Star Trekkin, across the Universe

[MrSmith]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15791236

 

The fact that things can travel faster than light has been been shown once, and now proven.

Where does this leave Dr Einstien?

 

It’s more likely that the particle created a warp bubble for a fraction of its journey, so technically it didn’t travel faster than light because it didn’t travel the entire distance.

[TheSte]

Not quite.

 

They got the same result with the same measuring equipment. Maybe the equipment is faulty or wrongly calibrated.

 

One of the theories for the discrepancy put forward by someone at the University of Groningen is that an over-reliance on the GPS system to synchronize the clocks at either end of the experiment has led to some incorrect assumptions about whether they are synchronized or not. The new experiment seems to have done nothing to address this but the following approach could be used to confirm (or refute) this, assuming atomic clocks can be practically transported.

 

1. Bring two atomic clocks together at the starting site for the neutrinos and synchronize them

 

2. Transport one of the clocks to the second site. If the route (including velocity) is known any relativistic effects due to relative motion could be accounted for. You'd also need to account for differing gravity along the route and at the destination as this could also effect the tick rate (so probably not a good idea to transport the clock by air!)

 

If done properly this would give you two clocks that actually are synchronized (accounting for the effects above) and it would be possible to eliminate any systematic effects from the use of the GPS system.

 

From my understanding the experiment will have to be run again multiple times in order to determine if the light speed barrier has actually been broken.

 

Each time they re-run the test they will be checking a different possibility for why they are getting the results that they are so I imagine that the test you describe will be conducted at some point. I do know that the test will be run at other facilities in order to ensure that the equipment is not at fault.

[andyofborg]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15791236

 

The fact that things can travel faster than light has been been shown once, and now proven.

Where does this leave Dr Einstien?

 

it leaves Einstein in the same place he was before

 

whether the result is accepted or not, relativity works, in the same way as newtonian mechanics works. each theory works within certain bounds, it may be that neutrinos are outside those bounds, in which case a new theory is required. it would be rather exciting if they were

 

either way, we are looking at the ability of measuring incredibly small time spans and we should be proud that, as a species, we can get anywhere near to being able to measure them

[andyofborg]

From my understanding the experiment will have to be run again multiple times in order to determine if the light speed barrier has actually been broken.

 

Each time they re-run the test they will be checking a different possibility for why they are getting the results that they are so I imagine that the test you describe will be conducted at some point. I do know that the test will be run at other facilities in order to ensure that the equipment is not at fault.

 

the ideal would be if another team in a different place could reproduce the results.

 

a hundred years ago, classical mechanics were proved to be an incomplete explanation of how the universe works, what replaced it was quantum theory and relativity, but they are contradictory.

 

if the result holds then we get a hint of the theory which unites quantum theory and relativity and perhaps gives us a peek into the mind of the creator.

 

we should be very excited

[HeadingNorth]

the ideal would be if another team in a different place could reproduce the results.

 

Other teams will replicate the experiment, but there are, I think, only two other places capable of doing so, and the results probably won't be in for several years.

[Balpin]

I think the difference is that it was known Newtons Laws were not accurate, and work was going on to refine them, as done by Einstien and others.

 

But this was bolt from the blue, as it were.

Now they are racing to change the observations to siut the law, and not vice versa as previously.

 

In that sense it is a bit like a referendum on Europe, keep doing it, until you get a result that keeps you happy.

[andyofborg]

I think the difference is that it was known Newtons Laws were not accurate, and work was going on to refine them, as done by Einstien and others.

 

But this was bolt from the blue, as it were.

Now they are racing to change the observations to siut the law, and not vice versa as previously.

 

In that sense it is a bit like a referendum on Europe, keep doing it, until you get a result that keeps you happy.

 

not really, it equally a bolt from the blue when people realised that Newtons laws broke down

 

the current neutrino observations either have an error in them or indicate that relativity isn't quite as accurate a description of the universe as we thought it was. either way, more experiments need to be done until there is a sufficient body of information to identify which of the two alternatives is correct.

[MrSmith]

not really, it equally a bolt from the blue when people realised that Newtons laws broke down

 

the current neutrino observations either have an error in them or indicate that relativity isn't quite as accurate a description of the universe as we thought it was. either way, more experiments need to be done until there is a sufficient body of information to identify which of the two alternatives is correct.

 

Or it neither, and the experiment had no errors and it didn’t travel faster than light so relativity is intact.

[Phanerothyme]

We cannot rule out these neutrinos entering another dimension on their journey where the speed of light is significantly higher and then re-entering the space/time dimension at their destination.

 

Or goblins. You can't rule out goblins either.

[MrSmith]

Or goblins. You can't rule out goblins either.

 

So is it your theory that the neutrino came into contact with a nilbog which is a goblin afflicted with a space-time reversal disease known as Nilbogism.

 

If so I think Goons theory is more likely.