Multiple Dimensions

For years, Einstein hoped to unite the contemporary ideas of relativity and quantum mechanics. Yet, he could not unite these theories because he limited his parameters for a unifying equation to the four dimensions that humans consciously experience. The first physicists to truly pursue the theory of additional dimensions were Kaluza and Klein. They noticed that if a fifth dimension were to exist in the universe, there would be fields of angles between all of the existing dimensions. By applying this to Einstein’s geometric model of gravity, Kaluza and Klein noticed that gravity, the force that relativity is concerned with, and electromagnetism, one of the forces that quantum mechanics deals with, showed similar properties. Therefore, by adding a fifth dimension to the universe, the same equations that apply to electromagnetism could also apply to gravity. It was later shown that not only is one additional dimension required for this link to be solidified, but six more dimensions. Even further down the road, it was discovered that the formulas used to determine this number (which are actually mathematical methods of approximation, since the actual formulas are unknown) we slightly off, resulting in yet another necessary dimension. Therefore, our three physical dimensions plus one time dimension plus seven additional dimensions results in there being eleven dimensions!