Is Time Travel Possible?

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Is Time Travel Possible?

Time travel has always fascinated humans. The idea of being able to change the past or the future creates infinite possibilities. The most common form of time travel is through the use of a time machine, although in some cases, characters with mystical powers can transport others in time. The subject of time travel has been brought up in various blockbuster movies, such as Back to the Future series, the Terminator trilogy, and even Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.4 In the literary world, some well-known writers have written about time travel, including H.G. Wells, Issac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein and Madeline L’Engle. There are songs about time travel, from George Harrison’s “Any Road” to “The Timewarp” from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Time travel is also a prominent theme in commercials and advertisements, television shows, and art. In these media forms, time travel can be construed as good or bad. In some cases, the hero or heroine in the story travels back in time to save someone or change a bad outcome. In others, tampering with the past leads to tragedy in the future. A frequent topic on this is what happens if one were to meet himself in the past. Because we have no definite answers on the concept of time travel, the possibilities in entertainment are endless.

Scientifically, there are currently three popular theories on how time travel may be possible: through the use of black holes, wormholes, and cosmic strings. There are two types of black holes. Schwarzschild black holes are the more well-known and consist of a singularity at the center that crushes all matter beyond recognition. Kerr holes are rotating black holes where the singularity is formed in a ring, much like th...

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...htly older while his twin has long since died of old age. The consequences of time travel on society would be tremendous. Today’s moral systems are based on the concept that (as Shakespeare wrote) “what’s done cannot be undone.” A society in which the correction of past mistakes or the prevention of future ones was possible would most likely have a radically different moral system less focused on the consequences of one’s actions.

(1)Hawking, Stephen. “Lectures: Space and Time Warps.” <http://www.hawking.org.uk/ lectures/puindex.html>.

(2) Pickover, Clifford. “Traveling Through Time.” 2000. NOVA Online. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/time/through.html.

(3)“Sagan on Time Travel.” 2000. NOVA Online.<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/ nova/time/ sagan.html>.

(4)“‘Time Travel’ Transcripts.” 1999. NOVA. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ transcripts/2612time.html>.

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