Time Travel: Will it Be Possible in the Not Too Distant Future?

Time is an enigma that has fascinated humankind for centuries. It's downright mind-boggling to think about the possibility of traveling into the distant past or the far off future. The possibility of time travel could provide us with answers to age old questions and increase our knowledge of our world and help us to better understand ourselves.

For others the journey would be of a more personal nature. Many of us would love to be able to turn back the hands of time to save the life of a loved one or simply to be with them again. But nothing is ever that simple and maybe some things were just meant to be. After all, time travel would once again place us in the role of playing God.

Many scientists still do not see time travel as a feasible option. Time itself is still a complex concept that is barely understood. It is thought by some that time is a construct of the mind, existing only as a means for the human brain to make sense of our sequential existence. If this were true, time travel would have no place in our society since time travel would exist only in the mind.

Yet there are some who believe that time travel is a real possibility and they are determined to prove it. In 2006, Ronald Mallett, a Professor at the University of Connecticut predicted that time travel for humans may very well be possible this century. Professor Mallett designed a time machine based on Einstein's theories of relativity. If funding became available the Professor hoped to build and test the machine within ten years. The design would use light in the form of circulating laser beams to loop time.

Even if it would work, time travel for humans may still be a long way off but the implications alone are overwhelming. Meanwhile the scientific community remains at odds over the possibility of time travel. Besides debating over whether or not it can be done, some say if we could travel in time we would only be able to go into the future but not backward into the past. Others point out the possibility of a paradox and changing the future timeline by altering the past.