answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

4 of these dimensions are the regular ones most of us are familiar with; 3 of these are spatial dimensions: up-down, left-right and forwards-backwards. The fourth one is a time dimension.

In a 4 dimensional space you thus require four numbers to uniquely specify a certain location in space and time. A quick example would be the location of a meeting somewhere on Earth; you'd need four bits of information: the latitude and longitude of the location, the height and finally the time of the meeting.

In M-theory physicists assume there are 7 additional spatial dimensions. Thus in M-theory you would need a grand total of 11 numbers to uniquely specify a location in spacetime.

These additional 7 dimension are not equal to the regular 3 spatial dimensions in one important aspect; they are curled into small loops. This makes them periodic (if you walk in their direction you will after a while end up where you started), and they are very tiny. You can imagine them as small loops of additional space at every location in our regular 4 dimensional spacetime.

These loops cannot be seen however because they are so very tiny. If M-theory is correct we might be travelling in these dimensions all the time, but we don't notice it because they are so small.

A good analogy Briane Greene used is that of an ant on a garden hose. For the ant the garden hose seems 2 dimensional (3 if you count time); the ant can move forward and backwards on the hose, but it can also move around along the hose in a circular fashion. But if you stand some distance away the hose appears to be a line, a 1-dimensional object. You do not see the second curled-up dimension because it is too small because you are too far away.

In this way the extra dimensions M-theory requires are also hidden, but they might be spotted in modern particle collider experiments such as the LHC, since these can be used to probe the small distance scales where these additional dimensions might become important.

User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: What are the 11 dimensions of M-theory in layman's terms?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Continue Learning about Physics

Can time be split?

time is irrelevant it stretches through all 11 theoretical dimensions all having different properties in each


What are the five demensions?

In spacetime, there are four dimensions: - Height - Width - Depth - Time I'm not sure what the fifth dimension might be, I think M-Theory or String Theory takes it all the way up to 11 dimensions, but I'm guessing that's not what you're after.


What are the four dimensions of Space-Time?

Einstein formulated the spacetime that is the four dimensions of space namely: length, breadth, thickness and a fourth dimension: time are interwoven. apart from euclid's geometry where time is said to move at a constant rate and is unchangable, this theory says that time also can be bent, slowed down or even speeded up just like the other dimensions like length.


Why 4th dimension doesnt exist in real world?

This is an area of active research. In other words, it isn't really known. One hypothesis is that within a larger "something", different universes have formed, with different physical laws and even different numbers of "active" dimensions (see below). In this case, we simply happen to live in one that has three dimensions. Active dimensions: There is some evidence that our Universe actually has 10 or 11 dimensions, but that only 4 of these (1 time dimension, 3 space dimensions) manifest themselves on larger scales. The other 6 or 7 spacial dimensions are believed to exist only at extremely small scales - much smaller than can be directly observed.


What are the dimensions of a corona bottle?

Corona Extra 12oz. Bottle Dimensions 2013 (+/- 1/32in.) Height: 9 1/2 in. Diameter at Widest Point (exterior): 2 7/16 in. Glass Thickness at Printed Logo : 1/16 in. Diameter at Narrowest Point (interior): 11/16 in.