Argumentative Essay: The Reality of Time Travel to the Past is Edging Closer

Recently, the concept of time travel to the past has received tremendous attention in the media. Numerous articles and books have been written on the subject, many of which support the idea, asserting that time travel is consistent and possible, mainly through the laws of physics. In essence, the concept of time travel revolves around the physical movement of a body, such as a human, between certain points in time, which is analogous to movement between different spatial points, with the use of a hypothetical device referred to as the time machine. The time machine takes the form of a vehicle or of a portal that can connect distant points in time. The idea is recognized in both physics and philosophy. However, time travelling to an arbitrary point in time has limited support in theoretical physics. Even so, Einstein-Rosen bridges and quantum mechanics play a crucial role in explaining the possibility of time travel. As such, this paper argues that time travel to the past is possible due to the existence of wormholes, Gotts cosmetic strings, quantum mechanics, the MWI multiple-timeline framework, as well as the metaphysics of Deutsch closed time-like curve (D-CTC).

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Einstein first suggested the theoretical existence of wormholes, and through them, time travel to the past is possible. Wormholes are bridges through time and space, and this, this makes it possible to time travel in the past. Kip Thorne and Stephen Hawking further support the theory. The idea of wormholes is backed by the theory of general relativity, which predicts that if transferrable wormholes of Einstein-Rosen bridges exist, the can alter the speed of time, thereby allowing time travel. It is usually achieved through accelerating one end of the wormhole to a high velocity compared to the other bridge, and then fetching it back sometimes later. In essence, this is due to the relativistic time dilation that results in accelerated worm mouth ageing less compared to the static or stationary one, as seen by an external observer, which is similar to the twin paradox. Even so, time is theorised to connect differently via the wormhole compared to the outside, and thus, synchronised clocks at each of the mouths remain synchronised to an individual travelling through the bridge, no matter how these bridges move around. It can be derived that anything that enters the accelerated wormhole mouth is deemed to exit the stable wormhole at a point in time before its entry. Since the theory of wormholes operates in similarity to time dilation and twin paradox, the configuration of the bridges allows particles are travelling in the bridge to form a closed loop in space-time, which is referred to as the closed timelike curve (CTC). For this reason, an object that is travelling through the wormhole can carry charge from one point in time to another, which does not alter the violation of the principle of energy conservation in each time as the wormholes mouth changes to compensate for the object that travels into and out of it.

The existence of wormholes makes it possible to time travel to the past. However, wormholes will allow limited time travel in the past because it would be difficult to go return back further in time past the point at which the bridge or wormhole was created, which limits the options for travel. It also explains why we have not encountered any visitors from the future. For this reason, if wormholes were created during the Big Bang, it is very probable to go and return to only few number of locations in the past space-time and the distant universe, but it would not allow for people to flit around the cosmos as they wish, as wormholes only provide limited time travel.

In theory, it is thought that it is possible to convert the Einstein-Rosen Bridge or the wormhole into a time machine to travel in the past as the predictions are usually made within the context of the theory of general relativity. However, another problem is that wormholes only exist in theory, which only proves that time travel can only exist in theory. However, because there is experimental evidence that it is possible to bend light, and that space-time is curved, as well as a confirmation that the Casimir effect can warp light in a negative direction, it seems possible that as science and technology advances, it can be feasible to create a wormhole, or a warp space and time so that time travelling to the past becomes possible.

Besides general relativity theories, quantum mechanics offers tangible explanations into the possibility of time travel to the past. Quantum physics incorporates ideas similar to general relativity where an individual can time travel into the past through the negative bending of light. Similarly, quantum physics incorporates ideas such as negative mass and time travel. Besides, quantum physics offers a solution to some of the paradoxes that oppose the idea of time travel, especially in the past, and in particular, the grandfather paradox. In essence, the grandfather paradox illustrates how time travel implies an inconsistent past, and thus ruled out using logic, and thus, it provides sound proof that time travel is extremely improbable. The paradox has a specific form and a general one. The specific one holds that when an individual went back in time to a period before ones parents were conceived, and while there, the person kills his grandfather before having a chance to parent his father or parent. In effect, this would amount to him never getting born, meaning that the person never existed to travel back through space-time continuum and kill his grandfather, and thus, it translates that the individual travelling back in time will interfere with the future path of the person that travelled. This builds in the general form of the theory. As such, this translates that there is an inherent impossibility of backwards travel. However, quantum superposition offers an out, which not only allows time travel but also eliminates the grandfathers paradox.

In essence, coming up with the quantum version of time travel requires us to the time consider the time evolution equations for density states in the presence of closed timelike curves (CTC). As per the quantum superposition theory, once quantum mechanics is taken into account, self-consistent solutions exist for all time machine configurations, as well as their initial conditions, but solutions are not unique, which is in violation of linearity, unitarity, and determinism. The application of self-consistency to quantum mechanical time machines has two main paths. The self-consistent timeline framework also allows the explanation of backwards time travel. In essence, Deutsch revealed that quantum computation could have a negative time delay, and the delay causes a time traveller to go back in time. Igor Novikov applied the Novikovs rule to the density matrix, giving the Deutsch prescription, which when applied instead of the state vector, can explain the time travel concept. David Deutsch made a simplifying assumption that a quantum system can be split into subsystem A that is external to a CTC. He found that there would always be a state that a quantum particle could assume that would make the particles trip back in time a safe one. In essence, Deutsch revealed that taking quantum effects into account allows for a solution to the paradoxes of time travel, without allowing initial states of the system. Deutsche pointed out that for any of the original condition, there is always a fixed-point solution that represents a self-consistent physical state of the system. Essentially, this is usually achieved by allowing for a mixed quantum states, to subsequently obtain on the CTC. It is a strategy to which solutions in the classical setting do not have access, and the mixed states, as Deutsch clarified, represented a collection of worlds, or a multi-universe.

The Deutsch closed time-like curve (D-CTC) model has been influential as it provides a plausible candidate for the explanation of how negative time delays would work, particularly in aspects of information flow, as well as time travel. The D-CTC model relies on the multi-universe of the Everett interpretation of quantum mechanics, and a more general notion of the multi-universe, where the universes are not generated as the result of Schrodinger evolution of the universal wave function, which leads to the branching of macroscopic worlds, but by individual universes, which exist in parallel and timelessly, and many are identical with one another for at least some period.

The theory of parallel universes in quantum mechanics provides the Many Worlds Interpretation by pointing out that each of the universes branche into various bunches of multiple new universes in every instance that a quantum measurement is done, and thus, all possibilities can be realised, thus making time travel possible. For this reason, one can travel to a universe where the dinosaur-killing asteroid missed Earth, and other people can time travel to a scenario where Australia was colonised by the Portuguese. As such, the Many Worlds Interpretation holds that time travel is possible. However, the problem of this theory is that critics are doubtful of the reality of the existence of the other universes because of their inability to affect this universe. However, the Many-Interacting Worlds Theory offers a counter argument asserting that there are multiple universes and all are located on the same timeline as ours, and thus, there is a possibility of them to interact and bump into each other, making time travel in the past. In essence, the beauty of the approach of the parallel dimensions and MMI is that if one world is at play, then Newtonian mechanics are applied, but if there are multiple numbers of universes, then the quantum mechanics can be implemented, and in between the theory can also predict something new that is neither based on quantum or Newtonian theories.

The cosmic strings theory proposed by Gott also provides evidence that time travel is possible. Cosmic strings are essentially invisible strings that can go throughout our universe and can range anywhere from being small to infinite. Gott theorises that the cosmic strings are leftovers from the Big Bang theory. Even though they are narrower compared to the width of an atomic nucleus, the exert an immense gravitational force. For instance, if one of the string was only a meter long, it could exert more gravitational force compared to the Earth, and thus, this translates that a string that has an infinite length would subsequently create enough gravitational force that can affect the space-time continuum. To use the cosmic strings for time travel, the cosmic strings would have to be made to pass by each other, which would lead to the bending of the fabric of the space-time continuum into a wedge shape. In effect, the light would be able to move along the fabric of space-time from, say point A to B at a regular time, but through the cosmic strings, it would be possible to create a shortcut and thus, be able to arrive at B at speed faster than that of light. Also, if an individual could then return from B to A before the light can return, the person would have successfully outrun light, and be able to travel to the past. However, just like the other theories, the cosmic strings theory has its obstacles. In essence, even though this time machine only makes sense on a theoretical basis, one of its biggest challenges is that if two masses with immense energy pass by each other at high speeds, there is a likelihood that they can create a black hole. The instance the black hole is formed, it makes time travel impossible as matter cannot escape it, which would mean that the time travellers will not be able to leave the...