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SUBATOMIC particles have broken the universe's fundamental speed limit, or so it was reported last week. The speed of light is the ultimate limit on travel in the universe, and the basis for Einstein's special theory of relativity, so if the finding stands up to scrutiny, does it spell the end for physics as we know it? The reality is less simplistic and far more interesting.
"People were saying this means Einstein is wrong," says physicist Heinrich of the Technical University of Dortmund in Germany. "But that's not really correct."
Instead, the result could be the first evidence for a reality built out of extra dimensions. Future historians of science may regard it not as the moment we abandoned Einstein and broke physics, but rather as the point at which our view of space vastly expanded, from three dimensions to four, or more.
The trick is to send neutrinos on a shortcut through a fourth, thus-far-unobserved dimension of space, reducing the distance they have to travel. Then the neutrinos wouldn't have to outstrip light to reach their destination in the observed time.
In such a universe, the particles and forces we are familiar with are anchored to a four-dimensional membrane, or "brane", with three dimensions of space and one of time. Crucially, the brane floats in a higher dimensional space-time called the bulk, which we are normally completely oblivious to.
With a neutral charge and nearly zero mass, neutrinos are the shadiest of particles, rarely interacting with ordinary matter and slipping through our bodies, buildings and the Earth at a rate of trillions per second. Every so often, they crash into an atom to produce a signal that allows us to detect them.
Their stealth, however, belies their potential importance.
Take extra dimensions. Most particles come in two varieties: ones that spin clockwise and ones that spin anticlockwise. Neutrinos are the only ones that seem to just spin anticlockwise. Some theorists say this is evidence for extra dimensions, which could host the "missing", right-handed neutrinos.
Unseen right-handed neutrinos may also account for dark matter - the 80 per cent of all matter needed to stop galaxies from flying apart. The idea is that this variety is much heavier than the other, so could provide the requisite gravity.
Originally posted by mrjones7885
Where's the link
Originally posted by Atzil321
reply to post by mrjones7885
Why do people always have to link to an outside source to validate what they are saying?
2nd line
Originally posted by Americanist
reply to post by Maxmars
Now make an educated guess... What's the purpose and shape of the 4th dimension?
Originally posted by cripmeister
reply to post by Maxmars
Interesting ideas but I need to register on New Scientist to read the entire article.
Originally posted by cripmeister
reply to post by Maxmars
Interesting ideas but I need to register on New Scientist to read the entire article.
We have heard scientists say they are willing to bet their house it's an error and they have good reason to say that.
Originally posted by SirMike
I think the cart is a bit in front of the horse on this one … lets wait for some verification of the results before we proclaim relativity dead. If I had to guess, I would say we are dealing with an instrument error rather than a rewriting of the known physical laws of the universe.
The neutrinos from SN1987A traveled so far that had they been moving that much faster than light, they would’ve arrived here almost four years before the light did. However, we saw the light from the supernova at roughly the same time as the neutrinos (actually the light did get here later, but it takes a little while for the explosion to eat its way out of the star’s core to its surface, and that delay completely accounts for the lag seen).