[ubermensch]

Let me propose an experiment for a hypothesis on the perception of physical dimensions. All are welcome to add on to this idea.

Here is a rough outline of that experiment.

Let's say we grow a human mind in a "test-tube" sort of environment.

In place of visual/aural/tactile stimulus, we shall create for him/her an environment based only on 2 dimensional planes. X and Y without Z.

He/she will be seeing him/herself from a third person perspective in the form of a 2 dimensional shape.

The person will be rewarded with nutrients and stimuli if certain tasks are to be completed, effectively forming the mechanisms for survival (hunting, feeding, procreation).

After a given period of time, the person will be disconnected from the machine and be allowed to view the world as we percieve it.

Questions:

How will the human mind react to the concept of depth?
How will he/she respond to the idea of "self" and "community"?
If survival within an imposed 2 dimensional plane (think pacman and side scrolling videogames :P) is psychologically feasible,
what of a single dimension?

Views would be much appreciated.

[ubermensch]

How does one experience a fourth, fifth or sixth physical dimension if they were to exist?

[Mohan.C]

Originally Posted by ubermensch Let me propose an experiment for a hypothesis on the perception of physical dimensions. All are welcome to add on to this idea. Here is a rough outline of that experiment. Let's say we grow a human mind in a "test-tube" sort of environment. In place of visual/aural/tactile stimulus, we shall create for him/her an environment based only on 2 dimensional planes. X and Y without Z. He/she will be seeing him/herself from a third person perspective in the form of a 2 dimensional shape. The person will be rewarded with nutrients and stimuli if certain tasks are to be completed, effectively forming the mechanisms for survival (hunting, feeding, procreation). After a given period of time, the person will be disconnected from the machine and be allowed to view the world as we percieve it. Questions: How will the human mind react to the concept of depth? How will he/she respond to the idea of "self" and "community"? If survival within an imposed 2 dimensional plane (think pacman and side scrolling videogames :P) is psychologically feasible, what of a single dimension? Views would be much appreciated.

The human mind will notreact to the concept of depth because it can't look behind it. the same way we do. Even in a single dimension it can happen But don't ask me how it's hard to imagine.

[Mohan.C]

Originally Posted by ubermensch How does one experience a fourth, fifth or sixth physical dimension if they were to exist?

I don't know I have never experienced it

[harmonygirl]

It is possible that the human mind will either i)not see the extra dimension, ii)be so tied to the previous reality as to breakdown and become mentally ill, or iii)that it would refuse to be limited to 2 dimensions only. I do not think this mind will be able to process such concepts as self and community, as these are rooted in a 3 dimensional existence (How can one have self if one is 2 d?)
I have never been able to fathom a single dimension. I do not know how it would be, so I am interested in the responses to your final question.
Cheers,

[Unreal Zelta]

Uber,
The human mind is very limited. We can not observe "everything" that "exists". As a result, we are trapped in this 4 dimension universe, which is actually somewhat different, if an alien (let's assume there are such beings) is to observe it.

A dimension is only imaginary, it is used to separate our visual impressions. And to make experimental observations look intelligible.

If we bring a primitive caveman into our cuntury, What do you think his reactions would be? No reactions at all,because the change in reality is too dramitic, one must have a slow accumulation in evolution.

I think you should rephrase your experiment, It's extremely hard to understand and is contridictory in places. A human cannot observe any physics means in a 2 dimensional space, simply because the human will not be conscious. This applies to any 2 dimensional entities (including pacman). Anyhow, it would be similar to the birth of a baby.

As for depth, I personally think, it's not physically possible to transform a 2 dimensional object (or flat drawing) in to a tri-coordinated (3 dimensional) object. They have separate discrete values. I suppose you can draw a 3D perspective picture. But it is not possible to "physically" transform it.

It's a very creative idea!

Best regards

Zelta

[Unreal Zelta]

Uber,
The human mind is very limited. We can not observe "everything" that "exists". As a result, we are trapped in this 4 dimension universe, which is actually somewhat different, if an alien (let's assume there are such beings) is to observe it.

A dimension is only imaginary, it is used to separate our visual impressions. And to make experimental observations look intelligible.

If we bring a primitive caveman into our cuntury, What do you think his reactions would be? No reactions at all,because the change in reality is too dramitic, one must have a slow accumulation in evolution.

A human cannot observe any physics means in a 2 dimensional space, simply because the human will not be conscious. This applies to any 2 dimensional entities (including pacman). Anyhow, it would be similar to the birth of a baby.

As for depth, I personally think, it's not physically possible to transform a 2 dimensional object (or flat drawing) in to a tri-coordinated (3 dimensional) object. They have separate discrete values. I suppose you can draw a 3D perspective picture. But it is not possible to "physically" transform it.

I think you should rephrase your experiment, It's extremely hard to understand and is contridictory in places.

Anyhow, it's a very creative idea!

Best regards

Zelta

[ubermensch]

Thanks guys (and girl/s) for your insightful responses. Came across this article recently when browsing Michio Kaku's website http://www.mkaku.org/articles/hyper_and_toe.shtml Very interesting.

[ubermensch]

An exerpt taken from Michio Kaku's article.

"To visualize higher dimensions, consider a Japanese tea garden, where carp spend their entire lives swimming on the bottom of a shallow pond. The carp are only vaguely aware of a world beyond the surface. To a carp “scientist,” the universe only consists of two dimensions, length and width. There is no such thing as “height.” In fact, they are incapable of imagining a third dimension beyond the pond. The word “up” has no meaning for them. (Imagine their distress if we were to suddenly lift them out of their two dimensional universe into “hyperspace,” i.e. our world!) However, if it rains, then the surface of their pond becomes rippled. Although the third dimension is beyond their comprehension, they can clearly see the waves traveling on the pond's surface. Likewise, although we earthlings cannot “see” these higher dimensions, we can see their ripples when they vibrate. According to this theory, “light” is nothing but vibrations rippling along the 5th dimension. By adding higher dimensions, we can easily accommodate more and more forces, including the nuclear forces. In a nutshell: the more dimensions we have, the more forces we can accommodate."

Just to even fathom about the manifestation of 10 dimentions interlinked makes my mind ache.. haha. I'm gonna go buy some books. Anyone has any reccomended reading?

[ubermensch]

Meeting a Higher Dimensional Being

Another exerpt from an article by Michio Kaku.

"To understand some of the mind-bending features of higher dimensions, imagine a two-dimensional world, called Flat land (after Edwin A. Abbott's celebrated novel) that resembles a world existing on a flat table-top. If one of the Flatlanders becomes lost, we can quickly scan all of Flatland, peering directly inside houses, buildings, and even concealed places. If one of the Flatlanders becomes sick, we can reach directly into their insides and per form surgery, without ever cutting their skin. If one of the Flatlanders is incarcerated in jail (which is a circle enclosing the Flatlander) we can simply peel the person off from Flatland into the third dimension and place the Flatlander back somewhere else. If we become more ambitious and stick our fingers and arms through Flatland, the Flatlanders would only see circles of flesh that hover around them, constantly changing shape and merging into other circles. And lastly, if we fling a Flatlander into our three dimensional world, the Flatlander can only see two dimensional cross sections of our world, i.e. a phantasmagoria of circles, squares, etc. which constantly change shape and merge (see fig. 1 and 2). Now imagine that we are “three dimensional Flatlanders” being visited by a higher dimensional being. If we became lost, a higher dimensional being could scan our entire universe all at once, peering directly into the most tightly sealed hiding places. If we became sick, a higher dimensional being could reach into our insides and perform surgery without ever cutting our skin. If we were in a maximum-security, escape-proof jail, a higher dimensional being could simply “yank” us into a higher dimension and redeposit us back somewhere else. If higher dimensional beings stick their “fingers” into our universe, they would appear to us to be blobs of flesh which float above us and constantly merge and split apart. And lastly, if we are flung into hyperspace, we would see a collection of spheres, blobs, and polyhedra which suddenly appear, constantly change shape and color, and then mysteriously disappear. Higher dimensional people, therefore, would have powers similar to a god: they could walk through walls, disappear and reappear at will, reach into the strongest steel vaults, and see through buildings. They would be omniscient and omnipotent. Not surprisingly, speculation about higher dimensions has sparked enormous literary and artistic interest over the last hundred years."

Wow.