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Figure 1. The expanding 5-ball |
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Figure 2. A wave packet |
Last update: 11-05-2024
The spacetime of general relativity (GM) is here considered to be an expanding 4D hyperball (4-ball) on the surface of an expanding 5D hyperball (5-ball). The latter is surrounded by subatomic-sized 5-balls ("paramorfs") that can fuse with the big, nearby 5-ball, which is the mechanism by which the latter enlarges. (Technically, a “sphere” is just a surface, with a dimensionality one less than the embedding space. I use “ball” here to refer to the embedding space dimensionality.)
Each fusion event sends out a ripple on the surface of the big 5-ball that travels at the speed of light in vacuum. A sequence of fusions happening in the correct order causes the ripples to add up to a shock wave at some point. At the maximum of the shock wave, the surface of the 5-ball is thrown out especially far into the surrounding emulsion of paramorfs, where it makes contact with yet another paramorf, resulting in yet another fusion event and another ripple, which has the correct phase to add to the shock wave. The result is a self-sustaining cycle that leads to persistence and thus observable particle-like phenomena. The crest of the shock wave may have to pass through a depletion zone to reach the nearest paramorf. This mechanism is based on Born's rule of quantum mechanics. <03-30-24: If wave curvature rather than displacement amplitude determines paramorf fusion probability, then we get something even closer to Born’s rule, which states that the square of the wave function is proportional to the probability of observing a particle. The curvature of a sine wave is not its square, but the resemblance is striking. Perhaps an experimental verification of Born’s rule with unprecedented accuracy is warranted to distinguish the two theories.>
<07-27-2024: The big 5-ball may be filled with an emulsion of yin paramorfs in a continuous yang phase, as well as being surrounded by an emulsion of yang paramorfs in a continuous yin phase. Droplets of yin space could get injected into the interior as a side effect after each yang paramorf fusion event. This would explain why curvature alone dictates fusion probability: a concavity reaching interior yin paramorfs is as effective as a convexity reaching exterior yang paramorfs, and no depletion zone will develop over time. Yin and yang space are terms coined in a previous post, “The Checkered Universe.”>
Particle formation is entropically disfavored (requires a precise configuration unlikely to arise by chance) and thus only happens when paramorf fusions are frequent due causes other than the presence of particles. Postulating that spontaneous fusions are more frequent when the curvature of the 5-ball is greater, spontaneous fusions will be abundant when the growing 5-ball is still tiny and thus intensely curved. This would be seen in our 4-ball as the inflationary era of the Big Bang. (Problem: the paramorfs themselves are the most intensely curved elements in this system. Possibly, a binary paramorf fusion event releases so much energy in such a confined space that the fusion product immediately splits apart, resulting in no net effect overall.) The surface of our 4-ball would be formed by the stable particles radiating out of our local inflationary zone on the 5-ball into newly-created, blank 4-surface (see Figure 1). This radiation would define the post-inflationary era. Our time dimension would be one of the radii.
These particles propagate in time the given, as opposed to time the clock reading. The position of the particle along its track is the clock reading.
This theory evolved to a six-dimensional form at the paragraph beginning “Close inspection…”, below. Earlier paragraphs have not been adjusted to reflect this.
The illustrated mechanism of particle creation (see Figure 2) is periodic-deterministic and may account for photons and leptons. The corresponding chaotic mechanism may account for baryons, and the corresponding probabilistic mechanism may account for dark matter. The close relationship we see today between protons and electrons could have been due to their relationship during the inflationary era; the vicinity of one could have served as an incubator for the other. The multitude of expanding spacetime ripples predicted to be around any massive object would comprise the spacetime curvature referred to by the Einstein tensor of the relativistic field equations.
The asymmetry of the wave packet that leads to the shock wave accounts for momentum. According to special relativity, mass-equivalent energy is just the spacetime component of the momentum along the time axis.
Fixing radius = 1, the 5-ball has the greatest volume of any ball dimensionality. (See the Wiki on “n-sphere”) Thus, this dimensionality could have been forced by some principle of minimizing the radius-to-volume ratio, call it a compaction principle (in a physical, not topological sense), the existence of which is already implied by the assumed ball shape. We cannot invoke gravity here to produce compaction because gravity emerges at a higher level of description than this. A surface tension-like effect related to the permittivity of free space may serve, which is already implied by invoking ripples on the surface. However, mention of ripples implies that the governing differential equation has oscillatory solutions, which seems to also require a medium with inertia, which may be related to the permeability of free space.
08-07-2024: If an overarching process of yin-yang separation existed, which would explain why all observations are ultimately observations of contrasts, this process would arguably have a smoothing effect on any resulting interfaces. Such smoothing would suggest surface tension when considered spatially and inertia when considered temporally.
A limitation of this theory is that it does not have explain the assumed presence of discrete, ancient inflationary zones on the surface of the 5-ball.
03-20-24: Close inspection of the volume versus dimensionality curve for n-balls of radius 1 suggests that maximum volume occurs at a fractional dimensionality somewhat above 5, which looks to be about five and a quarter. Under the compaction principle, this circumstance would lead to a squashed (oblate) 6-ball about one-quarter as thick as it is wide, with greatest curvature at the equator. (Here I am making an analogy with the Earth’s surface, which is an oblate spheroid.) This uneven distribution of curvature would result in the equatorial region losing its inflationary status later than at the poles, suggesting that the universal equatorial region spawned all the particles we can now see during the late inflationary era and that our familiar 3-space corresponds to a line of latitude on the oblate 6-ball travelling steadily toward a pole. This scenario allows the existence of ancient, dilute matter of non-equatorial origin coexisting with our 3-space. <04-11-24: This ancient dilute matter could account for cosmic rays and some of the diffuse cosmic gamma glow. Some of these ancient particles would by chance approach us in our future light cones and would therefore interact with our 3-space as antimatter. The resulting annihilation events would produce gamma rays and neutrinos. Those particles that escape annihilation could potentially re-emerge from our spacetime in our past light cones and at a different point, becoming matter cosmic rays. Cosmic particles following spacelike trajectories may not interact strongly with us, like two waves crossing at right angles, but Born's rule predicts some interaction.>
03-25-24: A second limitation of this theory is that relativity theory denies the existence of an absolute frame of reference, which I have just re-introduced in the form of the surface of a large ball. <04-27-2024, 09-07-2024: Perhaps this limitation can be addressed by showing that the concept of no absolute frame of reference can be replaced with the concept of space-tilted matter, in which the lengths of meter sticks change due to a tilt of the structure of Figure 2 so that propagation is no longer purely in time, but now has a component in space, and the length change must be to a degree necessary to guarantee the null result of the Michelson--Morley experiment.>
<05-04-2024: The surface of a 6-ball is a 5-dimensional space. Particle propagation on this surface uses up one of these dimensions, turning it into time. However, the resulting spacetime has four dimensions of space and we see only three. What happened to the other one? Most likely it was largely suppressed by black hole formation shortly after the inflationary era. Black hole formation should be very facile in four spatial dimensions because gravitational orbits are unstable and radiative cooling is relatively efficient. This places us on the event horizon of one of these 4-D black holes and suggests that the event horizon actually is the membrane it seems to be in some theoretical studies. Considered geometrically, the event horizon is a surface and will therefore have a dimensionality one less than that of the bulk. Life on this surface will therefore be three dimensional.>
09-03-2024: String theory posits that a particle is a one-dimensional vibrating string embedded in three dimensions. However, my theory posits that a particle is a three dimensional system embedded in six dimensions. We are situated in a privileged location in 6-space in which three of these dimensions have an inward and outward direction. An analogous point in 3-space would be the corner of a cube. The wave component of particles would oscillate along a vector that can rotate in a wholly extradimensional plane, and with an axis of rotation perpendicular to all three dimensions of space, possibly coinciding with time. This would be the spin of the particle. In the cube analogy, one of the edges parallel to the time dimension is spiralling. If the vector rotates in a plane contained within 3-space, this would be the circular polarization of light. See Figure 3.
Future directions of this inquiry are 1) obtaining the details of the postulated length contraction in space-tilted matter, and 2) exploring the possibility of synchronization and anti-synchronization of fusion events between adjacent particles. (Such an effect could account for the narrowness of the time slice we seem to be living in.)
Etymology: "warped spacetime," Greek: paramorfoménos chorochrónos, thus: "paramorf."
Figure 3. A hyper-black hole progressing across the surface of the big 6-ball. The three spatial dimensions of relativity theory have been suppressed for clarity and are represented by points A. t is time. The instantaneous structure resembles one edge of a cube merging with a surface. The line between points A may function as a closed chamber for fusion ripples because of the right-angle relationships at each end, leading to intensified shock waves inside and intensified paramorf fusion. This, in turn, dynamically maintains the geometry shown.
I suggest that in general, spacetime structures tend to evolve to greater efficiency in paramorf capture, and deviations from these structures will appear to be opposed by forces. This can be cited as a general principle in exploring the present theory.
09-24-2024: For example, two fermions could capture paramorfs cooperatively: capture by one triggers an expanding ripple that reaches the other and triggers its own capture. This second capture then sends a ripple back to the first fermion, where it triggers a third capture, and so on. This duetting action is formally like light bouncing back and forth between parallel mirrors, as in the Michelson—Morley interferometer. If duetting efficiency maintains the length of meter sticks, we have the beginnings of the long-sought explanation of the null result of the Michelson—Morley experiment in terms that allow the existence of a medium for the wave aspect of particles.
11-05-2024: Velocity in space relative to the medium upsets the spatial relationships necessary for efficient duetting, triggering a compensatory reorganization of the spacetime structure to re-optimize paramorf capture efficiency, by the general principle enunciated above. This leads to the Fitzgerald contraction, one of the two basic effects previously explained in terms of Special Relativity. The other is time dilation; if fermions are always literally travelling along a time dimension as postulated here in connection with the space-tilted matter concept, a greater velocity along any spatial direction must come at the expense of a lesser velocity along the time dimension, leading to time dilation.
Thus, the unification of QM and Relativity may be at hand.
10-13-2024: Duetting could account for attractive forces between fermions and destructive interference could account for repulsive forces. A difficulty is that the simple ripple model is one-sided whereas destructive interference assumes sinusoidal disturbances, which are two-sided. This could be remedied by assuming that the ripples have profiles like wavelets or the Laplacian of the Gaussian.
Zen weeds in the Rideau canal
Snail universe beside the Rideau canal