Quantum technology and time travel Oct19 '03

While waiting for "School of Rock" to begin, one of the previews was for "Timeline," by Michael Crichton. This is my favorite book of all time, and now it is going to be in theatres. I was very excited to see the preview, and I can’t wait to see the movie, even though I know movies are rarely better than books.

Books allow readers to use their imagination on how the story really appears. Movies take away that imaginative release, and force you to see it the director’s way. It’s either the director’s way, or the highway. Still, some movies come close to being equal with their book counterparts, and in some rare cases, surpass them. The key word is rare.

It is still very thrilling to see a great book come alive on the big screen. "Timeline" is no exception. It will be nothing short of stunning.

If you’ve never read the book, I suggest you do. I will give you a brief synopsis now.

A man is discovered missing, and his exact location of disappearance is the middle of the desert. Next to where he once stood is a white ceramic chip, which nobody knows the function of. This white ceramic chip turns out to be a "transporter of universes." In simpler terms, this chip allows you to travel through time, but not in the presumed way. There are no time machines involved, nor are there big shuttles that shoot you into another time period. The only thing involved is quantum technology.

Using this technology, humans can literally "fax themselves" to parallel universes, or different dimensions, just like paper is faxed through a fax machine and goes to another location – sometimes across the globe.

The theory behind Timeline is that when we die, we don’t rot in the ground – rather, we go to another universe. Millions of universes are lined up, side by side. Every time period imaginable is happening right now. Time doesn’t go forward, it stays the same. A few innocent history majors end up in a rough period of medieval times, just before the plague hits and wipes out hundreds of thousands. These students use their knowledge of that time period to guide them to save the man who disappeared in the desert.

Michael Crichton puts you in that time period, and scares the living daylights out of you.

"Timeline" is not some science fiction story of time travel. The theory behind it is incredibly real and precise. Using scientific explanation, the events in the story seem like they could really happen today. That’s what makes it so believable.

Categories: Books , Movies

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matthom is published and produced by Matt Thommes - an independent publishing enthusiast, mobile blogger, content creator, informative writer, web developer from Chicago. Never one to conform, Matt intends to promote the effect the web has on our lives, in an effort to intensify, instruct, and clarify all that is happening around us.

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