Time Travel in Einstein's Universe: The Physical Possibilities of Travel Through TimeTime travel in Newton's universe was inconceivable, but in Einstein's universe it has become a possibility. J. Richard Gott III, a Princeton astrophysicist who is a leading researcher in the field, gives readers a guided tour of the potential of traveling through time. Although scientists such as Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne have previously considered the topic, the delightfully refreshing -- but scrupulously careful -- Gott goes light-years beyond them in his exploration of this exciting idea. Gott begins by describing how the finest science fiction about time travel has inspired some of today's top scientific ideas on the subject. He goes on to explain how travel to the future is not only possible but has actually happened (astronauts have aged a bit less than we whose feet have stayed solidly on earth), and he examines whether travel to the past might also be possible, given certain physical conditions. He then offers up his most stunning material: the study of time travel can be used to discover whether the universe could have created itself. Finally, asserting that no book on time travel would be complete without a report from the future, Gott predicts the span of human existence, based on a scientific technique he has developed. His conclusion is humbling but wondrous: just in the short time we have lived so far, consider how much we have already learned about the universe. TIME TRAVEL IN EINSTEIN'S UNIVERSE is a book to read not only for its extraordinary subject matter and scientific brilliance but for its joyful writing. |
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Time Travel to the Future 33 | 33 |
Time Travel to the Past | 76 |
Time Travel and the Beginning of the Universe | 131 |
Copyright | |
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Time Travel in Einstein's Universe: The Physical Possibilities of Travel ... J. Richard Gott No preview available - 2001 |
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95 percent accelerating Alpha Centauri arrive Astra astronaut baby universes big bang big crunch billion black hole bottom bowling ball Cauchy horizon circle circumference Copernican principle cosmic string create curved diagram dimensions of space distance early universe Earth Einstein's theory electromagnetic electron emitted energy density event horizon exist expanding faster feet Figure finite Flatland future longevity galaxies geometry Hawking Hawking radiation human idea infinite number inflation inflationary vacuum inside intelligent observers kilometers per second Kip Thorne laws of physics Li-Xin light beam light-years look loop machine mass mirrors Misner space moving nanoseconds negative normal vacuum oscillating paper particles past path photons Physical Review physicist planet population prediction quantum mechanics radiation region Rindler vacuum rocket self-consistent singularity solution spaceship special relativity species speed of light stars tachyon theorem time-travel tiny tion trip tunnel velocity wall warpdrive waves world line wormhole wormhole mouth zero