Science and technology with Bill Bain

TREK TO TELEPORTATION REQUIRES A QUANTUM LEAP

"BEAM Us Up Scotty” chortled one predictably cringeworthy headline recently, cheapening a wonderful scientific achievement by a group of Chinese astrophysicists. “Teleportation From Earth To Orbit”, another soberly declared.

This was after the scientists in question had succeeded in transmitting the properties of a photon – a particle of light – from Earth to a satellite orbiting the planet. However, impressive as this feat is, the experiment is actually nothing new – it was first demonstrated in the lab decades ago and is known as quantum teleportation.

The Herald: Indeed cinema has been tantalising us for years about the idea of teleportation - and also warning us of its dangers. On the big screen, it’s not only the sexually active characters who often meet a sorry end – it’s also the ones who dare to teleport. Hollywood frowns upon such un-Presbyterian ways of getting about.

Some notable examples include The Fly, The Philadelphia Experiment, The Fly 2, Jumper, The Return Of The Fly, Stargate, The Fly 3 and who could forget the classic sci-fi flick Bad Vegan And The Teleportation Machine.

The Herald:

One general exception to the rule is the optimistic futurism of Star Trek – where “transporters” helpfully emit hippyish wind chime sounds so you know when you’re being beamed away.

This fake aural accompaniment is reminiscent of how we’ll soon be downloading personalised engine noises for our silent electric cars – the iconic Star Wars Tie Fighter roar opening up a new multi-million dollar revenue stream for Disney.

The Herald:

But I’m afraid that vehicles – electric, driverless or otherwise – are still certain to be the main form of travel for the foreseeable future. In 2017, human teleportation is still firmly anchored to the realm of science-fiction. It is not on the horizon, despite those headlines to the contrary. So what actually did happen?

If you are not familiar with the mind-boggling world of quantum physics, then strap yourself in, because you’re about to be hit with some real paradigm-shifting revelations.

That’s because it's a deeply odd area of science which – if explained properly – will make you question everything you thought was real.

The Herald:

Quantum teleportation takes place when scientists take two photons – particles which make up light – and push them so close together that they begin to act like they recognise each other. They become twins, essentially - the same but different. This process is called “entanglement”.

After that, things get a bit cruel and these two photons are separated. This is where the magic comes in – no matter how far apart these photons are separated...they remain connected.

Picture an invisible umbilical cord, one that can stretch across the entire universe. Oh, and this cord can also attach itself to every other particle in existence, creating an invisible web connecting all matter across infinity.

The Herald:

Still with me? Good, because that’s actually not the weirdest thing to get your head around here – the inexplicable oddness of quantum physics comes into play when one of these separated particles is “observed” (that’s not some fancy science term, it literally means when a scientist just looks at the particle).

What happens then is wild - the particle actually becomes aware that it is being monitored and its physical properties change. Not only this, the other particle it was “entangled” with – no matter if it is in the next room or the next planet – instantly shows the same awareness of observation.

Imagine one twin being tickled and the other one laughing. It’s almost as if the two photons are one – in the exact same spot at the same time – no matter how far they’ve been physically separated.

So what is the explanation for this deep weirdness? The truth is, no-one knows. Even Albert Einstein didn’t know. He described quantum physics’ deep strangeness as “spooky action at a distance”. For years even he refused to accept this phenomenon as true.

The Herald:

We can be certain Einstein would have been similarly cynical when it came to the possibility of human teleportation. It is not happening. The information from a single photon? Absolutely, and a wonderful scientific achievement. A whole organism? Highly unlikely in the extreme.

Such a feat would require the collective might of countless huge super-computing Artificial Intelligence machines - who have discovered and harnessed all of quantum physics' secrets to become near-Godlike in their capabilities. Even then, they would have to tap into an infinite energy source to fuel their massive expediential growth in processing power. It's...unlikely. Not impossible - just unlikely.

The Herald:

What quantum teleportation does do, however, is hint at the true base nature of reality – where time and space as we perceive them do not exist. They simply can't, when two particles thousands or even millions miles apart, can react to each other instantaneously.

In fact, these fundamental building blocks are the only true constant in an ever-evolving, mind-bendingly complex universe. They're a bit like The Great British Bake Off's Paul Hollywood - staying exactly the same while everything changes around him.

The Herald:

Perhaps these fascinating experiments also prove, ironically, that the idea of teleportation itself is illusionary. That the universe is actually still tiny – meaning, every single atom of matter is still closely linked together.

Most astrophysicists believe all the particles and energy in existence today were once condensed into an unfathomably dense “bomb” about the size of a ping pong ball, detonated at the moment of the Big Bang.

Once upon a time, the molecules of our bodies were as close to the farthest away galaxy as your socks are to your feet. But closer. Much closer. We were “one” with everything.

The Herald:

Our dalliances with quantum physics are a tantalising and terrifying peek at the realm behind our physical world, an infinite web of interconnection holding the entire universe together.

It’s likely the case that all matter is still as tightly unified as it was 13.7 billion years ago at the moment our physical universe was born. And perhaps our biological forms, and what we perceive as space and time, are just as much of an illusion as the flickering light creating moving images of fantasy on our cinema screens.

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WATCH IT, SUN

NEWS from China has overshadowed Nasa’s somewhat lesser announcement of the imminent launch of the Parker Solar Probe, a craft designed to burn up in the sun’s atmosphere and which draws parallels with the fate of Icarus.

The Herald:

The probe, which has been decades in development, will get seven times closer to the sun than any man-made object has before, where it will inevitably be incinerated. This state-of-the-art suicide mission has been named after astrophysicist Eugene Parker (not the Thunderbird chauffeur for anyone who is confused) and is planned for launch in summer next year.

The Herald:

It will come within 3.7 million miles of the sun’s surface, which sounds like a considerable distance. However, it will experience 520 times more heat than we can here on Earth.

The mission is aimed at unlocking the mysteries of the sun’s outer aura, an atmospheric plasma called the corona which remarkably records temperatures exceeding six million degrees Celsius – despite being millions of miles from the relatively cool surface.

Such huge disparities between localised temperatures are very difficult to explain, and have previously only been recorded during a Scottish summertime.