The Holographic Universe---Gravity And Reality

This Text Was Written In Late October, 2005

The Holographic Universe

Expanding On David Bohm And Other Proposals To Better Understand The Nature Of Reality.

Do We Really Exist In A Two (Not Three) Dimensional Universe Structure?

If So, What Is This Third Dimension? Is 3D The Heavenly Realm?

Is Newtonian Gravity Only Two Dimensional?

Does Gravity Exist Beyond The Second Dimension?

By: John K. Harms

Email: harmsjk3@earthlink.net

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Introduction

Let us begin this text on the holographic Universe with a quote from "Juan Maldacena where he writes in Scientific American -- November 2005 where on P. 57": "Three spatial dimensions are visible all around us --- up/down, left/right, forward/backward. Add time to the mix, and the result is a four dimensional blending known as spacetime. Thus, we live in a four dimensional Universe. Or do we?

Amazingly, some new theories of physics predict that one of the three dimensions of space could be a kind of illusion---that in actuality all particles and fields that make up reality are moving about in a two dimensional realm like the Flatland of Edwin A. Abbott. Gravity, too, would be part of the illusion: a force that is not present in the two dimensional World but materializes along with the emergence of the illusory third dimension."

The "Smoke And Mirrors" Of Two Dimensions

Is our picture of reality really a projection of a two dimensional reality onto three dimensions on the surface of our retinas? Henceforth, what we see as three dimensions is not actually real, but only a "smoke and mirrors" reality in two dimensions. This being the case, this beings about an important question: what really is the nature of the third dimension?

So, the real cause of gravity may exist in three dimensions, but has its effects in the two dimensions where we exist. Hence, we cannot actually discover the cause of gravity in our two dimensional World, but only feel its effects.

In addition, the third dimension may have both forward and backward-in-time components. This arises from conclusions in the author's other works. Thus, our interface with the third dimension may only be with the quantum World, where forward and backward in time travel are commonplace. So, quantum effects can be observed by us in two dimensions, but they are much like the cause of gravity in that we have limited access to them.

One might even go so far as to say that "the actual" reality (and absolute truth) exists in three dimensions where all effects have causes and we exist in a place (particularly at the quantum level) where effects do not have direct causes. What is unknown in our dimension can be found to be revealed in three dimensions. When we refer to the other side of reality, we are talking about the third dimensional World, a World invisible to us. The big unknowns in two dimensions are all exposed for all to observe in three dimensions. There, all questions will have answers.

If one were of a spiritual nature, one might speculate that the third dimension is the essence of the heavenly realm, a place where our physical bodies cannot in this reality tread. That is, the third dimension could be heaven, the other side of this reality that might be the sources of all beauty in both art and science. When we see great beauty, we are gazing straight into the third dimension, or at least into its hologram shadow in two physical dimensions. Thus, all that we associate with heaven ---God, angels and so forth also take on their real forms in the third dimension.

These (admittedly) speculative ideas seek to unify forces such as gravity, the quantum realm with some of the spiritual sides of life. Life, for the author, has always contained rather illusive qualities to it, so in the end all ideas from all fields of study must be found to be unified. So, in this text, the author seeks at least a limited amount of these kinds of unifications. Hopefully, the reader will open their minds enough to permit these kinds of speculations---at least for the moment.

Furthermore, the third dimension (where absolute truth and beauty exists) could become akin to Kant's noumenal things-in-themselves realm, whilst our two dimensional holographic reality becomes similar to Kant's phenomenal realm, the realm of our sensory experiences. So, there is essentially a kind of communication going on between three dimensions and the two where we exist. We experience the three dimensional actual reality through our senses as holographic snapshots in two dimensions. So, the noumena can send signals to the phenomenal World where we are found to exist, which essentially are glances into the actual World. The author, who has been a great admirer of Kant for a long time, has written extensively on Kant and his ideas. See many of my other works for details where Kant has been a major theme.

So, the third dimension may be the real heaven, where faster than light and backward-in-time phenomena are commonplace. In heaven, all objects may have imaginary (square root of - 1) mass, whilst only positive mass beings are present in 2D. More about these concepts in the next section.

The Holographic Approach To Newtonian Gravity

If one applies the above ideas to Newtonian Gravity, one might understand gravity as being a two dimensional entity only. That is, as Newton constructed his model, it was applicable to only a two dimensional space. Planets, therefore, can orbit on a two dimensional plane (which is more or less what they do around the Sun) and do not deviate very much into the third dimension. In Einsteinian gravity (GTR), planets such as Mercury (for example) do deviate slightly from Newtonian orbits. This two dimensional limitation may be the definitive reason that Newtonian gravity does not accurately describe the orbit of Mercury. That particular flaw will not be the essence of the discussion here, however.

What will be discussed in greater detail is what might happen if gravity were extended into the third dimension. So, the discussion in this text will be not only the two dimensionality of Newtonian gravity, but also if this were not the case. Why? Because Newtonian theory has only two variables for mass (M-1 and M-2), we can thus understand the whole equation to be: Force of Gravity = G -- the gravitational constant X [Mass of first body (M-1) X Mass of second body (M-2)] divided by ( / ) the distance between them squared (d^2). Or written simply in its conventional form:

F = G (M-1 X M-2) / d^2

Indeed, we can understand dimensionality in Newtonian gravity to be the numbers M-1 and M-2. And so, there are only two variables making the equation essentially containing only two dimensions (dimensionality in mathematics is simply adding additional variables to an equation, so we will do just that). So, planetary bodies that orbit in planes (such as Mercury) that are not two dimensional cannot be described by Newtonian gravity. If we add say an additional dimension Z-1, we realize the new equation to be:

F = G (M-1 X M-2 X Z-1) / d^2

Then, Newtonian gravity becomes operational in the third dimension, beyond the holographic two dimensional structure where we reside. So, we can see from this that if there is no gravity in the third dimension that Z-1 can be equivalent to zero (Z-1 = 0). Indeed, at Z-1 = 0, Force (F) = 0. In this case, then, there is no gravity beyond two dimensions. But, one could set Z-1 at literally any value for any force of gravity desired in 3D. But, what is the actual value of Z-1 in 3D -- who knows?

The question might then be asked, if all Newtonian gravity requires is an extra dimension to describe the orbit of Mercury, does the addition of Z-1 fix the inherent problem with Mercury? Unfortunately, the answer to this is no. The Mercury problem in essence is a more complex one than this and seems to require a change to Einstein's GTR to solve it. But, the addition of an extra dimension Z-1 to Newton's theory does grant us some other interesting information about the third dimension and gravity. Based upon these writings, the author hopes you will agree.

Is 3D Actually Heaven?

If all the conclusions about the third dimension stated here are found to be correct, one might ask does the third dimension take us to the other side of reality---is 3D heaven? If it is indeed Kant's noumenal realm, the place where the real objects exist, what other characteristics does it have? Can one travel faster than light in 3D, travel backward-in-time, with no gravity if Z-1 = 0 as described above, experience pure beauty and perfection (as opposed to our present "fall apart" World) having perfectly formed bodies which never wear out and so forth? In the 3D World is there ultimate (and infinite) truth, power, wisdom and reality? These remain the author's speculations, but they are certainly something to think about.

Conclusion

There may be some probable consequences of this model:

1) Mass and, therefore, gravity may not exist in the third dimension. Z-1 could be set to any value.

2) Newtonian gravity is a two dimensional description of nature (describing only planes of orbits). This observation has not generally been realized.

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References

Maldacena, J., November 2005, Scientific American, Vol. 293, No. 5, New York, P. 57

Reader's Note: Proper References And/Or Acknowledgments To This Text Are Appreciated.