Naked Science Forum
On the Lighter Side => New Theories => Topic started by: Jayb on 14/02/2014 00:17:31
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Hey guys I'm new here and that's my first thread.
To begin with please let me clarify that I don't come from a scientific background but I nevertheless think deeply about all the scientific theories and come up with my own.
For this topic I will tell you about my own theory about the perception of time and time travel:
First, in the theories created so far (at least the ones I've read) it is implicitly assumed that traveling time means altering time itself, while I firmly believe that universal time is constant and can never be changed, what can be changed however is one's own PERCEPTION of time...
This assumption and the explanation that follows, will automatically eliminate the possibility of traveling back in time, as my theory implicitly assumes that time perception can be changed on an individual level, but it can only happen moving forward in time (never back in time).
So my theory begins by saying the following:
Each organism's perception of time is governed by our own biological structure (which in turn is affected by the physical world around us, more on that later), having some type of "biological clock" (possibly our nervous system) dictating how much time we experience at any given moment (or second). To have a better understanding regarding this, think of our perception of time as something that is not continuous, but rather chunks of "in" and "out" of existence moments. In which every time we are "in" existence we perceive time and every time we go "out" of existence time disappears for us. And so our biological nature has a certain frequency of this "in" and "out" phases that we experience, and at the moment it goes at such a speed that makes us experience time the way we currently do.
Let's say for the sake of simplicity as an example, that given our biological structure, this happens at a frequency of 50 times per second. So that means that each second, we go in and out of existence 50 times (to give you a simpler example think of how our vision works, although it seems continuous to us , it's merely static visions glued together at a very high rate that gives us the perception of seeing the world on a continuous basis). Note that if this frequency was to be increased to let's say 100 times per second, time for us will be twice as fast as to an average person who's frequency is 50 times per second (because we'll be experiencing life twice as much per second...we'll be "in" existence more frequently). And if it goes as slow as 1 time per second, time for us will become 50 times slower than the average person.
Note that this biological clock can be altered either by external forces (i.e. gravitational forces) or by internal forces (change in the brain's chemical balance). The former doesn't only change our brain's perception of time, but also our whole body's perception of time (including aging), and the latter changes only our brain's perception of time (The difference between the two next).
And so traveling through time, merely means changing the rate or frequency at which our metabolic rate including this biological time clock we possess functions, by either slowing it down or making it faster.
How this rate can be changed by external factors:
This rate at which our body moves (including our metabolic rate and our "biological clock") is governed by physical forces around us, including the force of gravity . If you look at a fly which has a mass much smaller than ours, you will notice that its movement rate is much faster than that of humans (same for mice as a matter of fact), this is because their body mass makes it possible for them to move at such a fast rate (a fly flaps its wings much faster than a bird does, and much faster than how fast a human can move his arms).. This example shows how external forces might be the cause, and it also suggests that the perception of time is totally relative, it is actually relative to one's body mass relative to its surroundings (which is governed by the rules of gravity etc...). In such a situation, your whole body including aging is affected. The reason why going at high speeds is one factor responsible for changing our perception of time (as suggested by Einstein) is because the faster one goes the less effect gravitational forces exerts on it (please correct me if I'm wrong) and part of my theory says that relative gravitational forces are one factor affecting the speed at which our bodies function (including our biological clock).
Also notice how much faster tiny particles and atoms move in relation to planets and stars. If you were a tiny organism living on those particles, and the size of each particle was to you then the size of a planet, the speed at which your surrounding will be moving relative to your new tiny size will be no different than the speed at which planets are moving around you now, and this is because you perception of time will be much faster. The change will only be noticeable to an external observer that is looking at the scene from an external point of reference. As another example, suppose that the whole universe (and all that is in it) is shrinked to the size of a basket ball, how will this affect your current perception of time? it won't (You will experience time at a much faster rate but your own perception of time will be unchanged). Everything will be moving at a much faster rate BUT ONLY to an external observer (someone who was never part of the universe to begin with). I hope this makes sense.
How our perception of time can be altered by internal changes:
Another type of time perception is experienced by a change in chemical balance in our brains. Take for example someones who consumes lots of alcohol, or someone at rest (sleeping) etc....
I once got drunk so bad that my perception of time was totally messed up, I would stay in the club for an hour and would think only 5 minutes have passed (I'm not even exaggerating). This type of change only affects our brain's perception of time and not the aging of our body, as it mainly tackles our nervous system (which I believe is the main setter of our perception of time).
I was once told that when the cognitive brain is shut down and only the emotional brain is functioning our perception of time gets altered, but this is exactly what happens to someone who is drunk. Notice how emotional you get when you are drunk, this is because your cognitive brain gets shut down and only your emotional brain is at work, and this is exactly why your perception of time also changes (time is sensed in your cognitive brain I guess, i.e. this frequency of "in" and "out" of existence I mentioned earlier is set by your cognitive brain).
I am nearly 100% confident of my theory, and it logically explains many things around us, as you will notice once you start thinking more about it.
If we want to take this theory a little further, it implies that as a body reaches a mass of infinity, time for it totally disappears.
Hope I was clear in my explanation (I found it hard to express myself as the concept is a bit complex). Comments are appreciated
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... biological clock can be altered ... by ... (change in the brain's chemical balance) ... the latter changes only our brain's perception of time (The difference between the two next).
This is what occurs in people who take amphetamine-like stimulant drugs , chemical reactions in their brain are speeded-up and consequently they perceive time as passing slower, (cf. overcranking (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_motion)) , demonstrated by their very rapid "speed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_and_culture_of_amphetamines)ing" speech ...
... timing behavior in animals and humans under the acute influence of METH[amphetamine] can be interpreted as the result of speeding up the clock rate ...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1997301/
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Take a space telescope and place it one light day away from earth and make the telescope look at earth, you would effectivly look at the earth one day in the past, because the light from the earth took one whole day to reach the telescope. not quite doctor who technology but it would still be able to look into the past.
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Take a space telescope and place it one light day away from earth and make the telescope look at earth, you would effectivly look at the earth one day in the past, because the light from the earth took one whole day to reach the telescope. not quite doctor who technology but it would still be able to look into the past.
And what does that have to do with my theory?
Off-course, we are actually experiencing the past through our senses, as it needs time for things to reach our brain.
But this completely misses out the point. There's a difference between:
1- What is happening
2- What you are seeing and experiencing
Going back in time means reversing the actual occurrence of events (what is happening), which can never happen IMO.
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I don't think time and relativity in physics have any connection to perception of time in the brain, eg "time flies when you're having fun", or changes due to drugs, fevers, etc.
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I know it calls me a newbie, but hear me out.
Gravity is known to affect time (or space-time) because as time and space are linked, gravity's affect on space will also change time. If one were to create a wormhole (or similar increased mass) in a zero gravity environment, then theoretically you could propel a man around it until he reached a steady orbit just over the event horizon.
If this setup was achieved, then as long as he could be sustained he could slow down the time rate of his body, meaning by waiting a year over the event horizon he could emerge 10,000 years later.
hows that for a thought
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I agree with focused_science
Take for example a black whole. If you were some how able to enter a black hole without being turned into a spaghetti noodle then time inside the black hole would almost stop completely. If you spent 5 minutes inside a black hole then that time would have felt like 5 years to everyone else! the reason dor this effect is that the fabric of space is very concentrated near a black hole do to gravity. As Focused_science suggested the fabric of space and time are tethered/related so if you compress space, you slow down time.
your theory on human perception, speeding up (overclocking the brain) causes time to go slower for that individual is vaguely familiar to a consept called "slow mo" off of that movie "judge dredd". you should watch the movie on boot leg here's the link
http://www.kickassunblock.info/judge-dredd-3-2013-idw-t7018441.html
it's a torrent so you'll need a free softwere called "Utorrent" to download it.