Re: dinosaur cloning and time travel

["James R. Cunningham" <jrccea@bellsouth.net>]

Jonathan R. Wagner wrote:

>         As we REALLY stray from dinos...
>
> Brandon Haist wrote:
> >In the 1960's the U.S. Navy experimented with time travel.

>JRW

> The atomic clock anecdote you mention was probably taken out of context. It
> probably referred
> originally to a relativity experiment

JRC
I remember being interested in the experiment at the time.  It was a relativity
experiment and had nothing to do with time travel. The outcome confirmed that
Einstein had a pretty good handle on the universe and implied it was worth 
listening
to him.

>BH

> >Today my Physics teacher said that you could not ever make a 100% perfect
> >heat engine, it would defy the laws of Thermo Dynamics (you couldn't convert
> >100% of your heat into 100% work), it was impossible.  I asked him "wasn't
> >that what people said about flying?  Or Visiting the bottom of the ocean?
> >Or men on the moon?

JRC
He said this because the background radiation temperature of the universe is not
zero.  It's about 4 degrees.  Therefore the maximum possible efficiency for a 
heat
engine is on the loose order of 99%.  I say 'about' and 'loose' because I'm 
speaking
from memory and haven't troubled to check the actual  numbers recently.  
Basically,
your Physics teacher appears to know what he's talking about, and it may be 
worth
listening to him.

>JRW

>         Ok, there's "can't" because you don't believe it is possible, and
> "can't" because the nature of space/time forbids it. Two different
> phenomena.

JRC
Yup.

Jim