Time Cube

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The layout (reduced) and writing style of the Time Cube website.

Time Cube is an internet phenomenon: a website created by Gene Ray to promote "Nature's Simultaneous Harmonic 4-Day Time Cube" which is his proposed description of the nature of the universe. It uses a distinctive combination of colorful large-font text, occasional black-and-white drawings, obscure statements, and unconventional grammar. The website's style has been widely parodied (see additional links below).

The Time Cube concept itself is the proposition that time is cubic, a set of ideas which are generally viewed as cryptic and ill-defined. It is a frequent target of Internet humor. The concept has only once been published in a peer-reviewed journal^[1] (humanities, not a science journal), and is generally considered to be nonsense and lacking in testable hypotheses. Ray has challenged various authorities to debate the subject, but these challenges have generally been ignored or rejected.

Though he is often dismissed as a crank,^[2][3] Ray is outspoken in defending Time Cube and refers to conspiracy theories in explaining why his ideas are not accepted. Ray uses the word "evil" more than 110 times on his website to describe those who oppose or fail to understand his ideas. He also calls for the killing of not just those that oppose this theory, but of anyone that is ignorant of it. Ray proclaimed himself a "Doctor of Cubicism" in December 2002. He sometimes uses the title "Dr. Gene Ray - Cubic and Wisest Human".

[edit] The Time Cube concept

Gene Ray's cryptic style, apparent rejection of basic mathematical concepts, and the lack of published academic research make it difficult to sum up the concept of Time Cube. The following quotation captures both the style of Ray's writing and a major recurring theme of the Time Cube theory:

It may be noted, for instance, that the spherical shape of the earth causes these four "time points" Ray refers to do not exist as points, but as curved lines representing a wide range of values. Also, Ray's use of the word "simultaneous" does not appear to refer to a meaning other than the accepted one. However, he fails to make any logically coherent explanation as to how different periods of time that are taking place "simultaneously" can be counted separately and added together as in the passage above. Other passages, such as the one below, seem to suggest that Ray has little respect for basic arithmetic.

Nevertheless, it appears that the chief claim of Ray's theory relates to the "simultaneous" existence of four days within a single rotation of Earth and the subsequent inference that the planet itself is not a physical "entity", as its hemispheres actually rotate in opposite directions and cancel out, as antipodes.

Other points made on Ray's website include the accusation that all academic establishments are "evil" for not teaching Time Cube and that readers who do not agree or are ignorant of his ideas "deserve death". It is not clear as to whether these ideas should be considered a part of the Time Cube theory, or would be better considered as Ray's personal opinions.

[edit] Public debate of the concept

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There appear to be some who claim to understand and follow Ray's views. The specific number of actual believers is unknown, as Time Cube has no organization behind it and exists primarily as an Internet phenomenon. It is a widely held opinion that many of the Internet posts that attempt to elaborate on the concept are intended as subtle parodies. A few people suspect that even Ray himself is insincere and intends Time Cube as a type of hoax, but he has never indicated that this is the case. Some speculators have suggested that vehement Cube-supporters on bulletin boards and elsewhere are Internet sock puppets of Gene Ray himself.

Ray has claimed to offer $10,000 to any academic institution or professor who disproves Time Cube. Many academics have viewed the website as incoherent and not possible to scientifically evaluate, though Humanities Journal of Hsuan Chuang University in Taiwan has published an article about Time Cube. The piece, titled "Proving Human Stupidity: Time Cube, Gnosis, and the Challenge of Radical Cosmology", references Ray in a comparison to the Greek astronomer Hipparchus. ^[1]

Ray spoke at Georgia Tech in April of 2005. Ray also spoke at MIT, in January of 2002.^[4]

Policy debaters often use the Time Cube as a kritik or specification argument in rounds where not much is at stake and so desire humor above the sensibility of their arguments^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] See also

• Cube
• Scientific method
• Theory of everything
• List of pseudosciences and pseudoscientific concepts

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b} Dawei, Bei. "Proving Human Stupidity": Time Cube, Gnosis, and the Challenge of Radical Cosmology (PDF). Retrieved on May 19, 2006.
2. ^ Crank Dot Net - Cranks, Crackpots, Kooks and Loons on the Net. Retrieved on September 11, 2006.
3. ^ Kelly, Matt. "Kelly's i: Site of the Day", The Daily Mirror, September 29, 2001, pp. 23. “YES, the guy's mad - but at least he's not boring. Check out the Time Cube rants.”
4. ^ IAP 2002 Activity: Time Cube Lecture / Debate. Retrieved on April 5, 2007.

[edit] External links

The following external sites may not have verifiable information. Wikipedia makes no effort to verify the contents of external sites, and the following sites may not be reliable sources.