FTL Travel is possible.

[Dark Helmet]

I figured out how to travel faster than light. You just make a submarine that can go faster than 0.73 c. And you are going faster than light!

FTL in a vacuum, is another story.

[Musashi]

That doesn't sound simple either. :)

[captain swoop]

How about something that will go faster than stopped in Chocolate Cake?
Light doesn't propogate through cake.

[ZaphodBeeblebrox]

That doesn't sound simple either. :)

Yeah, the Cerenkov Radiation alone, Would Fry the Crew.

Cerenkov Radiation, being what is Produced, when an Object Exceeds the Speed of Light, in a Material.

[Swift]

How about something that will go faster than stopped in Chocolate Cake?
Light doesn't propogate through cake.
:o
So bullets travel faster than light in chocolate cake. For that matter, so does a fork. I'd rather use a fork than a bullet. Now I need a glass of milk.

[zebo-the-fat]

I tried it, now I need another cake! mmmmmmmm! :D

[Demigrog]

I figured out how to travel faster than light. You just make a submarine that can go faster than 0.73 c. And you are going faster than light!

FTL in a vacuum, is another story.

Perhaps the DC beltway in rush hour would be a better place; even light slows to a halt there.

[Swift]

I figured out how to travel faster than light. You just make a submarine that can go faster than 0.73 c. And you are going faster than light!

FTL in a vacuum, is another story.

Perhaps the DC beltway in rush hour would be a better place; even light slows to a halt there.
That's odd, because I always heard that the politicians inside the beltway lived in a vacuum. :wink:

[Doodler]

I figured out how to travel faster than light. You just make a submarine that can go faster than 0.73 c. And you are going faster than light!

FTL in a vacuum, is another story.

Perhaps the DC beltway in rush hour would be a better place; even light slows to a halt there.


Heh, when is there not a rush hour on the Capitol Beltway? Kenilworth Ave to Georgia Ave never seems to let up, the BW Parkway interchange is always a nightmare, the 270 spur is a joke and may the deity forgive anyone unfortunate enough to try crossing the Wilson Bridge at any hour between 4am and 10pm. And that's just in Maryland...

[kucharek]

I figured out how to travel faster than light. You just make a submarine that can go faster than 0.73 c. And you are going faster than light!

FTL in a vacuum, is another story.

Perhaps the DC beltway in rush hour would be a better place; even light slows to a halt there.
That's odd, because I always heard that the politicians inside the beltway lived in a vacuum. :wink:

No politics to be discussed on the BABB!

:P

[Wolverine]

Perhaps we should do a better job of safely operating subs at regular speeds (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6801642/) first. :o

[Kebsis]

You would need a whole lot of ocean to move that fast in a sub.

[Sheki]

Zaphodbeeblebrox wrote:

Yeah, the Cerenkov Radiation alone, Would Fry the Crew.

Cerenkov Radiation, being what is Produced, when an Object Exceeds the Speed of Light, in a Material.

Would not the sub have to carry a charge in order for Cerenkov Radiation to be produced?

Sheki

[Kebsis]

Theoretically, if you held a mirror out in front of the sub that was moving faster than light in the water, would you be able to see your reflection in it?

[Tranquilis]

Theoretically, if you held a mirror out in front of the sub that was moving faster than light in the water, would you be able to see your reflection in it?Don't be silly. Submarines don't have windows.
:P

[Kesh]

I still think folding space is the best way to do it. I'm just a little unclear on the power requirements of doing so (ignoring the fact that we don't have the technology to do so either!).

[Tranquilis]

That's almost as silly as submarines with windows! You can't fold a cake! Not even chocolate cake...



...or can you..?
Hmmm...

[Enzp]

Now wait a minute. I used to drive a cab in DC and surrounding areas. Drove for a delivery service as well. It just takes a certain skill and lack of self-concern. Now I am about 600 miles out and traffic is somewhat thinner. GAithersburg is close enough. Or to be fair, Fredricksburg.

[swansont]

Theoretically, if you held a mirror out in front of the sub that was moving faster than light in the water, would you be able to see your reflection in it?Don't be silly. Submarines don't have windows.
:P

Yes, they do. They just aren't located in the hull. :)

[swansont]

I figured out how to travel faster than light. You just make a submarine that can go faster than 0.73 c. And you are going faster than light!

FTL in a vacuum, is another story.

Perhaps the DC beltway in rush hour would be a better place; even light slows to a halt there.
That's odd, because I always heard that the politicians inside the beltway lived in a vacuum. :wink:

The hot air they produce precludes that.

[Moose]

Some older Russian subs have had windows on the sail.

However, despite rumor, these windows weren't installed with screens.

[Tranquilis]

Geez - Where's the sense of play?

[serious mode]
Yes, some submarines do have windows. Even some American subs. You won't find those windows on anything that goes very fast, though. Other optical devices on submarines, which do go fast, cannot be employed while going fast - they tend to bend and break off if you try.
[/serious mode]

Now then Moose, you were mentioning screens on submarines..? :D


Tranq,
Qualified in Submarines (Enlisted)

[Swift]

Theoretically, if you held a mirror out in front of the sub that was moving faster than light in the water, would you be able to see your reflection in it?Don't be silly. Submarines don't have windows.
:P
Sure they do, look at the Seaview
http://www.scififilmmusic.com/sfsm/portadas/voyagesea.gif

[Van Rijn]

Theoretically, if you held a mirror out in front of the sub that was moving faster than light in the water, would you be able to see your reflection in it?

No, you would see the very, very big flash from the explosion that would occur as the sub slams into the water ... (I assume it would be accelerated in a vacuum first). Of course, the sub would be vaporized before anyone onboard could see a thing.

[Kebsis]

Would you see the flash in the mirror?

[um3k]

Would you see the flash in the mirror?
Don't forget to specify that you are attempting to view it with a vaporization-proof camera.

[Madcat]

Hmm. Ignoring the obviously ridiculous energy required to plow through water at that speed, does it take an infinite amount of energy to accelerate matter to that speed in water?

Put another way, does the speed of light through a medium dictate the maximum speed possible through that medium, or would it still be the speed of light in a vacuum?

[Sheki]

does the speed of light through a medium dictate the maximum speed possible through that medium

No. Which was kinda the point of darkhelmet's original post. Or at least that is my understanding.

When a charged particle exceeds the speed of light in a given medium it produces Cerenkov radiation. You see, the charge has to travel at the speed of light in the medium, but the particle does not. So the charge starts to behave somewhat like soundwaves that are being emitted from a super-sonic jet. That is, a sonic boom is produced. Or in the case of the charged particle, an electromagnetic boom - which is the Cerenkov radiation.

I am sure others will correct my mistakes and oversights here, as I suspect the sonic boom analogy is so vastly insufficient as to warrant my immediate flogging.

Anyhow, supposing that our understanding of Cerenkov radiation is correct, it stands as pretty good evidence that matter can outrun light in some media.

Disclaimer: I am a biologist - so you might want to wait for a more informed answer!

Sheki

[Bawheid]

Hang on, is a fork in water faster than a submarine in cake or not?