Virtual Dimension Einstein × Virtual Dimension Muranushi [Special Commemorative Virtual Dimension Talk] Part 1, First Half

A miraculous conversation that transcends time and generations has been realized here.

It is no exaggeration to say that he is one of the most influential figures in the world, a man who stitched together time and space.

The other is a man trying to erect another dimension outside of that fourth dimension.

The setting is Princeton, in a corner of a study. Outside the window, winter light. On the desk, paper and pen, and a cup of strong coffee.

Act One ── About "i"

── Einstein closes his notebook. Suganuma sits opposite him. ──

Einstein  Welcome, Mr. Yuma. Thank you for coming all this way. I heard that a young thinker from Japan wants to add "one more letter" to my equation. And yet, you seem to be involved in such a wide range of activities, from supporting schools all over the world to business, investing, and talent management.

Murakami  Thank you for looking into various things in advance. I am truly honored to have been given this opportunity. I spent my student days entirely in the worlds of mathematics and physics, so my pure admiration for you, or rather, the more I learn, the further it seems to get away, and my adoration for your intellect remains unchanged.

Einstein  No, no, please stop with the worship. When I was flipping through papers at the patent office, I was just another young man nobody paid any attention to. But, Yuma. You who have come here today, it seems you are no longer a resident of the world of mathematics and physics. You say you want to build schools all over the world, run a business, and at the same time, add one letter to my equation. This combination struck me as unusual. That's why I was interested. Now, please tell me your story.

Murakami  Your explanation of E=mc² is a favorite formula of mine, and I have nothing but respect for it. With that in mind, what I want to address is the world outside of the energy and mass that appear in this equation.

Einstein  Oh, really? What do you mean?

Murakami  It does not exist.

Einstein  ...That's not physics.

Murakami  Yes. I'm talking about coordinates, not physics. I imagine the teacher drew four-dimensional spacetime, but I want to extend the game to the outside of that. Symbolically, it's the imaginary unit 'i'.

Einstein raises an eyebrow.

Einstein  If we're talking about imaginary numbers, they're in my equations too. When Minkowski wrote time as ict, I used that when I was young. You know that writing electromagnetic waves with complex numbers, and Schrödinger putting an i at the beginning of his equation, right?

Murakami  Yes. However, I think of $i$ as a "calculating tool," and what I want to express is $i$ as an axis for non-existence, non-meaning, and the undefined.

Einstein  ... Yuma. I'm feeling two things right now. One is that it's no longer a matter of mathematics. An axis that carries non-existence is close to Kant's "thing-in-itself." It's in the realm of philosophy. —But the other is curiosity. If you're going to treat it as an "axis," it must have some form. You see, I don't trust people who talk about formless things. But I always listen to people who show me form, right to the end. —If you're going to treat it as an axis, then there must be an equation, right?

Act II ── Z = D + iD

Murakami  My equation is simple: Z = D + iD. D is the real dimension, the world the professor drew. iD is the dimension outside of that, the dimension that has not yet manifested. Z is the sum of those.

Einstein  Is that different from a shadow? It reminds me of Plato's Cave.

Murakami  It's close. However, Plato said, "Reality is on the other side." I believe the opposite: "The other side is where things will be born." You could say it's an idea from the future, not the past.

Einstein  Interesting. But Yuma, it's dangerous to talk about things that can't be observed. You know I myself had a long fight with quantum mechanics because of it.

Murakami  Yes. So I'm redefining observation itself. "Observation" doesn't mean looking at a subject, but rather preparing the coordinates from which the subject emerges on the human side.

Einstein  I will prepare the coordinates.

Murakami  Just as the professor demonstrated the bending of spacetime itself with general relativity.

Einstein, a moment of silence.

Einstein  Is it poetry, science, or something else?

Murakami  It's both. And it's neither.

Act III – Does God Play Dice?

Einstein  It's a famous story, but I said, "God does not play dice." Even now, I mean it half-seriously. What do you think?

Murakami  I believe God does not play dice. However, I think the reason it appears as if dice are being rolled is simply because we are not seeing "the board before the roll."

Einstein  As for the "board," it means...

Murakami  This is the imaginary dimension. The dimension that exists in a real-dimensional game, or in other words, a dimension orthogonal to real-dimensional coordinates, is what I define as the imaginary dimension.

Einstein  ...That's similar to Gauss's complex plane. That diagram, with the imaginary axis orthogonal to the real axis. Riemann also worked by unfolding complex functions onto a two-dimensional plane. But Yuma, the imaginary axis that Gauss and Riemann used was strictly within the realm of "numbers." What you're talking about isn't about numbers, but about existence. --The same word, "orthogonal," refers to completely different things. That's what's tricky. Please continue.

Murakami What appears to be a phenomenon of probability is already woven into the imaginary dimension. I define the imaginary dimension as the total space of possibilities, where things are decided but not decided. There is nothing, yet everything exists. It is the opposite of embodiment or meaningfulness. It is the imaginary dimensional axis that even contains the contradiction of being defined on an axis.

Einstein  Yuma. Are you aware? What you just said is dangerously close to the very thing I detested most. Bohr. Bohr said, "the state is superimposed until it is observed." It's determined, yet not determined. I couldn't stand that. —And yet, you propose to "place it on a dimensional axis." Bohr confined superposition before observation, but you are trying to make it perpetually present as a dimensional axis. You are approaching my greatest opponent from a different angle. How ironic.

Einstein  By the way, while we're on that topic, let me ask you something. Are determinism and free will compatible?

Murakami  They are compatible. What is determined is the "terrain of possibilities," not "which path to take." The map exists. Humans walk the paths. It might be said that there is a difference of opinion on the word "determined."

— Einstein smiles. —

Einstein  That's interesting. But if my younger self heard that, I'm sure they would have argued with you.

Murakami  There is no greater happiness.

Composition, Text, Editing — Murakoshi

Following the latter half of Chapter 1.

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