03-15-2005, 08:07 PM
Here's one other way to look at this problem. I'm sure everyone has heard about how with black holes there's a point at which light can no longer escape. At that point, the light either gets sucked directly down into the hole OR it goes into an unending orbit at this point (since it can't escape, it's stuck there). Thus, whatever light gets stuck like this would be trapped forever. As more light would accumulate, it would all get stuck at this same point (since the light all goes at the same speed). I'm oversimplifying here, to be sure (so please don't go to the trouble to point out the faulty or poor assumptions that go into this thinking :) ), but at least this is one way you might try to think about this, in a simple way without a lot of math.
What you propose is akin to this sort of thing. IF you could somehow produce light at a point with something moving the speed of light, it would probably all collect and overlap, just like that region outside a black hole.
That said, it is impossible to do something like this for a variety of reasons already mentioned in this thread and, as you add more layers to the complexity of the physics formulations you use, more and more problems crop up. So don't expect this any time soon.
But at least it's a good thought game. :)
What you propose is akin to this sort of thing. IF you could somehow produce light at a point with something moving the speed of light, it would probably all collect and overlap, just like that region outside a black hole.
That said, it is impossible to do something like this for a variety of reasons already mentioned in this thread and, as you add more layers to the complexity of the physics formulations you use, more and more problems crop up. So don't expect this any time soon.
But at least it's a good thought game. :)
-TheDragoon