Gail Shaw wrote:
> "Darren New" <dne### [at] sanrrcom> wrote in message
> news:47e3ee74@news.povray.org...
>> Gail Shaw wrote:
>>> It's no more possible than travelling faster than light or creating
> matter
>>> out of thin air. In fact, it's less possible than both of those (which
>>> theoretically do occur under strange circumstances)
>> Actually, they both occur all the time everywhere. :-)
> 
> Has someone seen tacheons? I admit, I'm a bit behind on some of the lit.

I don't recall. I remember there was evidence they thought were tachyons.

> Matter out of thin space happens, but since they're virtual particles that
> disintegrate (and turn back into the photons that created them) in a
> fraction of a nanosecond, it's not really a factor.

I was just being pendantic. :-) Light goes all different speeds, 
including faster and slower. It's only when you get past a couple 
wavelengths that you have enough alternatives that they start canceling 
out speeds other than "c".  And of course it's exactly "matter out of 
thin air" that are the exchange particles keeping you from blowing up 
into a haze of undifferentiated fundamental particles.

> Or are you talking about zero-point energy?

I'm not sure how it relates to zero point energy. I suspect there's some 
relationship between virtual particles and ZPE, but I'm not sure what it 
is. ZPE is caused by there having to be enough energy in a system to 
keep your fermions(?) from occupying the same space. I.e., you have to 
have enough energy in the system to satisfy the uncertainty principles. 
It's also what keeps liquid hydrogen from freezing. :-)

> I was trying to leave quantum out of this. Thermodynamics alone are bad
> enough. :-)

I was just being a wise-ass. ;-)

-- 
   Darren New / San Diego, CA, USA (PST)
     "That's pretty. Where's that?"
          "It's the Age of Channelwood."
     "We should go there on vacation some time."

Post a reply to this message