216
R. Barrett and P. P. Delsanto
“Is it really possible to visit other planets, ba?”.
“You mean planets in other solar systems?” Danh nodded.
“They’re called exoplanets. Well, let’s see if we can work it out,
shall we?” Danh settled into the spare chair. He’d been through
these didactic sessions with his father before, but he loved him
too much to tell him how boring they were. “The nearest star
system to us is Alpha Centauri, and yes, you’re in luck. It does
have an exoplanet. But it’s four-and-a-half light years away. So
even if you could travel at ten percent of the speed of light –
which is unthinkable – it would still take you 45 years to get
there.”
Danh pointed at the novel in Binh’s hand. “In there, Rajveer
travels through hyperspace.”
“Does he now?”.
“What’s hyperspace, ba? Is it real?”.
“Now that’s a very good question.” Danh waited for an
answer. It was the problem that he’d been pondering over all
morning, and was the reason he’d come into his father’s study.
Binh picked up a sheet of paper. Danh’s heart sank further.
“Let’s imagine we are two-dimensional animals living in a two
dimensional universe, like this sheet of paper.”
“Does it have anything to do with wormholes?” The boy’s
interjection stopped Binh short, just as he was about to launch
into a full explanation, and demonstrate with a folded paper
how a two dimensional universe could be curved in a third
dimension.
“What do you know about wormholes?” Binh was most
impressed. He thumbed through the pages of The Little Star
Gatherer to see what other pearls it might contain.
“A bit. But are they real?”.
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
“Ba! That’s no answer!”.
“No, but it’s the only one I can give you.” In truth Binh, who
prided himself on his teaching skills, was a little annoyed that his
son had interrupted his discourse before he had even got going.
“If you want to know more, then you’ll just have to study physics
when you get to high school, and then go on to university. And
stop wasting so much time on video games.”
“Same old, same old,” muttered Danh under his breath. He
did like video games, but he also liked science, and his grades
R. Barrett and P. P. Delsanto
“Is it really possible to visit other planets, ba?”.
“You mean planets in other solar systems?” Danh nodded.
“They’re called exoplanets. Well, let’s see if we can work it out,
shall we?” Danh settled into the spare chair. He’d been through
these didactic sessions with his father before, but he loved him
too much to tell him how boring they were. “The nearest star
system to us is Alpha Centauri, and yes, you’re in luck. It does
have an exoplanet. But it’s four-and-a-half light years away. So
even if you could travel at ten percent of the speed of light –
which is unthinkable – it would still take you 45 years to get
there.”
Danh pointed at the novel in Binh’s hand. “In there, Rajveer
travels through hyperspace.”
“Does he now?”.
“What’s hyperspace, ba? Is it real?”.
“Now that’s a very good question.” Danh waited for an
answer. It was the problem that he’d been pondering over all
morning, and was the reason he’d come into his father’s study.
Binh picked up a sheet of paper. Danh’s heart sank further.
“Let’s imagine we are two-dimensional animals living in a two
dimensional universe, like this sheet of paper.”
“Does it have anything to do with wormholes?” The boy’s
interjection stopped Binh short, just as he was about to launch
into a full explanation, and demonstrate with a folded paper
how a two dimensional universe could be curved in a third
dimension.
“What do you know about wormholes?” Binh was most
impressed. He thumbed through the pages of The Little Star
Gatherer to see what other pearls it might contain.
“A bit. But are they real?”.
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
“Ba! That’s no answer!”.
“No, but it’s the only one I can give you.” In truth Binh, who
prided himself on his teaching skills, was a little annoyed that his
son had interrupted his discourse before he had even got going.
“If you want to know more, then you’ll just have to study physics
when you get to high school, and then go on to university. And
stop wasting so much time on video games.”
“Same old, same old,” muttered Danh under his breath. He
did like video games, but he also liked science, and his grades