Rumors of a new super spacedrive using MOND theory (Modified Newtonian Dynamics) go back at least five years.
These rumors . . . are true.
You could call it a gravity lens: our M-Drive flattens the local geometry of space-time to intergalactic smoothness.
This allows for direct electromagnetic propulsion, with little waste heat or radiation. Unbalancing the surrounding field tension will propel it through space.
The principles are so simple they can almost be explained in ordinary language.
On Earth, the local gravity is relatively strong, but it disperses as the square of the distance. You weigh slightly less on the roof of a building than in the basement. Three times as far, nine times as weak.
Thanks to MOND, once you get far enough away from the Solar System, gravity doesn't 'disperse' as fast anymore.
Empty space isn't 'all there', especially between the stars and galaxies. Such a vast volume has to be simplified for nature to keep track of it. Gravity doesn't weaken as much over large distances, since these voids are less 'real' - unless something passes through them, of course.
We found a way to recreate and amplify this effect.
Fueled with its own weight in antimatter, an M-powered ship could appear to accelerate to another galaxy in just a few decades, measured by its internal clock.
We don't fully understand the matter/antimatter reaction yet. Instead of gamma radiation, the energy is released in the form of gravitons that distort the space around the disk.
Matter appears to transform directly into the dark energy of space.
It even generates a wake of gravity waves, meaning we are creating more space as we go along!
Even time travel might be possible, if we could line up enough disks rotating at sufficient speeds.
More important, the process also works in reverse:
Since it requires energy to distort space, we could extract energy from already distorted space - and not just from black holes.
There's enough hidden energy in the intergalactic voids to power the galaxies. Perhaps even within the voids inside their atoms!
How do our disks turn matter into energy into quanta of space? Simply by preventing every other possible conversion that might occur within an M-Drive.
This is done by measuring the volume of the disk with Planck-level precision.
After removing all other matter within a few hundred kilometers of the disk, we deploy an incredibly sensitive particle detector: a super-cooled, hyper-rotating Scrutiny Ring.
You could say it cancels out the pilot wave of any emitted particle, virtual or otherwise. The canceling wave could be interpreted as going backwards in time.
We can do this because we have already recorded all possible annihilation events, and stored them in the pattern of the ring. We merely recreate them at the right moment with a precisely timed matter/antimatter flow, perfect to the last quantum.
This sounds rather impossible, and it does come close to violating the uncertainty principle and all that.
But remember, the environment of the disk is maximally simplified. We've already reduced the quantum potentialities in the surrounding space to near-zero. To intergalactic smoothness, in fact.
It's just another MOND effect.
The quantum unpredictability of the Ring cancels out the unpredictability of the disk. The matter/graviton conversion process is very delicate, making our Scrutiny Ring fiendishly difficult to reverse engineer. However, it's not quite impossible.
It took trillions of automated experiments to measure and record the possible particle annihilation events inside a Ring.
This data represents the most valuable intellectual property ever obtained.
So we have taken some precautions. 99% of the weight of every detector will be an access restriction shield, to prevent unauthorized inspection. The shield cost almost as much to develop, yet it works by a completely different principle.
Our licensing terms are extremely generous: only 75% of the world economy. This is a one-time offer, an irresistible bargain. Do the math, focusing especially on the long term.
It's also just enough to give our organization a permanent, unassailable advantage.
Don't worry, we can handle power better than anyone. We wouldn't have lasted this long and come this far otherwise.
Reality is infinitely complex. There are many more inventions to come, but none will ever again be this cheap.
This is just to get you hooked.
Infinite Thunder by Jack Arcalon.
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