Warp Engines In Development?

Toloran writes "Although a staple of Sci-Fi space travel, it is often deemed to be just that: Fiction. However, it seems that one is currently in development. "The theoretical engine works by creating an intense magnetic field that, according to ideas first developed by the late scientist Burkhard Heim in the 1950s, would produce a gravitational field and result in thrust for a spacecraft. Also, if a large enough magnetic field was created, the craft would slip into a different dimension, where the speed of light is faster, allowing incredible speeds to be reached. Switching off the magnetic field would result in the engine reappearing in our current dimension.""

Comments

Come again, please?

[slavemowgli]

The theoretical engine works by creating an intense magnetic field that, according to ideas first developed by the late scientist Burkhard Heim in the 1950s, would produce a gravitational field and result in thrust for a spacecraft.

OK - so far, so good.

Also, if a large enough magnetic field was created, the craft would slip into a different dimension, where the speed of light is faster, allowing incredible speeds to be reached. Switching off the magnetic field would result in the engine reappearing in our current dimension.""

Err, what? I hope this is a joke...

Re:This is SO neat!

[99BottlesOfBeerInMyF]

This is mostly a myth. Virtually every physicist associated with the Manhattan Project came independently to the conclusion that a nuclear bomb would not ignite the atmosphere, based on what was known about the nuclear cross-sections of atmospheric atoms (which was a lot).

Having had one of said people as mathematics instructor; he said it was about 1/3 of the team members who thought it would probably kill us all via igniting the atmosphere, or jettisoning a significant amount of it into space.

Nutjob or not?

[clem]

Here's how to determine if you're dealing with complete scientific quackery or not. Let's examine a quote from the linked article:

"But this thing is not around the corner; we first have to prove the basic science is correct and there are quite a few physicists who have a different opinion.

"It's our job to prove we are right and we are working on that."

Now let's take the typical nutjob quote:

"Naysayers! My contemporaries conspire against me in refusing to acknowledge my genius!"

This doesn't mean that the physicist is right, but merely an indicator that this is a controversial theory rather than the workings of a complete and utter looney. For more information on loonies, see http://www.timecube.com/

Re:Slower Dimension

[kfg]

Classic short story published in Analog, lo, these many years ago.

FTL

It describes the meeting between a young hotshot applying for money to develop his surefire warp drive and the institute director who has to break the news to him that they've secretly had a functional warp drive for ages . . .

But c is slower in hyperspace.

Reading it as a youth woke me up to the fact that you have to be careful what you wish for, because you might not get it.

KFG

Re:This is SO neat!

[monopole]

Supposedly, when Fermi ran an office pool allowing the staff to guess the yield of the Trinity device, "ignite the atmosphere" was a side bet.

Re:I call shenanigans!

[chill]

...(who was blind, mostly deaf, and was born without hands)...

Actually, a footnote to the article says he had his forearm blown off in the same accident that cost him his hearing and most of his sight -- fiddling with high explosives. It also mentions he developed a photographic memory. Absolutely amazing stuff.