The life path of Professor Ronald Mallett is one of those rare stories where science intersects with personal tragedy. When he was only 10 years old, he lost his father to a heart attack. For him, accepting this loss was not merely a lifelong grief, but also the beginning of a scientific mission: to go back in time and save his father’s life.
Today, at the age of 72, Mallett is one of the leading theoretical physicists in the United States studying the possibility of time travel, and he openly admits that he has devoted his entire academic career to this goal.
“Was it worth it?” — a lifelong question
Professor Mallett answers this question decisively:
“Yes, it was worth it.”
He explains that time travel is no longer purely science fiction. The theory of relativity, proven by Albert Einstein, shows that speed and gravity have a direct effect on the flow of time. When subatomic particles move at speeds close to the speed of light, they can exist 10–20 times longer than under normal conditions. This means that time “slows down.”
According to Mallett, the first “objects” to travel forward in time will be precisely these particles. For humans, this technology is still out of reach, but theoretically it is possible.
The scientific basis of time travel
The idea of time travel is mainly based on Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. According to this theory:
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time is not constant;
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gravity and spacetime are closely interconnected;
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the curvature of space leads to the curvature of time.
The professor explains this with a simple analogy:
Imagine a trampoline. If you place a heavy bowling ball in the center, the surface bends. A small marble placed on the trampoline will circle around the bowling ball because of this curvature. According to Einstein, the Sun is the bowling ball and the Earth is the marble. The Earth remains in the Sun’s gravitational field because the Sun bends space.
Lasers and the idea of bending time
Mallett’s boldest idea is based on the concept that laser beams can set space into motion.
He explains it this way:
Imagine a cup of coffee. When you stir the coffee with a spoon, the liquid begins to rotate. If you dropped a coffee bean into the cup, it would move along with this rotation. Now imagine the coffee as space, and the spoon as a laser beam.
A laser beam can “stir” space. When space moves, time moves as well. If spacetime can be shaped into a loop rather than a straight line, returning to the past becomes theoretically possible.
Mallett has proven this idea mathematically and published the results in scientific journals. This is considered one of the first serious scientific models of a “laser-based time machine.”
Practical use: why do we need a time machine?
Professor Mallett does not limit the time machine to personal purposes. In his view, the humanitarian potential of this technology is enormous.
If it were possible to send information back into the past about natural disasters such as:
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earthquakes,
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tsunamis,
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hurricanes,
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massive floods,
thousands of human lives could be saved.
When will humans travel through time?
Mallett takes a realistic stance:
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such research is extremely expensive;
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the experimental phase requires millions of dollars;
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it will take years, or even decades.
At present, major financial backers have shown interest in the project. The main goal is first to send information into the past, and later to enable the movement of physical objects through time.
Time paradoxes and parallel universes
One of the most feared aspects of time travel is paradoxes. Mallett explains this problem through quantum mechanics.
In 1957, physicist Hugh Everett III proposed the “many-worlds” theory. Later, David Deutsch applied this idea to time travel:
When you travel to the past, you do not change your original universe, but a parallel timeline.
This approach scientifically resolves time paradoxes.
Conclusion: are we living in the age of time travel?
Professor Ronald Mallett believes:
“Scientific and technological progress in this century is advancing faster than at any time in history. If there is political will and financial support, time travel could become possible by the end of the 21st century.”
This story once again proves that science is sometimes born from sorrow, but can be directed toward saving humanity.