From: smw@wikki.b15.ingr.com (mike wixson)
Subject: Re: Warp Speed and Relativity?
Reply-To: smw@wikki.b15.ingr.com
Organization: Intergraph Corporation
Date: Mon, 6 Apr 92 22:55:08 GMT

In article <1992Apr4.223425.10712@husc3.harvard.edu>, kim3@husc10.harvard.edu (Jason Kim) writes:
|> In article <1992Apr2.174132.11549@b15.b15.ingr.com> smw@wikki.b15.ingr.com writes:
|> >In article <nfgjk#h.saf@netcom.com>, saf@netcom.com (Steve A. Feinstein) writes:
|> >|> 	I was talking with a friend of mine yesterday, and he was
|> >|> wondering why the effects of relativity seem to be ignored in ST.
|> >
|> >This is an IMHO... When traveling at warp speeds, the Enterprise never
|> >"goes faster than the speed of light". Space is warped so that two points
|> >in space which are normally several lightyears apart, are in close
|> >proximity of each other. What this means is that the Enterprise does not
|> >have to move faster than light to cross several light years of space.
|> >
|> >An analogy to this is a piece of string held tightly between your hands, and
|> >on one hand, you have an ant. The ant can get you other hand two ways, one
|> >would be to walk across the string (normal space). The other way would be
|> >to bring your hands together and let the ant walk from one hand directly
|> >to the other hand then spread your hands apart again. This is analogous to 
|> >warping space. At no time did the ant move faster than light, nor did
|> >it suffer any relativistic effects.
|> >
|> >  |   _          _              Mike Wixson                    |
|> 
|> Oh my God can we say PLAGIARISM??! I seem to recall that "humble opinion"
|> almost verbatim out of a kid's novel called  A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine
|> l'Engle.

OK, let me restate the first sentance.. "This is an IMHO with respect to ST"
Happy? Sorry superman, I've never read A WRINKLE IN TIME. Although, the 
above description was presented to me a long time ago by someone who 
apparently had read it. I'll plead ignorance on that one.

|> Jesus, just who the hell are you trying to kid, huh?

Not you, tough guy...

|> Besides, the idea of a TESSERACT is definitely NOT being used by Starfleet 
|> shipssince you can't change velocity (speed or direction) when you're one. 
|> Basically a tesseract is what Federation would call a wormhole.

Whoa! Not once in my original description did I mention TESSERACT. Don't go
confusing the issues. The way I see it, the higher the warp, the further away
the two points are that are brought together. This also implies that at warp
10, you would be bringing two points at the opposite ends of the universe 
together. This would also explain why the crew doesn't suffer relativistic 
effects, except while traveling at impulse. And they do not use impulse
nearly as often as the travel at warp speeds. 

|> 
|> Jason Y. Kim
|> 
|> "It is very cold in space." --Khan
|>  

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