Will killing my grandfather before my father was born destroy the Universe?
Let’s find out!
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(c) 2022 Simon Goodson.
Story Disclaimer
Testing the Grandfather Paradox
PROJECT OVERVIEW
To test the Grandfather Paradox, and in doing so to prove the many worlds interpretation of the Universe.
The Grandfather paradox, in its simplest form, is the idea that if you were to travel back in time and while there killed your grandfather before your parent was conceived then you would never have been born. Simple so far. But if your parent wasn’t born, then nor were you, and so you wouldn’t exist to kill your grandfather. Meaning he wasn’t killed. Which means you would have been born and you could go back and kill him… which means you won’t exist… and so on.
It was an interesting thought experiment for many, many years, and nothing more. But as time travel is now possible the grandfather paradox clearly points to something being broken in our understanding of the universe.
The most plausible explanation is the many worlds theory. If you go back and kill your grandfather you do it in a slightly different reality. So while a version of you is never born, the version who travelled back to kill your grandfather still exists. Paradox solved.
But is that right? Or is the explanation stranger? I’ve decided it’s time to find out!
* * *
EXPERIMENT: One
Status: Failure.
The calibration on the Time Machine was out. Not surprising as I had to purchase it from a less than reputable source. I ended up travelling more than a thousand years into the past. Useless for my experiment, I had no idea who any of my ancestors were that far back.
No matter. I can correct the calibration using the data from this trip. The next trip will be much more accurate.
Follow Up Actions: Calibrate and repeat.
* * *
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