1. INTRODUCTION to the Fourth Dimension - This section of the website includes graphics, photographs, and some outside-of-the-box creativity in prototype design and fabrication.
Your favorite item or experimental object can be photographed IN THE FOURTH DIMENSION "hyperscope", for a fee commensurate with the item's size, material, and complexity. E-mail omniken@charter.net for details!
2. Images best viewed in numerical order. - The stage or "chamber" utilized for photos in this section was designed and fabricated by Shotwell over a period of several years, and involves proprietary technology. Discussions concerning specifics of the apparatus are welcomed, contingent upon signing of an intellectual technology Non-Disclosure Agreement.
3. 4th dimensional photograph - Although these photographs depict all sides of a prop simultaneously, the subject matter is too complex to be captured in four dimensions. Proceed to photos 7, 8, and 9 for digitally generated basic geometric shapes in true momentary 4D simulations.
4. Fisheye view in four dimensions
5. The Machine - Several years of research and construction of this precision optical chamber has yielded the
first and only photos of fourth dimensional effects. A feature article in a major physics publication is scheduled for early 2010.
6. Computer simulated coffee cup - This first computer simulation shows the agreement between the photographs of actual props and the theoretical result of a digitally constructed hyperscope chamber of identical shape. Again, the following photographs 7, 8, and 9 will depict more accurate objects and images, though they are more difficult to comprehend.
7. A cone simulation. - This digitally created image shows a simple 3D cone (white dotted outline) caught in the throws of one moment of its inside-out metamorphosis to yet another abstract shape. Remember, the fourth dimension is independent of time, constantly changing, yet highly ordered; more on that in the next photographs 8, and 9.
8. A cylinder simulation - Comparing photographs 7, 8, and 9 to photograph 2, represents a leap in cognitive skills; a cube in four dimensions is fairly easy to comprehend. Cones, cylinders, and spheres are a nightmare to visualize in hyperspace. One of the culprits is the basic physics theorem which dictates that all of the object's surfaces must move perpendicular to themselves while transforming constantly in the next higher dimension, hence the stretching and warping evident in this rendering.
9. A sphere simulation. - A sphere would seem to be the simplest shape to follow during transformation from three to four dimensions. Indeed, in one lucky moment of the process, it might be caught as just an expanding sphere slightly displaced or partly deformed. However, an infinite number of other convulsions are typical of such a transformation, only one of which is shown here.
IMPORTANT NOTE: these computer simulations (photographs 7, 8, and 9) are not contrived, manipulated, or invented.
10. Multiple cones in 4D - Nature and science created this image, and images 11 and 12. It takes the computer about 16 hours to render this. The final image is always a surprise. The input to the virtual 4D chamber was simply three cones.
11. Multplie cubes in 4D - The images 10, 11, and 12 here are so intriquing that plans exist to market the images as fine art graphics; release dates planned in 2010. Input to the 4D chamber in this case was simply three cubes.
12. Multiple cylinders in 4D - Shown here are three metallic cylinders placed within the virtual 4D chamber. Nature painted the rest. From a slightly different viewing angle, the image would be very different. The fourth dimension is a beautiful place. Stay tuned for more images to come...
13. A Hypercube in Motion - A simulated video of a 4D "hypercube" (courtesy Wikipedia.com). Imagine how easy it would be to reach "inside" the hypercube; it actually opens up for you. As already mentioned, such a simulation would be much more complex for a cone, sphere, or cylinder.
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Art & Science
Admittedly, this section on the artist's science hobby may not fit into the context of the other sections of fine art, architecture, and scale modeling. However, his formal training in engineering never quite faded as an interesting obsession.
Please enjoy the contents of this section with an open mind, before it is deleted because of its out-of-place theme. One thing learned from decades of armchair physics research: the really profound, meaningful, and mind-altering stuff in the universe lies in the "empty" space between all that we can observe, sense, or measure.