Time Travel in Einstein's Universe

A Princeton astrophysicist explores whether journeying to the past or future is scientifically possible in this 'intriguing' volume (Neil deGrasse Tyson). It was H. G. Wells who coined the term 'time machine'-but the concept of time travel, both forward and backward, has always provoked fascination and yearning. It has mostly been dismissed as an impossibility in the world of physics; yet theories posited by Einstein, and advanced by scientists including Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne, suggest that the phenomenon could actually occur. Building on these ideas, J. Richard Gott, a professor who has written on the subject for Scientific American, Time, and other publications, describes how travel to the future is not only possible but has already happened-and contemplates whether travel to the past is also conceivable. This is a look at the surprising facts behind the science fiction of time travel.