A conversation on TED.com: Is it also possible that time vibrates?

Wilfred Beijer
Hilversum
Netherlands

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Is it also possible that time vibrates?

Maybe it looks as if something can be at two places at the same time because time vibrates at quantum level. Just an idea, I'm not a physicist...

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Aaron O'Connell: Making sense of a visible quantum object

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Anjor Kanekar
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Jun 9 2011: @Wilfred: Even if something can be at two places at the same time, position is still well defined. Because, in the first half of the sentence it is assumed we know what "place" means. So I am still confused about what you mean by time vibrating. In the relativistic world, one does see that time is measured differently by different observers -- either two observers that are moving with respect to eachother, or if they are in extreme gravitational environments. In (nonrelativistic) quantum mechanics, time is handled different than space. I can go into the math details if you are interested.

@Helen: I am not sure if any quantum researcher would claim that they can prove that a particle exists in two places at the same time. The idea is that, when not being observed, the description of a particle's position can be only probabilistic. The mathematical object used to describe a particle is the so called wavefunction. It is a function defined over all space, which gives the probability of a particle being at a certain position. In that sense, the particle is at two different places at the same time. There is a wonderful elementary quantum mechanics book which I read as a kid and got fascinated by the subject. You might be interested in it -- "Alice in quantumland".
http://www.amazon.com/Alice-Quantumland-Allegory-Quantum-Physics/dp/0387914951
- Helen Hupe 20+
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  Jun 9 2011: Anjor...........Thank you very much for the book suggestion. That topic fascinates me.. Again thanks.
Thadeus Frei
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Jun 9 2011: I don't even know what time is.
Helen Hupe 20+
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Jun 8 2011: @ Quantum researchers. I really would like an answer to my question. How do you prove the same object is in more than one place at the same time. Pretty please ?
Christophe Cop 500+
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TED Attendee TEDx Organizer Associate

Jun 8 2011: Spacetime does vibrate
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/janna_levin_the_sound_the_universe_makes.html

But that might not be what you mean...
Andrew Buchmann
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Jun 8 2011: No, and you would be better off asking a physicist :p

Dr.Brian Cox may be able to help clarify things for you:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfN-7HczmOU
Debra Smith 100+
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Jun 7 2011: I thought that was my nerves!
Dustin Rodriguez 20+
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Jun 7 2011: How are you defining 'vibrates'? It normally is used to mean changing position in space in a patterned way. Objects can not move outside of time because space IS time and moving in space requires moving in time.
- Wilfred Beijer
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  Jun 8 2011: What is 'position' when something can be at two places at the same time?
  I think I mean a tiny fluctuation in the progression of time.
  - Lorenzo Sewanan
    
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    Jun 19 2011: A fluctuation in the progression of time? I really can't even start to understand what you even mean by a fluctuation in the progression of time, because the words simply do not make sense together. What I mean is that fluctuation by definition refers to something experience a change in time. So, if time were to fluctuate, then we would have to have some "ultra-time" to measure it by. Then, we could simply call this time, and this line of reasoning could continue ad infinitum, showing that time cannot by definition fluctuate.
Helen Hupe 20+
- +1
Jun 7 2011: I watched a program on Science Channel which dealt with perception. The brain does not always see (perceive) reality the same as the eye sees, as in magic tricks. One reason is that the brain becomes anticipatory becausee it has seen the preceeding action and so has formed a conclusion which does not fit reality. How much can this anomaly affect observing quanta being in more than one place at a time. If observation is necessary to localize quanta then how is it that we are sure what we see is what is? I am not a scientist just a curious onlooker ????
- Mma Okezie
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  Jun 8 2011: All good, great scientists are/were curious onlookers. You are doing your bit ma'am.
  - Helen Hupe 20+
    
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    Jun 8 2011: Mma.......Thank you and if you have any information to share with me, I would love that.
Solveigh Calderin
- +1
Jun 7 2011: Maybe, Wilfred.

All the ancient philosphers and mystics tried to tell us that time as we feel and know it, actually doesn't exist... That this was our illusion to be able to live in this material world... That would mean that even aging is an illusion, what I also have read anywhere... It's also for me a little bit confusing... I witness that mysticism and sciences meet over and over again last time...