Faraday is time-shifting
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By eko_theman
- Faraday is time-shifting
- Created: Feb 29, 2008
- Last updated: Aug 14, 2008
- After episode: 2.23: Live Together, Die Alone
- Status: Current
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I believe that Daniel Faraday has been time-shifting the entire time we have come to know him.
His research into time travel with Eloise has exposed him to the same amound of electromagnetism that Desmond was, just over a longer period of time. Desmond cleverly pointed out “Why don’t you cover your head”, which Daniel just shrugs off. I think he wants to be exposed enough to time-shift.
When Daniel realized that Desmond was time-shifting, he wasn’t using him to advance his research in the past, he was sending Desmond to his past self because he know he could then create a constant. He wouldn’t have been aware of needing a constant had a real life version of a time traveler not shown up at his doorstep at Oxford.
Minkowski pointed out that the shifts happen quicker as time goes on. Daniel went to the island initially to find a cure (although I do not believe that is his only purpose). When Daniel and Charloette are doing the card thing in episode 4, he isn’t testing his memory, Charloette placed the cards face down and Daniel time shifted into the future to view them.
The reason why he feels he isn’t making progress is because he only traveled for enough time to see the first 2 cards, so the shifts are happening quicker and he needs to stop them before his brain short circuits.
One last thing. I believe that Daniel was crying for one of 2 reasons: 1. When viewing the 815 crash he time shifted to a unwanted future event on the island. As his 1996 self pointed out “you can’t change the future” so this event is inevitable, or 2. Something happened in the future that affected his conciousness in the past. The same type of thing occured to Desmond upon leaving Penny’s house from asking for her number in 1996; past Desmond seemingly smiled after a very emotional argument with Penny because his 2004 self was having a conversation with Penny that made him happy
Key characters
| Short Name | Full Name | Episodes | Theories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diane | Diane Jansen | 91 |
Key episodes
| # | Title | Aired | Central character | Theories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.19 | S.O.S. | 4-12-2006 | Rose, Bernard | 102 |
Key events
| Theme | Relevant Episodes | Theories |
|---|---|---|
| Locke recognizes Charlie from Drive Shaft | 1.6 | 63 |
Key locations
| Theme | Relevant Episodes | Theories |
|---|---|---|
| The Swan station | 2.20, 2.23, 2.14, 2.17, 2.1, 2.2, 1.11, 3.3, 3.8 | 461 |
All he really needed was a Faraday cage, to deflect all the electro-magnetic field around him. Not exactly a tin foil hat, but maybe a tin can hat.
I’m not sure what the term the show’s writers want to use to describe the phenomenon. Daniel says the body is not travelling time, but rather the consciousness is making the leap.
Steely Dan has a song named “Time Out of Mind” which might be a good theme song for a future episode ;-)
the cards threw me off at first but i think you are totally right! that would make sense since they showed the rat running the maze in the past without learning it. good job! i like it!
I’m a little confused. We’ve always been told that it is late December now on the island. Is this what the losties think too? If time seems longer to Jack,Kate,etc. then they must think they’ve been on the island for a year or so, but when Sayid gets on the boat and sees the calender he is like oh I forgot it is almost Christmas. Which would imply that time seems normal to him. Do you see what I’m trying to say? He should have said I thought Christmas was months ago. Please correct me if I am wrong
I have a question. How can you travel to the future and have a constant when the future is unknown? I understand having a constant in the present and past, but future? If it was a person the could be dead in the future, a meaningful item could be lost or destroyed in the future. The only logical answer given this is The Losties present would have to be Daniel’s past right? Maybe going to the future is what causes the brain to short cicuit and although I don’t know if that is the case could Charlie be Desmond’s future Constant as well, at least until he died. Hope Desmond doesn’t go to the future again, he might end up dead. i have a theory posted that Charlie was one of Desmond’s Constants in the past (http://lost-theories.com/theories/2008/feb/29/charlie-was-desmond-1st-consta/) maybe he was in the futre as well.
@ DAVE: I have no idea how that has to do with my theory, but I’ll attempt at answering anyways! lol
I was also thinking the same thing at the end of the episode. It seems as if the writers made strong attempts to provide evidence for both sides (time difference vs. no time difference). There was the line from Daniel about the Losties “perception” and Sayid’s “Dusk-to-Afternoon” comment that argued there is a time difference. Then there was Desmond’s seemingly calling exactly “8 years” from when he asked for Penny’s phone number and the calendar on the freighter arguing against time difference.
Here is my opinion, Penny knows what’s going on, and she made it seem like Desmond was calling in 2004 and that she has been searching for him for exactly “3 years”, which is how long he has been missing for according to his timeframe. If you notice the calendar, it has an X through all of the days up to Christmas. I believe this means that the people on the freighter have been crossing each day as it appears to go by on the island. They are doing this because they need to track the island timeline for reasons not yet known.
I don’t think Daniel is “time shifting”, he clearly states it to be a “side effect” if veered off course. The cards seem to be more of a time looping idea. Where Daniel is experiencing something he has already done, but memory is not 1:1 when it comes to time travel.
eko-theman, I like your thoughts, but let’s not forget about everything that has happened on LOST. Last night’s 4:5 episode revealed a great deal, but any new explaination must also answer previous questions and not just recite the new.
+0
I agree with your final point re emotion of des’s smile, dan’s tears etc…. Was thinking along those lines too, but I am not sure about the rest of it. I think it was this exposure of radiation to his head that is effecting his memory with the cards and his name in Ep1. I dont think he can time shift. But kudos for the later, on the right track there I reckon.
I agree with you Eko 100%. Your theory also explains why Daniel needs to know that Desmond is his constant. Since he is time shifting, he is going to eventually need his constant, just like Des needed Penny.
Good Job +1
I really like your theory about Daniel’s time-shifting. The idea that he’s trying to pass a test before it is administered, just like Eloise did, is brilliant.
As for the tears, I think when he said he didn’t know why he was crying he really didn’t know.
+1
@ Hewy - Point #2 of my tears section implies that his past conciousness really doesn’t know why, and that it is a future event that is impacting his conciousness, just like Desmond’s phone call with Penny in 2004 suddenly put a smile on 1996 Desmond’s face without having anything good happen to him.
I found myself thinking that he sent Desmond to Oxford with those figures because he’d been using the wrong calculation in 1996. He probably knew he’d be the only one in England in ‘96 that could help Desmond, too, but it didn’t seem like a selfless act by any means. Perhaps Daniel had an accident with his experiments while using the wrong figures (perhaps something that could keep him from doing something simple like remembering three playing cards), and he was trying to prevent it. Giving himself a constant in the past also sounds like a good reason to send him to Oxford. No wonder he was so insistent about speaking with Des; he had a lot to gain.
Great post.
Perhaps Dan doesn’t cover his head because as a crazy scientist he WANTS to experience a time travel through his consciousness.
I think Dan’s got a bad memory (probably as a result of the radiation exposure). That’s why he didn’t remember Desmond appearing in his past. Thus a time paradox was avoided.
line-artist - I thought he said “affects” not “side effects”
Sorry if I’m wrong but if I’m not then “affects” has completely different connotations. An “affect” would be the result of an event whereas an “effect” would be the cause of an event.
gen - Could it be that Consciousness is not governed by classical newtonian physics. Maybe Consciousness works to different rules. I can vivdly remember a past event and I can imagine a future event! is not my Consciousness going backwards and forwards in time when I do so.
Perhaps my Consciousness observes all the probable outcomes of my actions and by that obsevation it from moment to moment collapses them to form my present “now”. If I could reverse engineer that process I could create my own reality. Perhaps Consciousness can transcend time and space.
Didn’t Dhama carry out experiments into remote viewing?
Perhaps an electromagnetic blast of sufficient intensity could reverse the polarity of my Consciousness
I love it!!! It answers a lot of my questions and is so aligned with my thinking on some of the other issues. I will post a little more and try to help you answer some of the other questions when I have a minute.
i think your close, but not quit there. i took an explosion of electromagnetic radiation for desmond to go in the future all those times to see charlie die. then it took leavin the island for him to realize his “potential”. so i doubt faraday is so far along that he can time jump at will. i think with the cards part, he is experiencing symptoms like that of desmond did with seeing charlie die….nice idea though
*IT took an explosion…….
Eko, This is a very nice theory! +1
I think you did a great job covering the “Faraday” issues, although I am uncomfortable with the term “time shifting”. (oh well).
The writers have said the statement made by Ms. Hawking regarding “the universe” self correcting, should be strongly adhered to.