive tract would not be possible for 2D beings). It is compelling, and it got me convinced. Later on, I do not remember where, I read a solution to the problem, which I sketch in the attachment: a system like this would allow for a 2D being to have a digestive tract. The idea is that the big blobs that go into the cavities are somewhat solid, so they do not allow the two "halves" to separate.

 

[Ki Man]

but that would allow absolutely no communication between the two halves or else the food's flow would be blocked by a nerve ending, so you really end up with 2 interlocking organisms instead of one organism with the ability to eat

 

[ahrkron]

Oh well,... then those organisms would need to have evolved an optic, redundant system to send signals from one end to the other.

If they eat in small chunks and the signals are produced at the same time in many locations along the track, they would always be able to maintain comunication between the halves. :)

 

[Gold Barz]

Also, wouldn't multi-dimensional life be much more complex than life in our universe?

 

[Hans de Vries]

This is a side issue, but anyway:

I read sometime agot the argument you mentioned (of why a digestive tract would not be possible for 2D beings). It is compelling, and it got me convinced. Later on, I do not remember where, I read a solution to the problem, which I sketch in the attachment: a system like this would allow for a 2D being to have a digestive tract. The idea is that the big blobs that go into the cavities are somewhat solid, so they do not allow the two "halves" to separate.

This is kinda dirty but most likely the "processed food" would leave the body
through the same opening as it entered... This requires a dual functionality
complete with bi-directional peristaltic motion of the digestive tract.

So happy to be 3D... Regard, Hans

 

[hypermorphism]

What's wrong with an amoeba-like organism that engulfs its food in a vacuole, absorbs nutrients, then expunges the waste ?

 

[Mk]

Or what's wrong with an organism that consumes everything in their food?