Re: Laser as Reactionless Propulsion

Anders Sandberg (asa@nada.kth.se)
21 Apr 1999 09:45:06 +0200

"Ross A. Finlayson" <RAF@tomco.net> writes:

> Picture this, they have shown in the laboratory, supposedly, that
> electrons or atoms can be teleported. Then again, they had "cold
> fusion" ten years ago. Anyways, as soon as we get past the barriers
> of space-time in a similar manner as teleportation, we could
> teleport mass for energy rendering, probably a long time before
> something like that would be safe for yourself or a houseplant.

I think you are mixing up things here a bit. The quantum teleportation (which has been demonstrated in a scientifically satisfying way, unlike cold fusion) moves the *quantum state* of one particle to another particle (by using an intermediary). It doesn't mean particle A escapes spacetime to appear at location B or something like that. Energy transfer using this will be just energy transfer. And I don't see how mass-energy conversion get into it.

> Theoretically, no matter where in space-time, there is an infinite
> number of higher dimensions. So, at an arbitrary coordinate of
> (0,0,0), at arbitrary time 0, there is a fifth dimension ranging
> from -oo to oo, where oo is scalar infinity, and that coordinate in
> space-time might be at any coordinate in the fifth
> dimension. etcetera. This could mean that there are an infinite
> number of alternate space-times for each point in space-time.

Again, you seem to be mixing up "theoretically possible" with "real". Sure, there might be extra dimensions (M-brane theory is filled with them, although they are "curled up" and run from 0 to 2pi instead of -infinity to infinity), but you can't just assume that there are arbitrary extra dimensions and then make claims that

> Once this system is better defined, and we have developed tools to
> interact with and work with it, then a large variety of "special
> effects" will be able to be tapped.

Note that you have drifted from a "may" to a "will". This is very dangerous; we may understand how aging works within a few years, but if I go around claiming that we will become immortal by 2010 without having any support for my view then I will not only appear a bit crackpotish to people, but also draw ridicule on much legitimate life extension research and immortalism. If I have some evidence or a good argument, then things change.

-- 
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Anders Sandberg                                      Towards Ascension!
asa@nada.kth.se                            http://www.nada.kth.se/~asa/
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