Stephen Hawking Memorial Article

Stephen Hawking Memorial Article

Isadore I Rabi, Nobel Prize winner, once said that Science education is in abysmal state. He scolded Physicists for not popularizing the science for general public especially to youth. In this context, what Stephen Hawking has achieved is far more valuable than his contemporary scientists and his peers.

Let me try explaining to you in simple words what his work was. He felt that we are like fish swimming in a pond. We always want our universe to be familiar one as we see and experience. We often refuse to admit that there could be parallel stories or in other verse dimensions beyond our grasp.

Have you heard about Isaac Asimov’s Foundation TV series on hyperspace, star travel, rise of Galactic empire, Star Wars or star trek? If not, it is time to see some just to make you understand that our universe is actually 13.6 billion light years and our earth is a super micro spec in this entire universe. And you always think that your thoughts are bigger than cosmos.

Stephen Hawking was interested in finding a theory of everything. His attempt was to construct a unified field theory that could explain all laws of nature. Certainly, higher dimension analysis is the key to solve the unified theory of the universe.

Now where to start from. When you learn classical mechanics and Electrodynamics in Semester one of PG first year, the disjoint approaches in both field may have caused some troubles in understanding whether we should deal things as mechanical matter points or as fields. Projectiles are always directional and never discussed in curved spaces.

But we discuss science like a fish in a pond. I am speaking that we often discuss our thoughts in cartesian coordinates. Sometimes, unbelievable forces we encounter and it results in fancy stories just because we have no other options to explain these through our experience.

Does that mean we can’t grasp these unbelieve forces? No!!! We can and we will if enough attention is paid. How much attention? More attention than we spend to learn basic mathematics and alphabets during our childhood days.

For example- Light. How could light travel in vacuum? If we think, it is impossible to think of a wave travelling in nothingness. So, we made a story definitely a fanciful one – ‘Ether’ hypothesis. Hence Light travels as a wave in all prevailing medium called Ether. But during the times of Hawking, Kaluza Klein theory explained light in its simplest explanation as a vibration in fifth dimension!!! May be Hawking was drawn to this idea rather than ‘Ether’ because till date we have not validated the existence of an all prevailing medium ether.

It is definitely hard to get fifth dimension, since brain is firmly embedded in three dimensions. Nothing wrong with our Brain. It is just sufficient for our survival process but it is definitely a limited approach. When we are born as an infant, we are always familiar with up, down, left, right, forward, backward etc… Einstein extended the concept to include time as the fourth dimension. Why? Since, you know that if you want to meet a person for a coffee at Department of Physics, University of Kerala, you should definitely mention to him the time when the coffee is arranged isn’t it? In this juncture, it is worthwhile to mention about Stephen Hawking that he had done many experiments on time travel which may feel like total nuts to you.

A clip from 2010 documentary Into the Universe shows the iconic scientist, waiting for attendees to show up to the champagne-fuelled party.“I like simple experiments ... and champagne,” says a voiceover as the camera pans over plates of hors d’oeuvres and flutes of Krug. “So, I’ve combined two of my favourite things to see if time travel from the future to the past is possible. I’m throwing a party. A welcome reception for future time travellers.”The scientist is seen sitting in his wheelchair alone in a sumptuous, brightly lit room at the University of Cambridge, decorated with balloons and a large sign that reads: “Welcome time travellers.”However, the cosmologist explains, “there’s a twist”. He didn’t send the invitation out until after the party.“You are cordially invited to a reception for Time Travellers,” the invite reads. “No RSVP required.” It gives the date, time and exact coordinates of the location at Cambridge University’s Gonville and Caius College.“I’m hoping copies of it in one form or another will survive for many thousands of years.” he explains. “Maybe one day, someone living in the future will find the information and use a wormhole time machine to come back to my party, proving that time travel will one day be possible.”A hopeful Hawking is seen sitting alone in the room as the seconds tick by, and no one appears. “What a shame,” jokes the scientist. “I was hoping a future Miss Universe was going to step through the door.”I should say Hawking was really interested in understanding the fourth dimension, while we all are satisfied with our three dimensions.

Now let me ask How do we experience fourth dimension? Problem is that we can’t. Higher dimensional spaces are impossible to visualize. It is a futile attempt if we try. It is just like explain to a blind man what is colour. Instead of that, we retreat into a world of maths to solve the multidimensional space. Then the magic begins, we could explain those unbelievable forces (such as Nuclear forces which is  times gravitational forces) in nature.

In classical domains, we are like cave dwellers. If our father was a cave dweller, he would have explained to us the necessity and usefulness as a caveman. But during the passage of time, we would have moved to concrete buildings isn’t it? Likewise, higher dimensional thoughts like time travel experiments by Stephen Hawking could be considered as utter foolishness and insanity. But once, we could taste this dimension through mathematics, none of the Physical Phenomena would be accidental. In this context, we should be sad that we are cave dwellers living in the times of Stephen Hawking. Why is that man is hesitant to talk about higher dimensions? The reason is that three dimensions always has better survival edge than those who have many fold dimensions in their mind. And if we know that next dimension will give better picture for the universe, when we still cling on to 3D calculations? The reason is that there is no selection pressure placed on humans to master in fourth dimension. In simple words, Lion don’t tunnel through cave walls (Referring to tunnelling effect in quantum mechanics).

While I use to discuss Nuclear and Particle Physics in Semester three for PG II year students, it often made curious topic why four forces in nature appeared to be fragmented? Gravity the weakest of all seems like a ‘Cheetah’ who looks so pitiful and broken in a cage. We never quite see Gravity in its might because 3 dimensional Labs are sterile Zoo cages for Gravitational Laws. Why I said Gravity is like a caged “Cheetah” is that without Gravitational pull, all planets including earth would have flung from solar system into cold reaches of deep space, sun would have exploded and so on… But sun doesn’t explode because Nuclear fusion is controlled by gravitational pull. Thus, how micros are dominated by macros like that macros are by micros. Without this delicate balance, sun would have detonated into trillions of Hydrogen bombs.

A theory for everything may look impossible. But it is not so. Let me discuss about the film “Gladiator”. In war, the first principle is to seize the high ground that is go up into the third dimension. At Vantage point, chaos in the battle field is suddenly reduced. Maximus had won many battle like this with minimal causalities (Referring to battle with Barbarians). Again, let me remind you that finding a theory of everything is not comparable to Maximus principle to win a battle. Higher dimension analysis need focussed attention. Einstein spend his last 30 years of his life but failed to find it. Then how can a common man understand it? Here I would share the words of Homi J Bhabha.I hear you saying “but you are not Socrates or Einstein. It is of no use to tell Beethoven “You must be a scientist for it is a great thing” Or to Socrates “Be an engineer. It is a work of an intelligent man”.I know that I am not Einstein, But How can anybody else know at what time what one will do?

If we need to detail about Hawking, we should start with Kaluza Klein Theory. If we analysis our universe as N dimensional world (N=10!!!) the clumsy looking theories dramatically reduces to symmetric equations. It gives us enough room to accommodate all the four fundamental forces. If we extend the theories a little bit, we could even exactly calculate the precise energy needed for Black holes. (Yang-Mills Theory) The many dimensional theory may be also useful to learn Nuclear and Particle Physics. Over the last 50 years, hundreds of subatomic particles have been carefully catalogued and studied by Physicists among debris created by smashing protons and electrons with atoms. Today this bewildering collection of subatomic particles can be explained as mere vibrations of N dimensional space. 

To come in terms with Ten-dimensional world, let us take the case of Columbus going to discover the Apple world. The shortest distance between two points in Apple world is not a straight line but a worm hole. If we enter through worm hole, one cans switch between past and future. Story may seem like Alice in wonderland. But theoretically it is possible. In 1988, Kip Throne an associate of Stephen Hawking, Nobel Laurate 2017, California institute of Technology claimed that Time Travel is indeed not only a possibility but also probable under certain conditions. This got published in Physical Review Letters!!! Gateways between Universe has always been a fashionable device because astronomical distance separating stars are impossible to be covered in 3D world. Speaking further about worm holes may get us into clumsy assumptions. But let me refer to words of Michael Faraday. When William Gladstone, Chancellor of Exchequer, asked Faraday what is the use of your theory?” Faraday Sarcastically said “Sir, I know not what these machines will be used for, but I am sure that one day you will tax them”. Today the world enjoys the fruits of Faraday’s Labour.

So, starting from K-K Theory, 1970s Yang-Mills fields were postulated that govern the interaction of subatomic particles. Advantage of Y-M theory is that we are able to calculate worm hole energy. The energy scales necessary to investigate worm hole may be far beyond anything available on earth. Stephen Hawking reminds that energy necessary to probe the tenth dimension is quadrillion times larger than the energy that can be produced by our largest atom smasher. Hence is Y-M theory useless? No!!! Theory recreates thoughts about Big Bang. At Big Bang, there was actually a 10D space which cracks into 4D and 6D space. 4D space is 3 spaces and 1 time, space-time as we know. While 6D space shrank violently into infinitesimal size. This theory also opens up the possibility of parallel universe that is a twin companion for the above space.

Technology to probe newer ideas are escalating 10-20% every year. In next century, we may surpass our wildest expectation. Technologies once dreamed off is now a common place in this century. You can never judge a human being existed 1000 years before as well as never could have estimated his progress 1000 years forward. Perhaps we may become “The Masters of the Universe”. Since y-M theory is a genuine mathematical theory, we eventually expect it to produce numerical answers regarding intriguing concepts. This revolution could be considered equal to Copernican or Newtonian revolutions.

I know by now you may have either went to sleep or may be eager to know how to learn maths to such higher dimensions. Have you heard about Riemann and his metric tensor? Riemann was famous for his fantastic calculation ability but was timid of public speaking. He was a butt of cruel jokes that he retreats to intensely private world of mathematics. During his educational career, Riemann was sterile to Euclid’s Geometry. He saw that mountains, ocean, clouds, whirlpools were not flattened ideas but are curved ones which bend, twist in infinite diversity. Aristotle once said “The line has magnitude in one way, the plane in two ways and the solids in three ways, beyond these there are no other magnitude because three are all”. In simpler words, a fourth line can’t be drawn perpendicular to all these three lines. Ptolemy argued further by saying that a fourth perpendicular line is entirely without measure and without definition. He further added that fourth dimension is impossible.

In this context, Riemann’s new physical picture is interesting to explain. Imagine a race of two dimensional creatures living on a sheet of paper. Now let us crumble it. Still the 2D creature will believe that world is flat. So Riemann said time is the curvature that makes 2D space curve. That is Space time is analogous to each other. And because there is time, there is space. However, he was deeply conservative, he never published this idea. Riemann was terrified of public speaking about his new physical picture. Riemann worked on it privately. Let us understand this by some simple maths.

Maths looks simply easy. But its physical implications are immense. 4D equation also means that you could walk through walls, vanishing food in dinner table, surgery without blood, no criminals could be hold in jail, No secrets safe and even no hidden treasures!!! Result is that we would be omnipotent. A being of higher dimension gives us God like power. To understand how these miraculous feats can be performed, let us thing that there is a 2D jailor. If I have 3D access, I could mysteriously make prisoner escape into thin air even if jailor brings in the most sophisticated lock for my prisoner. Another fanciful thing that a 3D person can do in 2D world is make the Right-side heart of the flatlander to left side hearted flat lander. In maths, these are simple looking equations, but see the beautiful impossible science it brings about. You can call it magic!!! But understand that Magic is science where trick to do it is hidden.

People were always fanciful to achieve higher dimensions in their thoughts that even visualized in their artistic displays. Leonard da Vinci’s Last supper discovers this 3D artefacts in a paper. He visualized the converging point as God. Another example which I could quote is Picasso’s painting of Dora Madr. Both eyes of Dora were noticeable at once in his painting. Tesseract in Avengers is another example of the higher dimension in fiction.  Fantastic beast and where to find them is the latest addition to media where the director tries to visualize how would be our world if we meet a creature from higher dimension.

Now let us discuss about Light. In Electrodynamics, Maxwell deduced that Light is Electromagnetic wave by solving the clumsy looking Helmholtz wave equation involving four coordinates (x, y, z and t). That day onwards we understood that a four-dimensional space can explain a vast ocean of Physical Knowledge. Continuing the thoughts about light, according to Equivalence principle, The law of nature in an accelerating frame are equivalent to laws in a gravitational field. Can I ask you a question related to Gravity? If we hold a helium balloon while riding a car then suddenly car swings to left, our body jolts to right. By which direction balloon moves? Common sense tells Balloon like bodies moves right but actually Balloon moves left. This is foundation theory to cosmos which we are talking about. Einstein exploited this equivalence principle to conclude that Light beam will bend in an accelerating frame (gravitational field).

I know that I have made some effort to bring forth some ideas about higher dimension theories perused by Stephen Hawking during his career. Maths is definitely the heart of the universe. With Mathematics, there is no need to beat around the bush to explain disjoint, ugly, fragmented, magical, frustrating, confusing, lovable, disgusting, magnificent, crackling, @#%^& facts. It just fits well and fine in one complete theory of everything.

NB: I was inspired to write this article by hearing to Stephen Hawking Memorial Lecture titled 'Black Holes and Steam Engines' by Dr. Joseph Samuel, Senior Professor, Raman Research Institute, Bangalore on April 4, 2018 Wednesday, 5:30 PM at Seminar Hall, Kerala State Science and Technology Museum (Priyadarsini Planetarium), PMG Junction, Thiruvananthapuram. His spirit in explaining things to common man is exemplary and to be practiced by all the Physicist who love what they do!!!

Thank you all for your patient reading

Sibi