The possibility of time travel has been explored extensively in the science fiction genre of literature, movies, and television shows. Time travel has an assortment of theories, with views on the definition of time travel, the metaphysics of time, causation, and arguments against the possibility of time travel with responses to counter them.
Definition of Time Travel
Time travel does not have one standard definition. A popular definition of time travel is by David Lewis, where the time elapsed for the time traveller to get to a destination is different from the time between the departure and arrival time. If the arrival time is later than the duration of the journey, the time traveller has travelled to the future. The time traveller has travelled to the past if the arrival time is earlier. An example of time travel by this definition would be in Doctor Who, where the Doctor steps into his time machine for what seems like 5 minutes and steps out into 200 years in the past. There is a distinction here between personal time and external time. Personal time is the time traveller’s sense of time, whereas external time is the time of the place surrounding the time traveller. With no time travel, personal time is the same as external time. In cases of time travel, personal time is different from external time (Smith).
Another definition involves the existence of closed timelike curves. A curve is a line in space-time where a material object returns to its starting point (Hunter). Gödel’s example would be if a time traveller gets into a rocket ship that is not a time machine, flies off, and arrives at a point in the past or future of his departure due to the overall structure of space-time. Other authors theorize that there are parall...
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...ust because something has never happened, does not mean that it never will happen. These arguments do not prove either side of the debate, but rather leaves the possibility of time travel unresolved. It has not been proven whether time travel is definitely possible or impossible, nor is there a foreseeable way to prove it. The various theories to challenge the possibility of time travel are not sufficient to conclude with either a positive or negative answer. Therefore, time travel remains a possibility due to the lack of evidence. For now, time travel exists as a theoretical concept without any practical proof.
Works Cited
Hunter, Joel. "Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.
Smith, Nicholas J.J., "Time Travel", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2013
Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.)
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I always had trouble understanding others. Growing up I never played with the other children. My grandfather said it was because my mind was too busy thinking of brilliant idea to actually talk to the others. I believed him. I believed in him for 17 years, that all stopped today. It all ended when I was riding my bike to the local market so I could pick up scrap parts for my grandfather. He said they were for his hovertech76 His prized antique hover car. As I made my way down the pavement I saw the market coming up from the horizon and suddenly everything freezes The birds in the sky, the leaves in the air, my bike, everything. I can’t move my head. I am paralyzed. “What’s happening?” I thought frantically to myself “Someone help! Someone please!” But just a quickly as I was put into this horrifying state I was snapped back to my bike. Birds chirping the leaves hit the floor but something is different, I am in the market that was barely in eye sight just moments ago. I slam my brakes. Directing my unblinking eyes towards the ground I start to breath heavily. “What on Earth just happened?” My thoughts scatter, my heart begins to race, Darkness.
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Time Travel has always struck close to the imagination of the minds. From H.G. Wells ' "The Time Machine" to blockbuster films like "Back to the Future" - for years, time travel was the stuff of science fiction and crazy-eyed mad men but as physicists approach the subject of time travel with new advances in scientific theories and equipment, the possibility of time travel has become a more legitimate field for scientific endeavours. This paper will argue the possibility of time travel and the positive effects that this discovery will bring forth to modern day society: technological advancements.
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possibilities be? The ideas presented in this story are very entertaining and imaginative. From what I gathered while researching this novel and the time period in which it was written, the author, H.G. Wells, incorporated new ideas about science and physics into this story. It is not hard to see why this story is considered classic science fiction more than one hundred years after it was first published. This story is great because it sparks your imagination and persuades you to consider the mysteries of science and time travel.
Others have noted that we're all travelling forward in time (in fact, the theory relativity says that we are all travelling at the speed of light through spacetime) so I'll tackle the travelling-backward-in-time part of the question. And that breaks down into issues of whether backwards time travel is a theoretical possibility, and whether it's a practical one.