Overview
Zero Dimension:
A point, occupying zero space.
First Dimension:
A line having only
length.
Second Dimension:
A square, having and extra dimension and therefore having
length and
width.
Third Dimension:
A cube. This is the dimension we most commonly associate with our surroundings. It has three dimensions consisting of
length,
width, and
height. For the sake of understanding, assume your computer screen is two dimensional. Notice how the cube does not look like a cube as it would if you were holding a block. This is the shadow of the cube, being transfered to two dimensions. The angles are not all 90
o and all the lines are not the same length. But it accurately shows a cube more or less.
Fourth Dimension:
Rotating:
This shape is know as a tesseract. It has four dimensions consisting of the normal dimensions of
length,
width, and
height and also consisting of a fourth dimension which we will call
?. Once again this is a shadow. You cannot point in the direction of the fourth dimension because it is something else rather than the normal up, down, left, right, forward, and back. We can still project it though, but only as a shadow with inaccurate measurements.
Fifth Dimension:
A very complex shape known as a penteract. It has five dimensions. This is once again a shadow.
Notice how every time we increase a dimension, we take two of the previous shapes and connect their vertices.
Discuss.