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> But "identifying which universe something is in" > is not the definition of "the fifth dimension". Is there a difference? Lets say we have a bunch of f

> But "identifying which universe something is in" > is not the definition of "the fifth dimension". Is there a difference? Lets say we have a bunch of film strips, laid one on top of another, only each frame represents an entire 3D universe, and each layer of a new film strip, at the same point from the start, becomes less similar* as you move from layer to layer. To identify where something is, you would refer to the delta (ie: of the number of layers). That was what I was getting at. *Hand-waving to ignore that in real life, each frame probably spawns multiple children, but only has one parent.

jerf 6y ago
It is a dimension, in your hypothetical example with no known real-world correspondance. It is not the fifth dimension. "The" fifth dimension is a scifi concept, not a real one. Perfectly normal, mundane reality contains numerous instances of much higher dimensionality. Which of the subcolors of the pixels on your screen is "the" fifth dimension? Dimensionality isn't "about" parallel universes. It is a very tiny, and really quite useless, instance of the concept, which is full of useful and interesting members that actually, you know, exist.
- uniqueid 6y ago
  > "The" fifth dimension is a scifi concept, > not a real one. I'm confused now. How Is it possible for a dimension to "not be real" when a dimension is just a way to relate multiple points together? Unless you run out of points, can't you describe their relation using as many dimensions as you need? Maybe our communication is breaking down over the term "parallel universe". I don't mean it as a sci-fi thing, I mean it as a Schrödinger's cat thing. Without possible universes, we can't explain our intuition that an event can have multiple outcomes. Why should one of them happen, and not the others? With possible universes, there's no problem, because they all happen. How would one describe the relation of where they happen without a dimension higher than time? I don't mean a parallel universe as some fantastical place that we could "visit" etc.

jerf 6y ago

It is a dimension, in your hypothetical example with no known real-world correspondance. It is not the fifth dimension. "The" fifth dimension is a scifi concept, not a real one. Perfectly normal, mundane reality contains numerous instances of much higher dimensionality. Which of the subcolors of the pixels on your screen is "the" fifth dimension? Dimensionality isn't "about" parallel universes. It is a very tiny, and really quite useless, instance of the concept, which is full of useful and interesting members that actually, you know, exist.

uniqueid 6y ago
> "The" fifth dimension is a scifi concept, > not a real one. I'm confused now. How Is it possible for a dimension to "not be real" when a dimension is just a way to relate multiple points together? Unless you run out of points, can't you describe their relation using as many dimensions as you need? Maybe our communication is breaking down over the term "parallel universe". I don't mean it as a sci-fi thing, I mean it as a Schrödinger's cat thing. Without possible universes, we can't explain our intuition that an event can have multiple outcomes. Why should one of them happen, and not the others? With possible universes, there's no problem, because they all happen. How would one describe the relation of where they happen without a dimension higher than time? I don't mean a parallel universe as some fantastical place that we could "visit" etc.