02/28/2001 11:14 am (about the
future) 560
PAMELA ASKS: 1. What type of money system do you have on your
world line' meaning how do you buy and sell things' Do you have
the same type of money or do we have a cashless society' such as
smart cards, credit cards or ID biochips.
I RESPOND: Its not very different than it is now. Yes, we have
money and credit cards. However, like everything else, the
monetary system is decentralized. Banking is based mostly around
the community structure. There are no multinational banking or
computerized economic systems... there are also no income taxes.
02/28/2001 11:14 am (about the future) 561
QUESTION ON THIS SITE: ((Is there an IRS and a need to keep a
lot of receipts and paperwork around to justify yourself'))
I RESPOND: Yes, we pay taxes.. Sounds like you don't enjoy
keeping track of your personal income taxes. I don't think
anyone does.
MY RESPONSE TO PAMELLA: I had considered going into more detail
about the tax system but I didn't have a great deal of time.
Currently, I am watching my father go over all his taxes and he
doesn't look like he's having a very good time. My comment
referred to the collective misery I see around me during this
time of year.
02/28/2001 12:28 pm (about time travel) 562
((In this experiment the traveler only goes 30 seconds into the
past to appear in his lab. It seems that 30 seconds before his
experiment was to begin he saw himself appear in the lab. There
would now be two travelers and two time machines. It doesn't
appear that it ends that simply as the "second" time traveler
says that he saw a duplicate self appear in the lab thirty
seconds before he started the trip. It would appear that its a
time loop and an infinite number of duplicates see a duplicate
self appear in the lab thirty seconds prior to the start of the
trip. '))
I'm not positive but I don't see anything that indicates the
time traveler would remain in the same spot once he arrives. 30
seconds is almost long enough to get coffee in your thought
experiment. If that were true, and they all kept moving, than
the experiment could go on for quite a while until the planet
filled with time travelers. You also stated, 'it would appear'
as a time loop. If it only appears that way, than the natural
divergence may stop the experiment when three or four time
travelers arrive and the others end up on different worldlines.
02/28/2001 12:28 pm (about time travel) 563
((The problem that needs to be addressed is what happens to the
duplicates as they simultaneously arrive at virtually the exact
same location.'))
Again, you use the world virtually, which to me means not
exactly the same spot. Under the laws of physics, I don't
personally know what happens if it were on exactly the same spot
but I do know it's possible. Under the operational limits of the
distortion unit, as soon as the VGL sensors pick up an
unexpected mass in the target worldline, it would shut down and
drop off in a worldline where your experiment is not occurring.
02/28/2001 12:28 pm (about time travel) 564
((Given that their masses will occupy the same space, what
prevents a naked singularity from forming'))
I see, now they are in the same space. I suppose that's a
possibility. If so, than the as soon as the experiment started,
a singularity would form under the infinite mass and swallow the
planet. Perhaps they tried this on Cygnus'
02/28/2001 12:28 pm (about time travel) 565
((It's a nice creative answer, but it didn't address the
question. The question was is it a loop; will it decay and how
long will it take to decay'))
Well, I think it's a nice creative question too. Under your
example, the 'loop' would terminate as soon as the singularity
forms and would be constantly fed by all the arriving time
travelers.
03/01/2001 11:31 am (safety, suggestions, assorted philosophy)
566
((How come it doesn't bother you that people may die through
your inaction yet you find it "morally wrong" that you might
affect lives by active involvement'))
I'm not sure I said it didn't bother me, I only stated I won't
interfere on purpose. Again I refer to a historical example.
Before Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, a small group of US
soldiers were experimenting with a new technology called RADAR.
As the Japanese planes were flying toward the island, they
actually picked them up in time to thwart the surprise attack.
Unfortunately, they were unfamiliar with the equipment and
figured it wasn't working correctly. As you are aware, the
ruthlessness of the Japanese 'sneak' attack galvanized the US
people into entering WWII.
03/02/2001 05:46 am (about time travel) 567
((Are the singularities in your machine supposed to be
offsetting the light cones of particles within it's sphere of
influence allowing the world lines of these particles to appear
to loop form the perspective of particles outside the effected
area'))
No, that's not how it works. The singularities are used to
manipulate gravity around the observer. The singularities do not
interact with any matter except the electrons that are injected
onto its event horizon. The hazardous areas of gravity are quite
small and exist only around the inner singularity ring and
another area created in the gravity sinusoid outside the
vehicle.
03/02/2001 05:46 am (about time travel) 568
((I don't mean to insult you by spelling out the obvious to you
so basically, but that seems the most obvious need of a
singularity.'))
No insult taken. I would imagine we both agree that standing
behind an operating jet engine is an unhealthy thing to do also.
03/02/2001 05:46 am (about time travel) 569
((If so, how can you account for generating a gravity well deep
enough to create such a disparity between light cones without
sucking the planet through the eye of a needle'))
The gravity well created by the singularities is not that large.
The portion of the field that is felt by the operator is about
the equivalent of 2 Gs. I would urge you to examine a Penrose
diagram for a Kerr black hole. As you are probably aware, the
singularity is donut shaped and exhibits two event horizons. The
singularities are used to 'simulate' a path through the center
of one of these singularities which is what takes the observer
to an alternate worldline. Earlier in the thread I did go into
this in a bit more detail.
03/02/2001 05:46 am (about time travel) 570
((Also, this requires motion through the space immediately
influenced by the mass, yet you claim travel is accomplished
while the traveler is stationary.'))
The unit must be stationary during operation due to the
sensitivity of the gravity sensors. Any motion with an
acceleration component would throw the gravity measurement from
the singularities off.
03/02/2001 08:07 am (about time travel) 571
(I postulate that you actually do not have any more of an
advantage or responsibility than the person who grabs someone
who is about to step off the curb and get hit by a bus. I would
not stop and think 'gee, I don't know, do they deserve to be
saved from the fate of a roadkill'' A doctor or priest does not
take it upon himself to decide who should be helped. A jet pilot
doesn't stop to think "Hey, air travel is pretty unnatural,
these people should have to walk and row their way to Paris. I
am messing with the way time and space is perceived and the
nature of reality with this form of transportation." Time travel
is just another form of transportation in one sense. Our
possible new ability to time travel in the future may not seem
any more exotic than our ability to access other cultures is
now.'))
I agree with this also.
03/02/2001 08:07 am (about the future) 572
((' are, or were, you in contact with TTs in 2036, and if so,
what percentage of the people accept it as possible' After the
flight of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk, it took 10 plus
years for people to accept it as anything more than just an
urban myth.'))
The general public was informed about time travel around 2034.
Yes, I have had conversations with other time travelers on my
home worldline. Your insight on the public is more or less
correct. I would say 60% of the people realize what it is and
the possible implications, 20% of the people don't care, 10%
don't believe it and another 10% see it as something that should
be banned and stopped.
03/02/2001 08:07 am (right now) 573
((John - commercials. They are ignorant commercials. In fact,
almost every commercial on television these days are either
totally stupid (so they come out funny), or they are aimed at
people whose humor suffers from being "in the black" a lot.
Black humor seems to be the way things go these days. I don't
much care for it.'))
Back in the 50s and 60s, television commercials were pretty
straightforward. Usually along the lines of, 'Cheese! It's good!
Buy cheese.' In the 70s, there was more identification with a
producer or trademark but the commercials were still pretty easy
to understand. 'Buy this beer, it tastes great!' Today, I have
no idea what some commercials are advertising until they show
the logo at the end. Do you find this more effective' Only
recently have I seen this move toward dark humor. I've never
seen anything like it before, even in 'your' archives in 2036.
03/02/2001 03:14 pm (right now) 574
((Is spiritual awakening a difficult process; if yes, then why
is it so difficult, and are we all capable of it'))
Personally, I believe spiritual awakening is difficult. Why' I
think God wants us back but the road we have to haul is no
picnic. Maybe he's a little angry for some reason. I think the
world is seductively clever in its presentation. "It" wants us
to stay here and it distracts us from God by creating want,
greed and four or five other motivations. Our goal should be to;
yes, have faith and do good deeds but also look past that and
have the wisdom and knowledge to realize that this place, this
world, this universe is not really our home. The question I ask
myself is not can I get to God, it's am I prepared for what will
it be like when I get there.
03/02/2001 03:14 pm (about time travel) 575
((What do you see for the future of TT in your world-line'))
That's a good question. I am hopeful that one day when we get
the planet cleaned up it will be a nice place to live on again
and no one will want to leave it. On the other hand, if time
travel were commonplace right now, I think a great many people
would leave and perhaps never return. There is also a suggestion
that time travel might make an interesting punishment. However,
I don't think we have the right to force criminals on
unsuspecting worldlines and sending them to the Stone Age might
be a bit much.
03/02/2001 03:14 pm (about the future) 576
((John, thank you for sharing, I find this fascinating. wanted
to ask, has California, had "the Big" earthquake, in your time
and has any of the north Coast disappeared'.. also, I really do
wish that you could be a guest on Art's show, I am sure it would
be enjoyable...thanks again.....Richard.'))
The big one' As you are experiencing now, there are earthquakes,
storms and other unfortunate surprises from Mother Nature that
have impacts on your society and future history. That is one
reason I won't go into detail. However, don't worry too much
about major portions of coastline slipping under water.
03/05/2001 11:32 am (about the future) 577
((What music do 20 year olds listen to.'))
People listen to all types of music. A great deal of it is
available over the web. I would also add that people spend much
more time making their own music.
03/05/2001 11:32 am (about the future) 578
((What's the future of cloning.'))
Cloning full people has been determined to be medically and
ethically unsound. We do have research and progress in cloning
body parts and creating more viable sperm and egg production.