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From: taylor@glasgow.glasgow.UUCP (Jem Taylor)
Newsgroups: net.physics,net.sci,net.philosophy,net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: A Sane Man Proposes A Time Travel Experiment
Message-ID: <671@glasgow.glasgow.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 5-Aug-86 10:18:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: glasgow.671
Posted: Tue Aug  5 10:18:00 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 8-Aug-86 04:49:44 EDT
References: <289@axiom.UUCP> <5723@lanl.ARPA> <7489@tekecs.UUCP> <83@unc.unc.UUCP> <451@nike.UUCP>
Reply-To: taylor@glasgow.UUCP (Jem Taylor)
Organization: Comp Sci Dept, Glasgow Univ, Scotland
Lines: 50
Xref: lsuc net.physics:2697 net.sci:1191 net.philosophy:1426 net.sf-lovers:8382

In article <451@nike.UUCP> kaufman@orion.UUCP (Bill Kaufman) writes:
>In article <7489@tekecs.UUCP> mikes@tekecs.UUCP (Michael Sellers) writes:
>>  As a collateral question (and possibly too speculative for these august
>>groups :-), if you were the one capable of sending something back, what (or 
>>who) would it be?
>
>A nuclear bomb.  Something that would, by "appearing" in that time,
>materialize in my grandfather.  A computer & manual, destined for T.A. Edison
>in Menlo Park, NJ.  The plans for "Opertion: Overlord" to die F^uhrer's 
>office (excuse the attempt at an umlaut) in Berlin.
>In general, anything that would cause an identifiable, unavoidable mistake
>in time.  Great way to verify whether we live in a "parallel" universe, or
>a "serial" one (cf. "Thrice Upon a Time," by (James P.?) Hogan).
>

But, but, but if we do live in a parallel universes (sic), then you wouldn't
notice any difference _in_this_parallel_ since this one is the one where the
transmission into the past, failed. If there was a difference, it would be
in a different parrallel universe, by definition.

So
	1) Time travel BACKWARDS into THIS PARALLEL doesn't work

If the universe isn't parallels (sic again), no-one would notice the change
because it would always have been that way. Ursula Le Guin wrote an excellent
book - 'The Lathe of Heaven' ? - which treats this problem, in the context
of some-one who can dream reality different. When he wakes up, everyone else
has already forgotten the 'real' past, and remembered the 'new' past which
is consistent with the new present. Our hero almost goes crazy ...

So
	2) Time travel DOES WORK but NO-ONE EVER NOTICES ...

-Jem.


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