DB: On Time Travel and Paradoxes

[Paulo]

One of the cool things about Time Travel stories is how the author chooses to deal with paradoxes. Minute Physics has recently released an interesting video comparing different takes on it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3zTf...

Unfortunately, the author's take on the problem is on the "boring side". Paradox can't happen. Period.

I hope you like the video. It has references to several works, some of which I've never heard of, and sound pretty interesting.

[Phil]

I watched this just last week. It's a fun video that reminds me of the whiteboard videos that P. Aaron used to do on this site.

[Steve]

I thought her take on the paradox was a kind of deus ex machina in that there would be no story if they could have sent someone in to grab her right after she arrived and say "do over!"

[terpkristin]

Phil wrote: "I watched this just last week. It's a fun video that reminds me of the whiteboard videos that P. Aaron used to do on this site."

YES. I miss those videos.

Also, just like the guy who did this video, Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban is my favorite time travel (and my favorite HP because of the time travel).

[Ruth]

Excellent video, thanks for sharing

[Paulo]

Steve wrote: I thought her take on the paradox was a kind of deus ex machina in that there would be no story if they could have sent someone in to grab her right after she arrived and say "do over!"

I don't think this would cause a paradox, nor it was the reason they didn't send anyone to get her back. She wasn't supposed to be in that time, so removing here wouldn't "hurt time". Besides, (view spoiler)[ the only tech in Oxford able to operate the time machine was patient zero of a nasty Influenza outbreak. (hide spoiler)] hence there was noone able to rescue her.

I think.

By the way, what a messy time travel operation. Someone should be fired.

[Dominik]

Paulo wrote: "By the way, what a messy time travel operation. Someone should be fired. "

That's academia for ya. Betcha Gilchrist has tenure, too.

[Tom, Supreme Laser]

Pilot X is written to the Harry Potter style of time travel (as described in the video)

[Colin]

Enjoyed the video, but I feel that he mis-characterised the Star Trek: First Contact time travel. The implication is pretty clear that Zefram Cochrane only managed to make his first warp flight because of the assistance he got from the Enterprise crew. They thought they were preserving the time-line from Borg interference, but in truth must always have been there when the famous flight happened, so it's actually time travel a la Harry Potter. My favourite type!

Pedantry over.