Shadows

[Sliver]

Three dimensional objects cast two dimensional shadows. So, would four dimensional objects cast three dimensional shadows? This raises a possible origin for ghost or other spectrals; maybe they are the shadows of four dimensional objects/people.

[houserichichi]

Sure would, but then what's a shadow? It's what shows up when light gets blocked and can't shine through...so if that's the case (and assuming that light works the exact same way in 4D as it does here) a 3D shadow would just be a big block of darkness. I don't think I've ever heard of ghosts described that way...

I could be wrong.

[wendy]

A ghost behaves like an ordinary 3d object, not a 4d shadow. That is, a 3d person has a face, nose, etc, but a 4d shadows have these hidden when they're facing away from the edge of the light.

W

[otheronenorehto]

I wonder what evidence is there that light behaves in 4 dimensions as it does in 3 dimensions?

[Katsushiro_Myoshi]

Light and sound are supposed to be weaker in the 4th dimension

[Katsushiro_Myoshi]

light and sound are weaker in the 4th dimension

so...maybe there isn't enough light to cast a shadow...just think, the sun has to be in a certain position for us to have a shadow, and even though it is easy to see during a particularily cloudy day, we have NO shadow...and therefore beings might not be able to have shadows in the 4th dimension...

[moonlord]

We have shadow in a cloudy day. However, the clouds and the humidity in the air disperse the light so you have kind of a 'circular' semi-shadow. It is not visible because it's very weak. Why not have shadow in a sunny 4d day afterall?

[wendy]

Even though four-dimensional light falls off as the cube of distance, the surface of the sun goes as the cube of radius. So while it goes weaker as distance goes up, there is more of it.

W