The Grey Labyrinth is a collection of puzzles, riddles, mind games, paradoxes and other intellectually challenging diversions. Related topics: puzzle games, logic puzzles, lateral thinking puzzles, philosophy, mind benders, brain teasers, word problems, conundrums, 3d puzzles, spatial reasoning, intelligence tests, mathematical diversions, paradoxes, physics problems, reasoning, math, science.

Jack_Ian · Big Endian

The speed of light is constant by definition. Even if it were to change we'd have to concur that our rulers were changing. Revenge most foul!

I seem to remember something about the possibility of α, the fine structure constant, not being constant and that by inference, the speed of light would have altered over time.

I found this article which references some articles at the bottom about this possibility, but I don't know how old this information is and if it has been more recently debunked.

Can anyone out there let me know what the current consensus is on this, if indeed there is one?

Lepton* · Guest

The scientist that gives VSL (varying speed of light) theories the best name is a young guy named Joao Magueijo. He works at Imperial College, in London, and is fairly well-reputed as a competent and capable scientist. Although VSL can solve some theoretical problems, it seems to cause more problems than it solves (for example, how meaningful is it for a non-dimensionless quantity to vary? Most approaches actually change the way that special relativity works). The general feeling seems to be that this is an interesting idea -- perhaps deserving of a brilliant young mind pursuing it -- but probably not correct. It is simply an inelegant theory in a realm of unimaginably beautiful theories.

Jack_Ian · Big Endian

Thanks for the info Lepton. Even just having the term VSL is pointing me to some interesting articles that I intend to read later when I have some time.
As for beauty, I still feel we grew a few warts once we accepted that God played dice with our multiverse. I am willing to accept the possibility of VSL (warts and all), but I am still holding out for some epiphany of a deeper level of reality where causality still resides in it's own resplendence.

Lepton* · Guest

If you have the time, your faith in the beauty of modern physical theory might be re-kindled by learning quantum field theory at a mathematical level. (this usually takes a grad student about two years of intense study)

Dan · Daedalian Member

This is old, but I hey...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/40133/title/Quantum_information_teleported_between_distant_atoms

Also, the NYT has a neat-o graphic:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/03/science/03teleportation.html?ref=science

Interesting stuff. Soon you'll be able to send people messages by photon around the world, but they won't know what the message is without you calling on the snail-phone to tell them. Then they just have to trust you, cause if they try to check their voicemail their photon phone destroys itself.

Quick! Trademark "Photone"!