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                  <P><CENTER><FONT SIZE="+2" COLOR="#474747">S C I E
                  N C E &nbsp; F R I D A Y </FONT><SUP><FONT
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                  <UL>
                     It's Somewhat Serious Science! Over the years,
                     we've found that scientists are still trying to
                     solve some very big, but very basic questions
                     about the world we live in. For fun, we've
                     teamed up with the
                     <A HREF="http://www.improb.com">Annals of
                     Improbable Research (AIR)</A> to see if we can
                     settle these things by surveying public
                     opinions.
                     
                     <P>Vote early and often. The funniest, cleverest
                     answer (in our humble opinion) will win a copy
                     of the book
                     <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0716730944/sciencefridayA/">"The
                     Best of the Annals of Improbable Research"</A>,
                     edited by Marc Abrahams.<FONT SIZE="+1">
                     <HR>
                     </FONT><B>The basic question: Is faster-than
                     light travel possible?<BR>
                     
                     <A HREF="http://www.sciencefriday.com/pages/serious/serious01.html">(last
                     week: Does reality exist?)</A></B></P>
                     
                     <P><B>Some background:</B> Einstein's theory of
                     relativity tells us that nothing can travel
                     faster than electromagnetic radiation (Light is
                     one form of electromagnetic radiation.) The
                     theory also predicts -- and this seems VERY
                     weird to us human beings, that the speed of
                     light the same no matter what you compare it
                     with. One consequence is that when things go
                     very fast compared to us, they get shorter and
                     they get heavier. Go figure (Einstein did!).
                     </P>
                     
                     <P><B>So - it's your turn</B>: What do you
                     think? Is faster than light travel possible?
                     Please keep your answers as brief as possible
                     (without , of course, distorting the brilliance
                     of your theories! )</P>
                     
                     <P><A HREF="mailto:producer@sciencefriday.com?subject=SERIOUS:FTLyes">yes</A><BR>
                     
                     <A HREF="mailto:producer@sciencefriday.com?subject=SERIOUS:FTLno">no</A><BR>
                     
                     <A HREF="mailto:producer@sciencefriday.com?subject=SERIOUS:FTLund">undecided</A>
                     - (I'd like to wait for further
                     experimentation)<BR>
                     
                     <A HREF="mailto:producer@sciencefriday.com?subject=SERIOUS:FTLother">other</A>
                     - (I've got an explanation or theory that I need
                     to express)
                     <HR>
                     Some interesting responses so far:</P>
                     
                     <P>Faster than light travel is possible but only
                     if you are facing backwards.<BR>
                     
                     --Charles Belair</P>
                     
                     <P>It depends on how fast the light is
                     moving.<BR>
                     
                     --Michael Castleman</P>
                     
                     <P>Of course faster-than-light travel is
                     possible. However,the probabaility that your
                     luggage will wind up at the wrong destination
                     increases as the cube of the velocity.<BR>
                     
                     --Bob O'Hara<BR>
                     
                     -------------------------</P>
                     
                     <P>Actually, Einstein's theory of relativity
                     states that an object (something that has mass)
                     cannot travel AT the speed of light, it doesn't
                     say that objects can't travel faster than the
                     speed of light. If an object is traveling faster
                     than the speed of light, it cannot slow down to
                     the speed of light. A hypothetical particle
                     called a tachyon has been theorized to describe
                     these super-luminol (faster than light)
                     objects.I don't know if the existence of
                     tachyons has ever been proven or disproved.<BR>
                     
                     --Garry Fink</P>
                     
                     <P>Clearly, if travel means a translation of
                     spatial coordinates through a series of
                     accelerations, the answer is not yes
                     (Acceleration is limited by relativity to
                     producing velocity &lt; c ). For the answer to
                     be yes, a more direct method to change
                     coordinates would have to be found. I believe,
                     and cannot deductively prove by experiment, that
                     the nature of quantum reality is as of yet
                     unrevealed in this area.<BR>
                     
                     --Charles Johnson</P>
                     
                     <P>The particle duality (where the spin of a
                     particle is not determined until it is measured,
                     at which time the spin of the anti-particle
                     co-created with that particle is determined, no
                     matter how far the anti-particle has traveled)
                     proves that space does not exist where time is
                     concerned. Therefore, travel greater than the
                     speed of light is possible, though, obviously
                     difficult, as soon as we solve the
                     matter/anti-matter creation dilemna.<BR>
                     
                     --Mary F. Byrkit</P>
                     
                     <P>Quantum mechanics allows for particle
                     behavior that could be interpreted as movement
                     at super-luminous velocity. For instance,
                     quantum tunneling, the ability of a particle to
                     pass through seemingly impassible barriers, begs
                     the question "how fast is a particle that
                     tunnels?" Very recently, there has been media
                     coverage of a scientist who claims to use
                     tunneling to achieve data transfer rates up to
                     five times the speed of light. However, if
                     tunneling can be used to achieve FTL velocities,
                     can it be applied on a macroscopic scale?<BR>
                     
                     -- Patrick Riley</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes, this is true. I have proved this by
                     having my daughter throw a light accross the
                     room, I outran it.<BR>
                     
                     --Bob Harvey</P>
                     
                     <P>Is faster-than light travel possible? No and
                     yes. No, the molecules that you and i are made
                     of won't go faster than light....but... Yes, the
                     building blocks that other things are made of
                     will go faster than light. (We haven't
                     discovered those yet.) We will eventually
                     perfect the technique of bringing other things
                     to us faster than the speed of light.<BR>
                     
                     --LZ Crawford</P>
                     
                     <P>Einstein's theory contains many variables but
                     for the evolutionary constant that man will find
                     a means to overcome any obstacle, except, of
                     course, our ultimate determination.<BR>
                     
                     --Dv8lwyr</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes, but it will only be faster than light if
                     you consider the normal distance between the
                     start and finish, and the time it takes to go
                     from one to another. I am assuming some kind of
                     "hole" from one point in space to another. The
                     velocity of travel through the hole may well be
                     far below the speed of light, but the hole is a
                     shorter route through space.<BR>
                     
                     --Jim Morton</P>
                     
                     <P>As you point out in your summary of
                     Relativity theory, the faster a spaceship (and
                     its fuel) goes, the heavier it gets. It
                     approaches infinite mass as it approaches the
                     speed of light. That infinitely massive fuel
                     should provide the impetus to go right on to
                     trans-light speeds. The folks back here in
                     "normal" space-time wouldn't be able to see this
                     because no light would escape from this ship (in
                     its black hole?). Right?<BR>
                     
                     -- Robert Briggs</P>
                     
                     <P>Faster-than-light travel is indeed possible,
                     thought research into economical methods has
                     been systematically supressed by headlamp
                     manufacturers and their agents in the
                     Congress.<BR>
                     
                     --Todd Zwillich</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes, depends on what light you are racing
                     against. ie. I can run faster than light
                     traveling in or around a blackhole.<BR>
                     
                     --Jeffrey A. Akczinski</P>
                     
                     <P>Faster than light is possible, but not
                     observable. Anything that overcomes the light
                     barier becomes unobservable.<BR>
                     
                     --Todd Buss</P>
                     
                     <P>Well, as Einstein would be so fond of
                     pointing out, the answer is relative. As long as
                     you're trying to surf during off-peak hours,
                     faster-than-light travel seems almost probable.
                     Otherwise, park yourself behind the nearest T-1
                     and hope for the best. Short and heavy is about
                     all you'll find.<BR>
                     
                     --Christopher R. Friend</P>
                     
                     <P>So may things that were once considered
                     impossiable by science have been proven
                     otherwise. I think our understanding of the
                     universe and how things work is reletively (no
                     pun intended) small, and it would be premature
                     and arrogant to rule out "Star Trek" travel just
                     yet.<BR>
                     
                     --Tom Clark</P>
                     
                     <P>Certainly. The speed of light is vastly
                     exceeded by the speed of gossip.<BR>
                     
                     --Doug Johnson</P>
                     
                     <P>I read some few months ago about the
                     "spookiness at a distance" ?? Einstein's words
                     ?? test that proved that measuring the spin of
                     one electron as another left in the opposite
                     direction caused the other to have the opposite
                     spin always. This would mean that the
                     information would have to travel faster than
                     light to effect the other electron.<BR>
                     
                     --Joe Saputo</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes, faster than light is possible. As one
                     who sees creation as transcended by God, He
                     would have to have means of controling and
                     monitoring the universe. Omnicience (I
                     appologize for my spelling!) would require
                     instantanious and simultanious positioning.
                     Perhaps His ability to exist in eternity,
                     outside of the "timeline" so to speak, would
                     allow his positional changes without time
                     changing. Of course, since velocity has a
                     component of time, actually in the denominator,
                     wouldn't velocity go to infinity if time is zero
                     with any change in position? I think we will be
                     amazed if we are allowed to spend eternity with
                     him, and with the abilities "hanging" with God
                     would provide.<BR>
                     
                     --Ralph H. McBride</P>
                     
                     <P>yes, but only by children trying to hide from
                     their chores. - Bob Evans</P>
                     
                     <P>You could make some kind of light resistor
                     that slows light down, that will allow you to
                     travel faster than that light.<BR>
                     
                     -- Didier</P>
                     
                     <P>It will turn out to be unnecessary.<BR>
                     
                     -- Kent M. Farnsworth</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes. I'll explain more yesterday.<BR>
                     
                     --Arne Knudson</P>
                     
                     <P>Since a particle emits blue light as it
                     enters water at greater than the speed of light
                     in water for a short time as it is slowing down,
                     it must be assumed that it is possible for the
                     particle to have been traveling faster than the
                     speed of light in water. However, this also
                     brings up the concern of a change in color in
                     those people who are traveling at this speed. I
                     predict that a blue halo would apear around
                     those few who are sucessful in ataining this
                     speed.<BR>
                     
                     --Ron Heath</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes, but only if you are going as an
                     antiparticle analog of yourself and therefore
                     traveling backwards through space-time.<BR>
                     
                     --Mark Kristjanson</P>
                     
                     <P>To travel faster than light, u have to
                     separate the layers of 2-D space to create a
                     pocket for your ship to fit in. then u must
                     create a gravity wave to ride, using the pocket
                     as your surfboard.<BR>
                     
                     --Jonathan Evenson</P>
                     
                     <P>It's really quite simple if you're an
                     adequate lobbyist. You must finagle the powers
                     that be to enact legislation that limits the
                     legal speed limit of light to say, 65 miles/hr.
                     Now that you've so cleverly manipulated the laws
                     of physics, just hop in your beat up Ford
                     Torino, hang an official looking sign from the
                     rearview saying 'light speed or bust', crank up
                     the eight-track, and ride for posterity's
                     sake..<BR>
                     
                     -- Sean M. and Amy F.</P>
                     
                     <P>Yes travel faster then light is possible as
                     long as you are going away from light, or in a
                     outward motion not inward. <BR>
                     
                     --Charles Brown</P>
                     
                     <P>I don't know, so I just eat Oreos.<BR>
                     
                     -- David Contente</P>
                     
                     <P>Anyone who has seen, or better yet not seen,
                     roaches disappear when you turn on the light,
                     knows these insects are fully capable of
                     traveling faster that the speed of light. 
                     Perhaps a spaceship powered by roaches on a
                     treadmill being subjected to a strobe light
                     could attain speed of light velocities.<BR>
                     
                     --Malcolm Rowland</P>
                     
                     <P>Don't think so. Just about everything I've
                     read or heard about is based on one of two
                     approaches: Getting around the physical laws
                     somehow (tesseract, wormhole, etc), or;Building
                     something big enough (massive cylinder of
                     neutrons spinning in space). Well, the first is
                     mostly hoping for a miracle and the second is
                     really too costly to attempt. At the risk of
                     sounding, oh, practical without shading toward
                     being a Luddite, it seems the better place to
                     invest in the future is right here on Earth. But
                     then, the Earth isn't nearly as exotic a place
                     as the rest of the solar system or this
                     galaxy.<BR>
                     
                     --Michael Pica</P>
                     
                     <P>Of course you can travel faster than light.
                     How else can you be the first one into the house
                     and last in line at the bathroom?<BR>
                     
                     --lordrees</P>
                     
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