When you look at the calculation, it's amazing that every time you try to prove or disprove time travel, you've pushed Einstein's theory to the very limits where quantum effects must dominate. That's telling us that you really need a theory of everything to resolve this question. And the only candidate is string theory.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the complexities of time travel and the need for a unified theory in physics.
Michio Kaku discusses the intricate relationship between time travel and Einstein's theory, suggesting that exploring these concepts pushes our understanding of physics to its limits, particularly in the realm of quantum mechanics. He implies that to fully comprehend the possibilities of time travel, a comprehensive theory—such as string theory—must be developed, which could bridge known physics with yet-to-be-understood phenomena.
In practice
In a lecture on advanced physics, I quoted Michio Kaku to illustrate the need for a unified theory in modern science.
The Europeans and the Americans are not throwing $10 billion down this gigantic tube for nothing. We're exploring the very forefront of physics and cosmology with the Large Hadron Collider because we want to have a window on creation, we want to recreate a tiny piece of Genesis to unlock some of the greatest secrets of the universe.
Cancer is like the common cold; there are so many different types. In the future we'll still have cancer, but we'll detect it very, very early, so that it won't kill anybody. We'll zap it at the molecular level decades before it grows into a tumor.
Consciousness-one level is understanding where we are in space. Consciousness two is where we understand our position in society: who's top dog, who's underdog and who's in the middle. And type-three consciousness is simulating the future. And type-three consciousness, only humans have this ability to see far into the future.
Some advice: keep the flame of curiosity and wonderment alive, even when studying for boring exams. That is the well from which we scientists draw our nourishment and energy. And also, learn the math. Math is the language of nature, so we have to learn this language.
After that cancellation [of the Superconducting Super Collider in Texas, after $2 billion had been spent on it], we physicists learned that we have to sing for our supper. ... The Cold War is over. You can't simply say "Russia!" to Congress, and they whip out their checkbook and say, "How much?" We have to tell the people why this atom-smasher is going to benefit their lives.
The job market of the future will consist of those jobs that robots cannot perform. Our blue-collar work is pattern recognition, making sense of what you see. Gardeners will still have jobs because every garden is different. The same goes for construction workers. The losers are white-collar workers, low-level accountants, brokers, and agents.
People are going to buy cheap fertilizer so they can grow enough crops to feed themselves, which will be increasingly difficult with climate change.
The unreasonable efficiency of mathematics in science is a gift we neither understand nor deserve.
The illusion of purpose and design is perhaps the most pervasive illusion about nature that science has to confront on a daily basis.
But in most cases even the possibility that the correlations reflect shared genes is taboo.
It is a test of true theories not only to account for but to predict phenomena.
It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a possible copying mechanism for the genetic material.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.