Some time ago I came across this article that reports scientists setting up an experiment that will prove retrocausality and hence Einstein's theory of relativity, or atleast partly. For the uninitiated (like me before I read the article) retrocausality is the theory that the chain of causality can be broken, that is the effect will come before the cause... or something like that.
Now I dont claim to be a quantum physicist, but I'm pretty sure that the "cause" of something, by definition, is that which comes first. Sure enough, a quick trip to dictionary.com proved this to be true and vice versa for effect. Check it out here and here respectively (incidentally, 1st definitions for each).
Yet despite the clear lack of logic for retrocausality, who am I to say Einstein was wrong... besides, how much of physics really does make sense? This might be Monty's effect on me coming through though. Anyway, let's just assume that the definitions of cause and effect are, for lack of a better term, crap. So these scientists send a piece of information back in time... to themselves... as they're creating the device that will send this info back to them. If they really expected the experiment to work, wouldn't they know the answer already? And, thus knowing the answer will be recieved prior to completion of the device, stop working and just wait around for it instead?
I hope these guys haven't been given a government grant.
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4 comments:
Or if einstein was doing that. And his sending back of information to a younger enistein prevented him from meeting my mother and therefore, preventing my birth.
Whoah.. the world would be a scary place.
Thanks for the intellectual blog entry btw. Appreciate it. :)
Man... just read the article.
Makes me laugh that the things they suggest you'd do if you could time travel are within the bounds of:
"tak(ing) back an unfortunate voice mail message, or rephras(ing) what you just said to your boss. Or perhaps you've even dreamed of tweaking the outcome of yesterday's lottery to make yourself the winner."
sure, the last one is okaaay... but seriously the first two??? Clearly Patrick Barry is a super-creative writer!
reminds me of something i heard once - "did you know DNA is in poo? 'cause I didn't when i left that parting gift on my boss' desk"
hahahhaa
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