A few questions...

[SinJin]

I was thinking the other day and had a few questions I'm sure those who post on this message board could easily answer for me. Here they are:

Einstein predicted that gravity wasn't a force, but rather the simple bending of space. Gravity, then, was the sensation experienced as objects "fall" into that bend. But in string theory, there is the theoretical graviton particle which supposively transmits the force of gravity. So if this particle is found to exist, wouldn't it drastically alter Einstein's theory?

Here's my other, seperate question. If you think along the lines of the passage of time arrising from the increase in entropy, then the reason we experience the passing of time is because we can see things changing and moving. That is, our eyes interpret the incoming photons, which move the speed of light. So if you can somehow magically travel the speed of light, you would be going to same speed as the photon and they would look like they're standing still, so you wouldn't see them interacting. you wouldn't see them bouncing off objects, and so you wouldn't see those objects, or anything for that matter. Not being able to see things, you wouldn't see entropy on the rise, and therefore wouldn't experience the passage of time, and time would appear to stand still for you. When you slowed down though, as you slowed down though, you would then be able to see the photons in their current state, and it would appear that you "lept" forward in time, even though while you were going the speed of light photons were still moving and entropy was unfolding. You just couldn't see it and therefore experience it. Does that make sense, or am I just scarmbling my theories?

My third question involves time again, and perhaps might explain my second question. I thought the arrow of time was directly caused by the arrow of entropy. Disorder always increases, therefore we see things unfold in one direction (towards the future.) But then Einstein talks about time being a fourth dimension, being linked to space, being able to bend under gravity... And so it seems like the two theories are in contrast with eachother. Is time really a seperate dimension, or just an illusion of entropy?

Thanks for any helps anyone can give.

[Guille]

Sinjin,

For my opinion about time, please, please look at my thread "my time paradox".

To the first question I can't really tell you if they have contrast or not. It depends on what scientists think about of gravitons. I think it's easier to mentally accept gravitons like there is first the space-time curvature, and then, on top, there is a "layer" of gravitons, and on top of that, is where the matter/mass is. The gravitons make the curvature of space-time affect matter, it's like a transmitor, this is why they call them force carriers.

The second and third question are very linked. For the first one, I still don't like/accept the idea of something (entropy) determining the "direction" of time. It is possible that it's just our view that entropy is growing, maybe it's the other way round. But the most important think is that entropy growing determines the direction of entropy in the dimension of time. Do we say the second dimension (let's say, width) to be "going in the left direction"? or the first (height) dimension going downwards? NO. This is because a dimension does not have a direction. It is the "line" of directions, of which there are two. So time, does not have a direction, but it is a line with two directions. You can check all these thoughts in my thread previouslly mentioned.

Time can't be a dimension if it is motion, and vice versa.