Time Travel in Science

In junior high we learned that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. With the existence of wormholes, this is no longer true. A wormhole, in effect, folds spacetime so that the two points conicide.

The most popular theory about the possibility of time travel grew out of Einstein's Theory of Relativity. In very simple terms, this theory holds that time slows down as speed increases. In other words, the faster I move, the slower time passes for me. This concept is incorporated into the idea of a wormhole, which is basically a connection between two point in spacetime.

Combining this theory of wormholes with Einstein's Relativity produces the time travel theory. A wormhole is created with one opening on Earth and the other opening on a spaceship. If this spaceship then flies through the universe at speeds approaching the speed of light, Relativity states that time will pass more slowly for the opening of the wormhole that is on the ship. Thus, the ship is sent out to fly at ultra-high speeds for a good period of time, and then returns to Earth. Upon it's return, the opening of the wormhole on Earth will have aged more than the opening on the ship, and therefore the two will exist in different times. If a time traveller were to enter the opening that had remained on Earth, he would emerge from the other side at an earlier time than when he went in, thus effectively travelling back in time.

Below is part of an essay by Clifford Pickover, a researcher at the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center. Click here to view the entire essay.

DCM '03