I was watching an episode of The Universe today and it was about gravity. During one part of the show, they said that if there was a tunnel from one end of Earth and coming out the other end, it would take 42 minutes to get through. Even if a tunnel was built from LA to NY, it would take 42 minutes. No matter where you built a tunnel, it woud take 42 min to get from point A to point B. The angle of the tunnel would be different than if you were going straight through the center, but no matter where you built a tunnel, it would take you 42 minutes to get through it. Of course LOST popped in my mind, and thought I would share this interesting info :)

OMG... you are awesome!!!

I have always wondered what "Code42" was on the blast door map. After the phone call to Locke that said Code17 I revisited the blast door map. I thought it might have to do with whatever the Orchid does....

You figured it out!!! You know the place on the blast door map that says Here in case of code 42. Whatever happens in the orchid, you must be at this place for it not to hurt you.. or whatever it does...

Amazing find Erin! I want to know more! What is this phenomenon called?

it would take 42 minutes, traveling at what speed? how can it take the same amount of time regardless of the speed?

42 is the number of commercial-free minutes in an hour of Lost.

From what I understood, because of gravity. Gravity would pull you VERY quickly towards the core, then you would slow down as you started to come out the other side (so you dont just shoot off into space), since once again, gravity is trying to pull you to the core. If the angle of the "tunnel" was not as steep, and further from the core of the earth, you would travel through the tunnel at a slower rate, even if the distance is shorter. Basically, since all objects fall to the earth at the same rate due to gravity (no matter the size) the speed of your free fall would vary.

That can't always be true though can it because the Earth is not a perfect sphere...plus the density of the Earth is not constant (ocean water actually bends around oceanic mountians, and into trenches, believe it or not)


And you have 415 posts...:o

I just did a quick google search of it, and found this

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A2960633

o i get it. thanks for the explanation. i forgot that you would be free falling through the tunnel. was thinking of using propulsion, like a plane or something. makes sense now.

That's kind of an odd theory. I'm thinking there are a lot of things you have to ignore to make it work right. For instance, if I built the shortest tunnel that it was possible to fit something through, I don't believe that gravity would even pull it. It would just sit there at the entrance, unmoving. For another, what about the motion of the earth? Wouldn't that have some effect on the object's movement?

I'm not disputing that such a device is possible given certain parameters, but I don't think it would be quite as superkewl as the article makes it sound.

-AJF

I was watching an episode of The Universe today and it was about gravity. During one part of the show, they said that if there was a tunnel from going through one end of Earth and coming out the other end, it would take 42 minutes to get through. Even if a tunnel was built from LA to NY, it would take 42 minutes. The angle of the tunnel would be different than if you were going straight through the center, but no matter where you built a tunnel, it would take you 42 minutes to get through it. Of course LOST popped in my mind, and thought I would share this interesting info :)

Okay, I'm kinda confused what is the theory with this? Maybe I'm just dim... or maybe my brain is just fried from finals... or maybe a bit of both.

By the way, The Universe is great! And I gotta say... of course it's 42! That's the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

42! That's the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

Yes, but what is the ultimate question to the ultimate answer of life, the universe and everything?! :cool:

That can't always be true though can it because the Earth is not a perfect sphere...plus the density of the Earth is not constant (ocean water actually bends around oceanic mountians, and into trenches, believe it or not)


And you have 415 posts...:o

Actually for most physics calculations, the mass of the earth in comparison to the mass of the surface that is not perfectly spherical is so large that the calculations will be accurate to a hundreth or thousandth. That same rationalization can be said for the density of the planet. Straight from Physics 231.

42 is the number of commercial-free minutes in an hour of Lost.

you win.

Hey, I didnt make the theory, I just heard it, and thought it was interesting, since I am a huge Lost fan. I guess it was easier to understand if you watched it on tv. They had drawings and everything ;) It made it easy for me to understand, and I dont see why they would lie about a basically hypothetical journey through the earth....

hey erin- i appreciate this and we still have to remember that the writers take some of these theories they see and apply them to a, now lets remember this one, A FICTIONAL TELEVISION SHOW-
there are many easier targets we can tear up...

what a load of rubbish of course it wouldn't

Boy, I just thought it was an interesting fact to know about the Real World anyway, but I guess I'm a geek like that...I wasnt trying to solve the whole show or anything. So much for my first thread LOL

Erin.,
Your post is fine...post more.
Apparently some folks are upset that you know more than they.
Since they haven't done the field work to prove or disprove what you saw, they land on "Well I never heard of that therefore it ain't true."

Had a wife like that once. (chills)

That's kind of an odd theory. I'm thinking there are a lot of things you have to ignore to make it work right. For instance, if I built the shortest tunnel that it was possible to fit something through, I don't believe that gravity would even pull it. It would just sit there at the entrance, unmoving. For another, what about the motion of the earth? Wouldn't that have some effect on the object's movement?

I'm not disputing that such a device is possible given certain parameters, but I don't think it would be quite as superkewl as the article makes it sound.

-AJFIt would actually if there was a friction-less environment we could create. It has to do with the same idea that Newton (I think) had: that if you have two hills and roll a ball from the top of one, it will go down through the valley and up the other hill until it reaches the exact same height it started from (given that the second hill is just as high or higher.

A boy at Hurley's birthday party is wearing an orange shirt with 42 on it...

Thank you for sharing this theory-- not only does it use one of the numbers but it ties in to all the Alice in Wonderland allusions (she falls down a rabbit hole in the beginning, even talks about coming out on the other side of the earth).

Very Cool!

Hey, I didnt make the theory, I just heard it, and thought it was interesting, since I am a huge Lost fan. I guess it was easier to understand if you watched it on tv. They had drawings and everything ;) It made it easy for me to understand, and I dont see why they would lie about a basically hypothetical journey through the earth....
erin1679:
I think it's cool! I think it's interesting. We can look it up and think about it; if it turns out to have no significance to the storyline, we still know something we didn't. There's no way we lose on stuff like this, and, hey, you can't beat that!

Thanks for posting it. (Also, I applaud your starting the thread, it takes courage these days to do that here. I haven't posted much, but I've read bunches and have for years. There's been a trend of outlandish rudeness, but if you, and others like you, will hang in there and post stuff, I'll contribute more and keep reading. Frankly, listening to "I'm smarter than you" and "What a stupid theory" gets really boring. I like yours MUCH better....:)

I was watching an episode of The Universe today and it was about gravity. During one part of the show, they said that if there was a tunnel from going through one end of Earth and coming out the other end, it would take 42 minutes to get through. Even if a tunnel was built from LA to NY, it would take 42 minutes. The angle of the tunnel would be different than if you were going straight through the center, but no matter where you built a tunnel, it would take you 42 minutes to get through it. Of course LOST popped in my mind, and thought I would share this interesting info :)
It reminds me of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=696
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/mechanics/earthole.html

So LOST.

Erin, I think this is a great find. Why?? Well because I have been reading on other threads about how Tunisia is the exact opposite of the earth from our Island. Also because on the Blast Door Map there is a notation (the part not revealed to Locke, but in the puzzle) the notation is Final Destination in case of Code 42. We have already heard Code 17, the warning of Keamy at the sonic fence. Would it be far to think Code 42 is the code for......
Oh Crap, the Orchid is going to be turned on... or whatever the Orchid does.
The place where the notation is on the Blast Door map, well I have not looked into it yet, but is it where we could believe the Temple is?? The only safe place on the island??

Antipodal point.

http://www.antipodemap.com/

Where they say the flight crashed Near Bali the antipodal point would be off the coast of Venezuela, but the opposite of being in Tunisia places you in the South Pacific.

Thanks, guys...I knew SOMEONE would find it as interesting as I did...

Erin,
Pay no attention to critics.. Even if it never surfaces on Lost, it's a fascinating concept.. Keep on posting..:)

I just found another curious fact about 42 and gravity..

Electromagnetic force is 10 to the 42 power, times stronger than gravity...

Can we say Code 42!!

I was watching an episode of The Universe today and it was about gravity. During one part of the show, they said that if there was a tunnel from one end of Earth and coming out the other end, it would take 42 minutes to get through. Even if a tunnel was built from LA to NY, it would take 42 minutes. No matter where you built a tunnel, it woud take 42 min to get from point A to point B. The angle of the tunnel would be different than if you were going straight through the center, but no matter where you built a tunnel, it would take you 42 minutes to get through it. Of course LOST popped in my mind, and thought I would share this interesting info :)

That is extremely cool! Thanks for posting it.

For those still struggling to understand why it is, it's the exact same principle as a pendulum. The fixed length of the pendulum corresponds to the fixed starting distance from the center of the earth. Once you pull the pendulum back some distance and release it, it will take the same amount of time to come to a complete stop at the same height and distance at the other side, regardless of how far you pulled it back, and regardless of how heavy the pendulum weight is. The only factors in the amount of time (half the period of the pendulum) are the gravitational pull of the earth, and the length of the pendulum.

Of course, there are engineering challenges to make it work out exactly, especially if you try to build a super-short tunnel. (Like if you're "tunnel" was only a foot long, it would have to be almost impossibly level and friction-free to work.) But that's not really the point. Any decent practical design would be very close to the idealized constant (reportedly 42 minutes) for any workable distance.

Lots of things we learn about our favorite show have nothing to do with plot, but a great deal to do with connection.. They built the show that way. So the gravity discussion and 42 minutes may have no plot advantage, but it has the 42...and that's the connection, and that gave us KGs 10 to the 42 power. Another connection to the show, even if not involving the plot. Thats part of what makes it so kewl.,

The new podcast (http://ll.media.abc.com/podcast/audio/itunes/LOST_413_audio_podcast_5f204b07-9e65-4680-afcb-900f71a549af_1678870.mp3) is up and Damon and Carlton answer some very interesting questions, one concerning antipodal points, kind of the same as this.

Boy, I just thought it was an interesting fact to know about the Real World anyway, but I guess I'm a geek like that...I wasnt trying to solve the whole show or anything. So much for my first thread LOL

I think it's interesting. Don't let the turkeys get you down lol

Also... I thought the B;ast map said... in case of final destination code 42. . . which definitely fits with the Orchid and traveling... final destination.

erin1679:
I think it's cool! I think it's interesting. We can look it up and think about it; if it turns out to have no significance to the storyline, we still know something we didn't. There's no way we lose on stuff like this, and, hey, you can't beat that!

Thanks for posting it. (Also, I applaud your starting the thread, it takes courage these days to do that here. I haven't posted much, but I've read bunches and have for years. There's been a trend of outlandish rudeness, but if you, and others like you, will hang in there and post stuff, I'll contribute more and keep reading. Frankly, listening to "I'm smarter than you" and "What a stupid theory" gets really boring. I like yours MUCH better....:)


I totally agree, After that long break and the season started back up so did the level of rudeness. I'll never understand the need to be outright mean to someone whom they'll never meet on a message board. :confused:

Anyway.....Back to the "Gravity Train", I like this idea/theory. And it's one I haven't heard of before:biggrin: .

Thanks for the heads up on the podcast Sam G., I'm off to listen to it now:biggrin: .

I agree about the rudeness and all we can do is hit that "report post" button and not get suckered into the argument, especially if they are responding to something you posted. This place is so large, the MODs can't be everywhere.

I really think you're gonna like the podcast.

Lots of things we learn about our favorite show have nothing to do with plot, but a great deal to do with connection.. They built the show that way. So the gravity discussion and 42 minutes may have no plot advantage, but it has the 42...and that's the connection, and that gave us KGs 10 to the 42 power. Another connection to the show, even if not involving the plot. Thats part of what makes it so kewl.,
We could also say that LOST is about the gravity of our dear Losties' situations. :biggrin:

I listened to the podcast... erin1679.. GREAT JOB!!! :toot:

I listened to the podcast... erin1679.. GREAT JOB!!! :toot:

I havent had the opportunity to listen to it yet. Is there anywhere I can read a synopsis or transcript??

Here is a brief synopsis, but you need to listen to it, or wait for the complete transcript to hear the part that would concur with your post..

http://www.lostpedia.com/wiki/Official_Lost_Podcast/May_19%2C_2008

The new podcast (http://ll.media.abc.com/podcast/audio/itunes/LOST_413_audio_podcast_5f204b07-9e65-4680-afcb-900f71a549af_1678870.mp3) is up and Damon and Carlton answer some very interesting questions, one concerning antipodal points, kind of the same as this.

New podcast, woo-hoo! While I'm listening, I'll share a few mathematical findings: I verified the results of The Universe, to make sure they got it right.;) The equation for the straight-line trip through the earth, regardless of where on the surface the start and end points are, which also happens to be the equation for half an orbit around a mass equal to the mass of the earth, with the long axis equal to the radius of the earth, regardless of how circular or elliptical the orbit is, is:
pi * sqrt((radius of earth)^3/ (G * mass of earth)) (http://www.google.com/search?q=pi+*+sqrt%28%28radius+of+earth%29%5E3%2F+ %28G+*+%28mass+of+earth%29%29%29) = 42.24 minutes
It would have been too freaky if it was 42.23... but wait...

The speed of an object hitting the surface of the earth, if dropped from an infinite height, ignoring any atmospheric slowing, as measured in Mach:
sqrt((G * mass of earth)/(radius of earth))/(speed of sound) (http://www.google.com/search?q=sqrt%28%28G+*+mass+of+earth%29%2F%28radiu s+of+earth%29%29%2F%28speed+of+sound%29) = 23.23 :eek2:

And the speed of an object hitting the center of the earth, if dropped down a hole all the way from the surface of the earth, ignoring any atmospheric slowing, as measured in Mach:
sqrt((G * mass of earth)/(2 * radius of earth))/(speed of sound) (http://www.google.com/search?q=sqrt%28%28G+*+mass+of+earth%29%2F%282+*+r adius+of+earth%29%29%2F%28speed+of+sound%29)= 16.428 :eek2::eek2::eek2:

I'm not making this stuff up folks, Google Calculator doesn't lie!

I was told at the begining of Lost that there wouldn't be any math:mad: ! :biggrin:

Seriously Pythagoras, Awesome job! Now if we could only find the 4 and 15. :)

New podcast, woo-hoo! While I'm listening, I'll share a few mathematical findings: I verified the results of The Universe, to make sure they got it right.;) The equation for the straight-line trip through the earth, regardless of where on the surface the start and end points are, which also happens to be the equation for half an orbit around a mass equal to the mass of the earth, with the long axis equal to the radius of the earth, regardless of how circular or elliptical the orbit is, is:
pi * sqrt((radius of earth)^3/ (G * mass of earth)) (http://www.google.com/search?q=pi+*+sqrt%28%28radius+of+earth%29%5E3%2F+ %28G+*+%28mass+of+earth%29%29%29) = 42.24 minutes
It would have been too freaky if it was 42.23... but wait...

The speed of an object hitting the surface of the earth, if dropped from an infinite height, ignoring any atmospheric slowing, as measured in Mach:
sqrt((G * mass of earth)/(radius of earth))/(speed of sound) (http://www.google.com/search?q=sqrt%28%28G+*+mass+of+earth%29%2F%28radiu s+of+earth%29%29%2F%28speed+of+sound%29) = 23.23 :eek2:

And the speed of an object hitting the center of the earth, if dropped down a hole all the way from the surface of the earth, ignoring any atmospheric slowing, as measured in Mach:
sqrt((G * mass of earth)/(2 * radius of earth))/(speed of sound) (http://www.google.com/search?q=sqrt%28%28G+*+mass+of+earth%29%2F%282+*+r adius+of+earth%29%29%2F%28speed+of+sound%29)= 16.428 :eek2::eek2::eek2:

I'm not making this stuff up folks, Google Calculator doesn't lie!

WOW! Now THAT is freaky! Thanks for the info :)

It would actually if there was a friction-less environment we could create. It has to do with the same idea that Newton (I think) had: that if you have two hills and roll a ball from the top of one, it will go down through the valley and up the other hill until it reaches the exact same height it started from (given that the second hill is just as high or higher.

I need some help with this because I'm not so great with science, but I found this on Youtube:

http://youtube.com./watch?v=RRxGeKcQjhA

Would and electromagnic field help create a Friction-Less environment needed in order for the tunnel to work? The video is only a minute and a half long so watch the experiement at the end.

I need some help with this because I'm not so great with science, but I found this on Youtube:

http://youtube.com./watch?v=RRxGeKcQjhA

Would and electromagnic field help create a Friction-Less environment needed in order for the tunnel to work? The video is only a minute and a half long so watch the experiement at the end.

I watched that on the History Channel! Sure sounds like it could tie into LOST, and if it eventually ends up never being part of the show, at least some people learned something new ;)

This is a very intriguing theory! As others have pointed out the producers mentioned something very similar on the podcast.

Antipodal Points (http://thefuselage.com/Threaded/showthread.php?p=111595&highlight=antipodal#post111595) first mentioned 2/14/2005

Erin you aren't alone.

Come y'all, get on the "Gravity Train".

Super cool theory! See Erin, there are people that appreciate a good scientific lesson. This renews my hope that perhaps the show will be explained using science and theoretical science rather than supernatural brooha.

Pythagoras, I did need to get an aspirin, but once I figured out what you were saying, really neat and it plays into Erin's synopsis of the Universe (a super cool show on the History Channel, btw for those who have not seen it) like hand in glove.

Erin, ignore the naysayers. There seem to be a group of newer users and users who do not visit that frequently that make it their mission to start trouble. It is super hard to ignore, but sometimes that is the best thing to do.

Gads! I was happy with having found, “Rule Forty-two. All persons more than a mile high to leave the court.” in Alice in Wonderland. But this...? lol! Lewis Caroll was a mathematician.

I can handle the idea of traveling by gravity train a lot better than travel by wormholes so I am very excited about this thread. Wouldn't cold come into it somewhere? Reducing friction, counteracting the heat from the magma or something, thus explaining Ben's parka. Also, one of the links that was provided here described the theoretical trip as stomach turning or something to that effect. Hasn't nausea been connected with what some have been referring to as teleportation? As usual, I have more questions than answers.

http://ll.media.abc.com/podcast/audio/itunes/LOST_413_audio_podcast_5f204b07-9e65-4680-afcb-900f71a549af_1678870.mp3

Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth offers some interesting parallels. A professor and his nephew enter a volcano crater in Iceland and descend to the center of the earth encountering an ocean, islands and strange/prehistoric animals and humans. They exit through another volcano located in Italy. I don't have a globe or appropriate map but are Iceland and Italy antipodes? Here's the link. Their compass doesn't work, they travel by raft and the acoustics are strange.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_to_the_Center_of_the_Earth

http://www2.comp.polyu.edu.hk/~04329143d/CheckLatLonMap_Antipodes.html

This is my favorite Antipodal Point finder.

No, Italy and Iceland aren't opposite each other.

this is too cool -- a great explanation for what could be going on AND using the numbers to do it.

Sam, thanks for the link. I should have been able to figure that out for myself but I have taken such a beating trying to understand the physics discussions floating around that I didn't trust myself with simple geography. I can't believe the wealth of knowledge, and helpful links, that I have acquired in trying to figure out Lost.

weddo,

I love that link. Google Earth and Google Sky are great too.

If you need to find something the first place I look is the internet, of course, if you're like me, it may take a couple of hours to get there, I get side tracked by all the other amazing things that pop up.

Had to post this

Journey to the Center of the Earth (http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809712194/video/7994244/20080527/136/7994244-1000-wmv-s.65205220-,7994244-700-flash-s.65205237-,7994244-100-flash-s.65205223-,7994244-700-wmv-s.65205215-,7994244-300-wmv-s.65205208-,7994244-300-flash-s.65205225-,7994244-1000-flash-s.65205241-,7994244-100-wmv-s.65205202-,7994245-6800-qtv-s.65205260-,7994245-10300-qtv-s.65205262-,7994245-2700-qtv-s.65205250-) What happens at 42 seconds reminds me of Ben going to the FDW.

This theory makes me think about Locke, being dragged down that hole in the ground by Ol' Smokey ;-)

I think that this is a really interesting fact that could tie into the show. I remember hearing something about this awhile ago. I might have seen it on "The Universe" also. I haven't done any research on this, but I thought that there was some other theory that when you got near the opening coming out on the other side of the earth gravity would pull you back in and you would be stuck, keep going back and forth. I don't think it's merely a coincidence that it would take 42 minutes - 42 is one of the numbers after all :biggrin:
100%
This site supports this theory if no one has checked it out already:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/If_you_could_drill_a_hole_through_the_Earth_from_t he_central_US_all_the_way_through_to_somewhere_in_ China_at_what_point_would_you_stop_falling_and_sta rt_climbing

I think that this is a really interesting fact that could tie into the show. I remember hearing something about this awhile ago. I might have seen it on "The Universe" also. I haven't done any research on this, but I thought that there was some other theory that when you got near the opening coming out on the other side of the earth gravity would pull you back in and you would be stuck, keep going back and forth. I don't think it's merely a coincidence that it would take 42 minutes - 42 is one of the numbers after all :biggrin:
100%
This site supports this theory if no one has checked it out already:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/If_you_could_drill_a_hole_through_the_Earth_from_t he_central_US_all_the_way_through_to_somewhere_in_ China_at_what_point_would_you_stop_falling_and_sta rt_climbing

Yes, that site is describing the same thing the scientists did on "The Universe". Pretty interesting stuff, nonetheless :)