A morning with physics

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Lifestyle
What if you could predict all future events? A 19th century French mathematician, Laplace, thought you could. If you can predict the position of billiard balls bouncing on a table applying rules of physics, so you can also predict the position of atoms in the universe. Of course you have to know the exact position of every atom in the universe. I don't even know where my ski socks are, much less every other atom in the universe. So a good theory, but it doesn't work. Leplace's idea also conflicts with more modern Chaos theory and Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principal, neither of which I understand. More realistic than Laplace's theory is the possibility of time travel. Einstein's theory of Special Relativity says that objects traveling very very fast age slower than objects on earth and this has since been proved. Wormhole theory also supports possible time travel. There are also theories of parallel universes. We may find out that there really is a Bizzaro world and maybe even a Mr. Mxyzptlyk. (Does anyone remember who he is or can pronounce his name?)

Comments

Corey Bearak

Mr. Mxyzptlyk's "bio" here: http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0030541/bio.
I prefer not to focus on predicting the future - sometimes I predict better than other; sometimes the prediction are spot on and off at the same time (who would be and not be mayor; obviously much more changed than when I offered mine).
Better to secure enough knowledge to make reasoned (intuitive?) decisions on how best to proceed.

Submitted by Janet_Adler on Sun, 01/19/2014 - 03:40

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Janet Adler

No but I know his store on the upper west side closed a couple of years ago.
Rona Gura

Have you been reading Superman comics with your NY Times this morning? I didn't even have to go to the Internet for this one, I used to sneak and read all my brother's comics as a kid. Mr. Mxyzptlyk was from the Fifth Dimension and would torment Superman. The only way to send him back was to get him to say or spell his name backwards. Its scary how much useless trivia I still have in my head. :)
Kelly Welles

To which I will make this metaphysical contribution: "Though it may be unclear to us in the moment, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should." Disraeli

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