Has there ever been a time where you just want to put your teacher on the spot? Ask a question or say something so bizarre, so convoluted that the entire classroom freezes for that one moment? If so, you could be the next student to bask in that glorifying halo of awe and superiority.

Gravity is NOT a Force:

Yes, Einstein proved this fact a hundred years ago. Your physics teacher probably teaches gravity as a downward force with an acceleration of roughly 9.8 m/s², but this is a concept that Einstein disproved when Newton first introduced it. In simple words, gravity is actually a curvature, or distortion, in space-time, which is basically a four dimensional continuum that merges space (3 dimensions) and time (1 dimension). To give an example of this, let us imagine two particles that are moving along parallel trajectories (parallel lines). If these two particles suddenly swerve and intersect, one would normally believe that some force caused it to change directions. However, Einstein’s relativistic theory of gravity explains that these particles changed direction not by a force, but by a change in the ‘surface’ that they were moving along. If two particles were moving along the surface of a sphere, even if they travel straight, because the surface is curved, the two particles will inevitably come closer to each other. Same concept. Therefore, gravity is not a force, but a change, or distortion, on the ‘surface’ of space-time.

We Live in the 4^th Dimension:

Do you believe that everything around you is 3D? If you do, in the perspective of time and space, you are not quite correct. Many people say that time is the 4^th dimension. This is true. But not a lot of people can explain why. Fortunately, I am here to give you a simple explanation! Objects in this universe really have ‘4’ lengths: Length, Breadth, Thickness, and Duration. Think of it this way. Everything in the universe moves. Even seemingly inanimate objects are moving. For an object to move, it needs time. Therefore, 3D does not exist in this world, and this is because an INSTANTANEOUS object (an object with no duration) cannot exist. Thus, we live in the 4^th dimension.

Time Machines have existed for over 13 Billion Years:

Have you ever heard of black holes? Well, they are actually time machines that allow time travel into the future! Obviously, they are impractical, so we cannot actually travel into the future, but let me explain why they are time machines. By time machine, it is not like they transport you through hyperspace and into the world of the future. Black holes actually slow time around you, and this is because gravity affects time (well, space-time). This means that time relative to you slows down compared to the time of a person that is not under the influence of a black hole. Therefore, if you come out of a black hole alive, you would be younger than your twin that remained on Earth!