Myuncle

I don't expect to observe time as a dimension, since I can't, because I have no proof of its existence. Universe and motion has existed absolutely fine without the need of time as a dimension. The only ones who need time as a dimension, it looks like it's us humans. I am just being realistic, and can observe only matter, the only thing we can do is calculate the speed of matter, by comparing it with the speed of our clock. Time doesn't flow, a river can flow, a clock can flow, but not time.

If you consider time as the speed of our clock, then movement does not depend on time, it can only be calculated by time. If you consider time as a separate dimension you have to prove its existence, have you ever seen it, heard it, touched it? Why insisting on a dimension if we have no proof of it?

It seems any intelligent animal or alien, would agree on math, it's always a win-win situation, any primate or parrot would agree with us on the same math. If in a distant galaxy there are aliens with only three fingers per hand, I bet they would have a base 6 numeral system, if we met each other we would agree on math, but we would have to compromise, change even the symbols, change our base 10 system, or learn their 6 base system, or compromise, agree, and create something in the middle, like a base 8 system...

That's so intersting. That's like saying: if you don't use things they won't last. Just like for our car, our computer, or our body, if you don't use them they won't last, if you use them they will last longer, and if you abuse them they will die soon of course. The same is for the land, you have to use it, or it will disappear.

Since we are part of the universe, is both. Math allows us to have an approximation of reality, without math we wouldn't have that approximation either.

Don't know. Something that actracts seagulls, they can fly long distances, and with their excrements they can fertilize and spread seeds... Another solution could be connecting sea water to the below sea level places in the deserts. Thin pipes would provide an infinite amount of water in these strategic places, gravity would make the rest. The hot climate would make the sea water evaporate in the middle of the desert. Think about Bogda Mountains in China, Mojave Desert, etc, their temperatures are unforgiving, just sprinkle sea water in the air, and you have clouds 24 hours a day. Sprayers to shoot the salt water into the sky can be done in the ocean, but the problem is the winds, how can you be sure that the wind will guide the clouds in the middle of the desert? So, if you connect the sea to below sea levels in the middle of the deserts, no winds would be needed. Link to below sea level places, some of them are in the deserts. http://greenbuzzz.net/environment/nine-places-furthest-below-sea-level-on-earth/

Vegetation would normally hold moisture, which evaporates into the atmosphere due to the warm climate. All rain in the amazon forest for example doesn't come from the ocean, but from the forest itself, its moisture is continuosly recycled. If the vegetation is removed, there is less moisture available for evaporation. Rainfall decreases and dry soil can easily be blown away. So, I understand that everything it's useless if the soil is not holding any moisture. So, can rubbish, only initially widely scattered in a desert, hold the moisture?

The number of symbols to remember should be practical. Our numbers symbols for example are only ten: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. And that's practical, universally accepted, but in theory you can do the same calculations using 20 symbols, or only 5 symbols. For example: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4. So we would have 0 1 2 3 4 10 (which means our 5) 11 (which stands for our 6) 12 (our 7) 13 (our 8) 14 (our 9) 20 (our 10) 21 (our 11) etc etc.

interesting point. I thought our latest supercomputers were already capable of simulating the same human brain power of billions of neurons processing data. I remember they simulated mouse brain power a few years ago.

Yes, that's what I understand, you would think slower, be happy slower, and be sad slower. Imagine also hibernation, you are not travelling in the future, but just postponing things. By the way, I wonder if hibernation would become possible when travelling near the speed of light.

As far as I understood (Warning! Layman's response!), it's got nothing to do with the word "future", it would be just a biological slowing down (just like a clock, if it's travelling so fast, it will mechanically slow down). Let's suppose we have a technology that allows us to travel near the speed of light without frying up inside the ship, while you are travelling, the biological functions activities will slow down, but you woudn't notice it, you are just thinking slower, the ability of neurons to transmit electrochemical signals to other cells will slow down.

I am an amateur ajb, but just by googling for the word "math", the definition looks always poor and vague, and when a definition is vague, it means that it can be manipulated and used as a weapon to boost your ego. There are so many things to say. Math is an agreement, it can be easily accepted by everyone, as long as we agree that in theory a unity is identical to another unity, 1=1 (all theory, but in practice it might not even exist, since an orange is not exactly identical to an other orange, an atom or quark might not be exactly identical to an other atom or quark). Everything is a consequence of that agreement. That's a very useful agreement between humans, very convenient, that allows us to measure and quantify everything, and to agree on measurements and quantities. Mammals and birds, particularly parrots, can understand various numerical concepts. Everything can be calculated very slowly with additions and subtractions, and everything else is a shortcut of additions and subtractions. The origin of multiplication was the need to create a shortcut for long tedious additions, and the origin of division was to create a shortcut for long tedious subtractions, and so on. These shortcuts are very useful, they make our life more comfortable. My new question is: when should we say "stop" to these shortcuts, are they really useful? Do they make our life simpler and more comfortable? How many of these shortcuts are really necessary? How many of them are only created to win a science award or to sell books? How many of them are used, and how many of them are never used? I hope math prodigies and experts on this website can share a honest answer. Math was born to make our life simpler (just like burocracy and banks...yes...), but if not used porperly it will just make our schools more complicated than needed, discouraging students, and demotivating them.

Fish excrete salt through cells in their gills. Can we make large quantities of these from stem cells, and use them to desalinate salt water?

Plugging yourself into the greed: whatever the cost, crawling, walking or running, jumping, because you need it, otherwise you die. Is it possible for a robot to do that?

This would speed up the learning process of any robot. We humans don't plan anything when we need something, we are not taught how to need, we learn things by instinct, like any other animals. Since we are babies, we don't plan to learn how to do things, we need food, and we suddenly learn how to eat, we learn to distinguish new objects, grasp food, grasp things that we need. We need our parents and we learn to get close to them by crawling or by walking, etc. We would never teach a human or an animal how to need things, it's just genetic. So, is it possible to create a software or teach a robot to need things?

I don't know if Einstein used the word "time" to indicate speed of motion according to our clock, or to indicate a poetic dimension. In any case his calculations are very useful, GPS relies on those. So he deserves all the credit for that.

Time is not observable, since it doesn't exist. What we can observe is only speed and motion.

I agree with everything you said. Distance = Speed * Time, is the most confusing thing I have ever read in my life...

Yes, I would be very happy to answer to you, if you tell me what do you mean by time?

Please, no fights, phasers on stun, I come in peace. What do you mean by time? Speed, or a poetic dimension?

Who said that my opinion is more valid than someone else's? Little practical value? Actually, creating a consensus on definitions has always a big practical value. Because usually all we do is just arguing about meaning of words, which is not very practical. That's why it's very important to create a consensus in definitions, separating poetry from science. So, to recap, "time" it's not a poetic mysterious dimension, such a thing doesn't exist (even if it has been treated for too long like a dimension). "Time" is a human concept used to keep track of the atoms and subatomic particles movement, in their sequence and progression. "Time" is basically "speed", which is real, it does exist, and the speed of atoms moving from point A to point B is measured by comparing it with the speed of our clocks, but in theory you can measure speed with anything you want. Speed is real, it does exist, but it's not a dimension, just like time is not a dimension. The only dimension we have it's space, and we measure it with our human concepts of height length and width. So, in short, if by the word "time" you mean speed, then it's real and it does exist, but if by "time" you mean a poetic dimension, then, it doesn't exist at all.

I am not certain at all, I am just taking my chances, and see reactions in this thread. If I am wrong I am very happy to be shown why, at least I am learning something new.

That amount of space has what we humans call "height", "width" "length" "speed", which doesn't correspond to reality. What you think it is the length, width, height and speed, it's just an approximation, an idea of reality. Whatever we calculate and measure, it's only an approximation, matter it's not stable at all, it's constantly changing and moving, because its atoms are always changing and moving, even if we don't see it. Measuring doesn't give life to anything. You can measure everything, you can predict how fast, tall and heavy could be a hypothetical Santa, that still doesn't bring Santa to life and to reality.

But I agree, what we call time, height, length and width are just human concepts to calculate and keep track of movements of atoms from point A to point B. What physically exists in reality is only atoms moving through space.

No metaphors. Calculations and predictions of space-time are very welcome, as long as we realize that time doesn't exist in reality, but only in our ideas (even our ideas wouldn't happen if atoms were not moving).