Dimensions vanish in quantum gravity.

Hi ATS

I read about this a couple of hours ago and I didn't see it come by yet.
So here you go...

So say researchers working on theories of quantum gravity, which aim to unite quantum mechanics with general relativity. They have recently noticed that several different quantum gravity theories all predict the same strange behaviour at small scales: fields and particles start to behave as if space is one-dimensional

Space one dimensional ?

It looks like the smaller you go the more basic it becomes. Eventually leaving only strings or lines that will go from point to point.

This is what they found:

process happens much faster at scales of 10-35 metres, equivalent to the "Planck length", the distance at which quantum gravity effects become significant.

This can be explained if the particles are effectively moving in just one spatial dimension. That's because the fewer dimensions that are available, the fewer directions in which a particle can move, and so the less time it will take to wander away from its original position.

Black holes are again needed for the disruptive force.

One big question is how quantum foam can focus light so strongly that nearby regions become effectively disconnected from one another. Modesto says a possible explanation is that the foam can be treated as being made up of minuscule black holes.

Ohh the universe seemt to be made from some sort of foam quantum gravity level.

Source.

I'm not going to pretend that I understand/ know what I just posted, but somehow I found it to be very interesting.

Enjoy !

~ Sinter

reply to post by Sinter Klaas


Everything would be so much easier if researchrs simply worked from the assumption that as above so below really is so....
What I mean is, the macro level and the micro level cannot but work on the same principles, IMO.
As a good friend of mine says, invest in a really good microscope and forget telescopes.

The "foam" thing sounds really interesting.
A great thread, thanks!

reply to post by AdAstra


I'd prefer a telescope as I think the universe just as interesting and the pictures are way more beautiful.

The foam caught my eye to, It would but it just doesn't feel right. It makes no sense to me. How could there be foam on micro and it is not on macro

I would like to know what I do not understand..

Amazing nonetheless.

reply to post by Sinter Klaas


imagine at a small scale there is only i dimention in time/space so particals travel straight
when the distance sccale hits a cetain point there is another dimention added but this follows the path around the outside of a bunch of foam bubbles (mini black holes bunched together) now because the space time is bent around the bubble it achives orbit and never escapes to the other side or the distance traveled would be infinate and there fore light would not escape

what isnt explained is what happens at the next scale distance increase and does this intro duce another disparate dimention and what are the changes of adding another dimention if the foam works in three ds what does this foam do in four dimetional time space over much larger distances

xploder
i found the idea hard to follow too

reply to post by Sinter Klaas

The foam caught my eye to, It would but it just doesn't feel right. It makes no sense to me. How could there be foam on micro and it is not on macro

Quantum foam

Quantum foam, also referred to as spacetime foam, is a concept in quantum mechanics, devised by John Wheeler in 1955. The foam is supposedly the foundations of the fabric of the universe,[1] but it can also be used as a qualitative description of subatomic spacetime turbulence at extremely small distances of the order of the Planck length. At such small scales of time and space the uncertainty principle allows particles and energy to briefly come into existence, and then annihilate, without violating conservation laws.

I'm not an expert on this myself, but as I understand it, "quantum foam" basically describes the fabric of the universe. Even a vacuum containing not a single particle will fluctuate with activity. At the smallest levels the universe is thought to be like a "foam" of semi-existent/virtual energy, a completely chaotic "soup" of probabilities and potential.

reply to post by XPLodER


Thank you

That was actually helpful.

Reply to Post by CHAOS


I get it... Sort of like the mythical Aether

reply to post by Sinter Klaas


These are actually decent pictures to help visualize it (taken from this post):

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/3dac6513c5da.jpg[/atsimg]
[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/8008dc561373.jpg[/atsimg]

Also notice that we have a 2D plane which warps and fluxes to create more complicated "3D objects". Interesting.

reply to post by CHA0S


Thank you for the link

Still even with the pictures I can not really wrap my head around the foam idea. Astonishing.

reply to post by CHA0S


Thanks, I was going to expand a bit on quantum foam but I see you did an exemplary job at it. This subject is very dear to me, because John Wheeler is one of my favorite physicists of the 20th century. Passed away in 2008, but he left as big an impact on modern interpretations of physics than most others. And even though lots of his ideas are controversial, he was loved by all his peers. He was a great guy.

He was apparently a spiritual person as well. I just happen to be currently reading "The Light Behind Consciousness" which is more like a Tibetan Monk's perspective on life more than a western physicist! He talks about how the essence of us lies in un-manifested awareness - which gives rise to consciousness - and the entire physical world is contained within the realm of consciousness, yet this is all more illusion than reality manifested by consciousness. Hard to get into too much detail, but it's absolutely brilliant - he was truly an enlightened man.

reply to post by Son of Will


I've been reading about spirituality and science have more in common then what we think, for a long time now.

It is absolutely amazing that there is evidence that this could very well be true.

Amazing