Supposed that you have a device that could shift an object’s position on the 4th diamension, or had a 4th dimensional friend that can do it casually who could help you do the same, would you survive the process?
Taking it down a notch, would a 2D being survive being manipulated by 3D movement i.e twisting, shifting, fliping, etc?
I would assume so, since in theory all you’re doing is moving where you are in space. It might be a problem if it’s only done partially over time though
we are talking a 4th spacial dimension and not time yeah?
this isn’t really a useful question, it’s wholly hypothetical so we can’t know.
It’s like all those paradoxes: They’re paradoxes because they’re not realistic situations, so there is no answer.
Hate to break it to you. But you are moving through time. Every second.
Without time, if you weren’t moving through time, nothing could change, and the rate time flows is different for each of us… it’s complicated and I’m far from the best person to explain it, but time is not like a fourth axis that everything gets placed on, even if that’s kinda sorta how we model it.
Pretty sure OP was talking about a 4th dimension of space, not space-time.
What is the difference between space and space-time in this scenario? Honest question, since you move in time with velocity in space
Spatial movement
Since the 4th dimension of space is just an infinite amount of 3rd dimensions of space stacked infinitely tight and which is tangent to the normal vectors of every other spatial dimension, you could flip or pass through it just fine. All people and objects you know would disappear and you’d be faced with a new and alien world where every physical object and phenomena is off. Unless, of course, if you not only witness translation, but also rotation, in which case you might be able to see parts of your own dimension from a fucked up point of view, aka. being able to see the organs inside people etc…
Obviously, this assumes that our 4D space is part of a 5D space-time such that at least 1 dimension of time exists, as you’d be frozen in 0-dimensional time otherwise and wouldn’t be able to see anything.
Time movement
Contrary, we already live in 4 dimensions of space-time, of which the 4th dimension of space-time is the 1st dimension of time. You move through time constantly by yourself, and if someone where to move you, you wouldn’t know that you’ve moved since you haven’t moved yet or already did from your own perspective.
You’d need to exist in 2D time to be able to “experience” the entirety of any single string of 1D time, just like you’d need to be a 3D spatial being to see the entirety of a 2D paper/plane. Also, you would obviously not be aware if you were moved beyond your birth or death, as you wouldn’t have a functional spatial body to interpret this.
Notice
This assumes that time and space are two separate phenomena that can be mixed in any given proportion, though resent research has proposed a theory that “space” might just an illusion of time, aka. that what we call “dimensions of space-time” or “dimensions” in general is just one big ol’ load of bull.
And it is fatal, at that.
But not immediately
Depends how far you move on that axis, i guess.
We’re talking about another spatial dimension, not-Einstein
the question is, is the spacetime over “there” compatible with your form of experiencing life? who the fuck knows, tell us if you make the journey and come back, we’ll wait and cheer you on :3
I think you’d immediately collapse into a wadded-up ball of super-dense matter.
The Pauli exclusion principle keeps particles like electrons from occupying the same physical space, which is what makes them take up volume and gives atoms and molecules their size. If they were free to move in an extra spatial dimension, they could pack much closer together, and their volume would collapse.
Would moving/shifting in the 4th (spacial) dimension be fatal?
You would disappear immediately. That’s all. Noone of us would have a way of knowing if you’re still alive or not, so it makes no difference :)
(Usually we call time the 4th dimension, but you want to use a 4th spatial dimension, which isn’t even defined in physics, only in math)
Well, that would depend on what’s in the other 3D “layers” of the 4D world. Like how 3D worlds can be thought of as layers of 2D ones. If you moved to another 3D “layer” that had no oxygen, food, water, etc., you would quickly die. If you moved quick enough you would also probably die, but the same could be said about the three spatial dimensions we’re used to. Also, if there was a fourth spatial dimension, it must be “compact” enough that we can’t detect it with our current technology, and I have a hunch (!!! no evidence for this, please search for some if you want good facts!!!) it would be bad for us to move through it.
Depends on if existence in this level of 4D is dependent on being at this level. Using your 2D in 3D example (aka Flatland) what if the 2D plane is at sea level pressure, but changing the Z axis there is a different pressure (as we understand, but the shapes would not), to the point where Mr. Square dies if we lift him too far up.
Now imagine a 4D version, where it’s not air pressure, but something more fundamental about physics changes if we’re moved from our current 4D state. The idea being that space as we understand it is 3D, but perhaps exists as part of higher dimensions along with other universes. But they could be completely different, and movement from ours to theirs by just sliding in 4D would change the “space” we’re in, in a bad way.
Or we could just wink out of this 3D space, but be in just a different state and be fine, seeing a weird cross section of what we’re used to.
The 4D force could very much be gravity. Move in one direction and you can fly. Move in the other, get crushed by your own weight.
I move through the fourth dimension constantly? It tends to be a continuous thing though, just like the other three.
Now adjusting the fifth and higher via the Higgs field could get a bit trickier, as you’d have to be VERY precise about what went where to avoid annihilation. Each dimension you add increases by a power of magnitude what the coherence calculations would be.
If you like ideas like this I highly recommend flatland by Edwin A. Abbott.
It’s available for free here: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/201/201-h/201-h.htm
Part one is a lot of social and religious critiques of the time it was written (1884 for second edition). Part two covers a lot more of the questions you brought up.
Warning: it is a work of fiction. Don’t expect hard science but my understanding is a lot of the ideas expressed here match modern math ideas.
Assuming you mean moving in a different way than we already are, it probably just depends how. Same as with the other 3.
If you move forward 100 metres at 100,000 mph, you arrive in a paste. If you take a vortex approach to movement, paste again.
So how were you planning on moving along the 4th dimension?
Using the example i listed, i was thinking either a machine functioning sort of like elevators (maybe revolving door better?), or a 4D being touching you to shift where you are like how we rotate a piece of paper.
Something more subtle like, i doubt we survive a equivalent of being strapped to a rocket