History[edit]

See also: n-dimensional space History

Lagrange wrote in his Mcanique analytique (published 1788, based on work done aro
und 1755) that mechanics can be viewed as operating in a four-dimensional space
three dimensions of space, and one of time.[1] In 1827 Mbius realized that a four
th dimension would allow a three-dimensional form to be rotated onto its mirrorimage,[2] and by 1853 Ludwig Schlfli had discovered many polytopes in higher dime
nsions, although his work was not published until after his death.[3] Higher dim
ensions were soon put on firm footing by Bernhard Riemann's 1854 Habilitationssc
hrift, ber die Hypothesen welche der Geometrie zu Grunde liegen, in which he cons
idered a "point" to be any sequence of coordinates (x1, ..., xn). The possibilit
y of geometry in higher dimensions, including four dimensions in particular, was
thus established.
An arithmetic of four dimensions called quaternions was defined by William Rowan
Hamilton in 1843. This associative algebra was the source of the science of vec
tor analysis in three dimensions as recounted in A History of Vector Analysis. S
oon after tessarines and coquaternions were introduced as other four-dimensional
algebras over R.
One of the first major expositors of the fourth dimension was Charles Howard Hin
ton, starting in 1880 with his essay What is the Fourth Dimension?; published in
the Dublin University magazine.[4] He coined the terms tesseract, ana and kata
in his book A New Era of Thought, and introduced a method for visualising the fo
urth dimension using cubes in the book Fourth Dimension.[5][6] Hinton's ideas in
spired a fantasy about a "Church of the Fourth Dimension" featured by Martin Gar
dner in his January 1962 "Mathematical Games column" in Scientific American. In
1886 Victor Schlegel described[7] his method of visualizing four-dimensional obj
ects with Schlegel diagrams.
In 1908, Hermann Minkowski presented a paper[8] consolidating the role of time a
s the fourth dimension of spacetime, the basis for Einstein's theories of specia
l and general relativity.[9] But the geometry of spacetime, being non-Euclidean,
is profoundly different from that popularised by Hinton. The study of Minkowski
space required new mathematics quite different from that of four-dimensional Eu
clidean space, and so developed along quite different lines. This separation was
less clear in the popular imagination, with works of fiction and philosophy blu
rring the distinction, so in 1973 H. S. M. Coxeter felt compelled to write:
Little, if anything, is gained by representing the fourth Euclidean dimension as
time. In fact, this idea, so attractively developed by H. G. Wells in The Time
Machine, has led such authors as John William Dunne (An Experiment with Time) in
to a serious misconception of the theory of Relativity. Minkowski's geometry of
space-time is not Euclidean, and consequently has no connection with the present
investigation.
?H. S. M. Coxeter, Regular Polytopes[10]
Vectors[edit]
Mathematically four-dimensional space is simply a space with four spatial dimens
ions, that is a space that needs four parameters to specify a point in it. For e
xample, a general point might have position vector a, equal to
{\displaystyle \mathbf {a} ={\begin{pmatrix}a_{1}\\a_{2}\\a_{3}\\a_{4}\end{pmatr
ix}}.} \mathbf{a} = \begin{pmatrix} a_1 \\ a_2 \\ a_3 \\ a_4 \end{pmatrix}.
This can be written in terms of the four standard basis vectors (e1, e2, e3, e4)
, given by
{\displaystyle \mathbf {e} _{1}={\begin{pmatrix}1\\0\\0\\0\end{pmatrix}};\mathbf
{e} _{2}={\begin{pmatrix}0\\1\\0\\0\end{pmatrix}};\mathbf {e} _{3}={\begin{pmat
rix}0\\0\\1\\0\end{pmatrix}};\mathbf {e} _{4}={\begin{pmatrix}0\\0\\0\\1\end{pma

trix}},} \mathbf{e}_1 = \begin{pmatrix} 1 \\ 0 \\ 0 \\ 0 \end{pmatrix}; \mathbf{

e}_2 = \begin{pmatrix} 0 \\ 1 \\ 0 \\ 0 \end{pmatrix}; \mathbf{e}_3 = \begin{pma
trix} 0 \\ 0 \\ 1 \\ 0 \end{pmatrix}; \mathbf{e}_4 = \begin{pmatrix} 0 \\ 0 \\ 0
\\ 1 \end{pmatrix},
so the general vector a is
{\displaystyle \mathbf {a} =a_{1}\mathbf {e} _{1}+a_{2}\mathbf {e} _{2}+a_{3}\ma
thbf {e} _{3}+a_{4}\mathbf {e} _{4}.} \mathbf{a} = a_1\mathbf{e}_1 + a_2\mathbf
{e}_2 + a_3\mathbf{e}_3 + a_4\mathbf{e}_4.
Vectors add, subtract and scale as in three dimensions.
The dot product of Euclidean three-dimensional space generalizes to four dimensi
ons as
{\displaystyle \mathbf {a} \cdot \mathbf {b} =a_{1}b_{1}+a_{2}b_{2}+a_{3}b_{3}+a
_{4}b_{4}.} \mathbf{a} \cdot \mathbf{b} = a_1 b_1 + a_2 b_2 + a_3 b_3 + a_4 b_4.
It can be used to calculate the norm or length of a vector,
{\displaystyle \left|\mathbf {a} \right|={\sqrt {\mathbf {a} \cdot \mathbf {a} }
}={\sqrt {{a_{1}}^{2}+{a_{2}}^{2}+{a_{3}}^{2}+{a_{4}}^{2}}},} \left| \mathbf{a}
\right| = \sqrt{\mathbf{a} \cdot \mathbf{a} } = \sqrt{{a_1}^2 + {a_2}^2 + {a_3}
^2 + {a_4}^2},
and calculate or define the angle between two vectors as
{\displaystyle \theta =\arccos {\frac {\mathbf {a} \cdot \mathbf {b} }{\left|\ma
thbf {a} \right|\left|\mathbf {b} \right|}}.} \theta = \arccos{\frac{\mathbf{a}
\cdot \mathbf{b}}{\left|\mathbf{a}\right| \left|\mathbf{b}\right|}}.
Minkowski spacetime is four-dimensional space with geometry defined by a nondege
nerate pairing different from the dot product:
{\displaystyle \mathbf {a} \cdot \mathbf {b} =a_{1}b_{1}+a_{2}b_{2}+a_{3}b_{3}-a
_{4}b_{4}.} \mathbf{a} \cdot \mathbf{b} = a_1 b_1 + a_2 b_2 + a_3 b_3 - a_4 b_4.
As an example, the distance squared between the points (0,0,0,0) and (1,1,1,0) i
s 3 in both the Euclidean and Minkowskian 4-spaces, while the distance squared b
etween (0,0,0,0) and (1,1,1,1) is 4 in Euclidean space and 2 in Minkowski space;
increasing {\displaystyle b_{4}} b_4 actually decreases the metric distance. Th
is leads to many of the well known apparent "paradoxes" of relativity.
The cross product is not defined in four dimensions. Instead the exterior produc
t is used for some applications, and is defined as follows:
{\displaystyle {\begin{aligned}\mathbf {a} \wedge \mathbf {b} =(a_{1}b_{2}-a_{2}
b_{1})\mathbf {e} _{12}+(a_{1}b_{3}-a_{3}b_{1})\mathbf {e} _{13}+(a_{1}b_{4}-a_{
4}b_{1})\mathbf {e} _{14}+(a_{2}b_{3}-a_{3}b_{2})\mathbf {e} _{23}\\+(a_{2}b_{4}
-a_{4}b_{2})\mathbf {e} _{24}+(a_{3}b_{4}-a_{4}b_{3})\mathbf {e} _{34}.\end{alig
ned}}} \begin{align}
\mathbf{a} \wedge \mathbf{b} = (a_1b_2 - a_2b_1)\mathbf{e}_{12} + (a_1b_3 - a_3b
_1)\mathbf{e}_{13} + (a_1b_4 - a_4b_1)\mathbf{e}_{14} + (a_2b_3 - a_3b_2)\mathbf
{e}_{23} \\
+ (a_2b_4 - a_4b_2)\mathbf{e}_{24} + (a_3b_4 - a_4b_3)\mathbf{e}_{34}. \end{alig
n}
This is bivector valued, with bivectors in four dimensions forming a six-dimensi
onal linear space with basis (e12, e13, e14, e23, e24, e34). They can be used to
generate rotations in four dimensions.
Orthogonality and vocabulary[edit]
In the familiar 3-dimensional space in which we live there are three coordinate
axes
usually labeled x, y, and z
with each axis orthogonal (i.e. perpendicular)
to the other two. The six cardinal directions in this space can be called up, do
wn, east, west, north, and south. Positions along these axes can be called altit

ude, longitude, and latitude. Lengths measured along these axes can be called he
ight, width, and depth.
Comparatively, 4-dimensional space has an extra coordinate axis, orthogonal to t
he other three, which is usually labeled w. To describe the two additional cardi
nal directions, Charles Howard Hinton coined the terms ana and kata, from the Gr
eek words meaning "up toward" and "down from", respectively. A position along th
e w axis can be called spissitude, as coined by Henry More.
Geometry[edit]
See also: Rotations in 4-dimensional Euclidean space
The geometry of 4-dimensional space is much more complex than that of 3-dimensio
nal space, due to the extra degree of freedom.
Just as in 3 dimensions there are polyhedra made of two dimensional polygons, in
4 dimensions there are 4-polytopes made of polyhedra. In 3 dimensions there are
5 regular polyhedra known as the Platonic solids. In 4 dimensions there are 6 c
onvex regular 4-polytopes, the analogues of the Platonic solids. Relaxing the co
nditions for regularity generates a further 58 convex uniform 4-polytopes, analo
gous to the 13 semi-regular Archimedean solids in three dimensions. Relaxing the
conditions for convexity generates a further 10 nonconvex regular 4-polytopes.
Regular polytopes in four dimensions
(Displayed as orthogonal projections in each Coxeter plane of symmetry)
A4, [3,3,3]
B4, [4,3,3]
F4, [3,4,3]
H4, [5,3,3]
altN=4-simplex
5-cell
CDel node 1.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node
.png
altN=4-cube
tesseract
CDel node 1.pngCDel 4.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node
.png
altN=4-orthoplex
16-cell
CDel node.pngCDel 4.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node 1
.png
altN=24-cell
24-cell
CDel node 1.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 4.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node
.png
altN=120-cell
120-cell
CDel node 1.pngCDel 5.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node
.png
altN=600-cell
600-cell
CDel node.pngCDel 5.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node.pngCDel 3.pngCDel node 1
.png
In 3 dimensions, a circle may be extruded to form a cylinder. In 4 dimensions, t
here are several different cylinder-like objects. A sphere may be extruded to ob
tain a spherical cylinder (a cylinder with spherical "caps", known as a spherind
er), and a cylinder may be extruded to obtain a cylindrical prism (a cubinder).
The Cartesian product of two circles may be taken to obtain a duocylinder. All t
hree can "roll" in 4-dimensional space, each with its own properties.
In 3 dimensions, curves can form knots but surfaces cannot (unless they are self
-intersecting). In 4 dimensions, however, knots made using curves can be trivial
ly untied by displacing them in the fourth direction, but 2-dimensional surfaces
can form non-trivial, non-self-intersecting knots in 4-dimensional space.[11] B
ecause these surfaces are 2-dimensional, they can form much more complex knots t
han strings in 3-dimensional space can. The Klein bottle is an example of such a
knotted surface .[citation needed] Another such surface is the real projective
plane.[citation needed]

Hypersphere[edit]
Stereographic projection of a Clifford torus: the set of points (cos(a), sin(a),
cos(b), sin(b)), which is a subset of the 3-sphere.
Main article: Hypersphere
The set of points in Euclidean 4-space having the same distance R from a fixed p
oint P0 forms a hypersurface known as a 3-sphere. The hyper-volume of the enclos
ed space is:
{\displaystyle \mathbf {V} ={\begin{matrix}{\frac {1}{2}}\end{matrix}}\pi ^{2}R^
{4}} \mathbf V = \begin{matrix} \frac{1}{2} \end{matrix} \pi^2 R^4
This is part of the Friedmann Lematre Robertson Walker metric in General relativity whe
re R is substituted by function R(t) with t meaning the cosmological age of the
universe. Growing or shrinking R with time means expanding or collapsing univers
e, depending on the mass density inside.[12]
Cognition[edit]
Research using virtual reality finds that humans, in spite of living in a threedimensional world, can without special practice make spatial judgments based on
the length of, and angle between, line segments embedded in four-dimensional spa
ce.[13] The researchers noted that "the participants in our study had minimal pr
actice in these tasks, and it remains an open question whether it is possible to
obtain more sustainable, definitive, and richer 4D representations with increas
ed perceptual experience in 4D virtual environments."[13] In another study,[14]
the ability of humans to orient themselves in 2D, 3D and 4D mazes has been teste
d. Each maze consisted of four path segments of random length and connected with
orthogonal random bends, but without branches or loops (i.e. actually labyrinth
s). The graphical interface was based on John McIntosh's free 4D Maze game.[15]
The participating persons had to navigate through the path and finally estimate
the linear direction back to the starting point. The researchers found that some
of the participants were able to mentally integrate their path after some pract
ice in 4D (the lower-dimensional cases were for comparison and for the participa
nts to learn the method).
Dimensional analogy[edit]
A net of a tesseract
To understand the nature of four-dimensional space, a device called dimensional
analogy is commonly employed. Dimensional analogy is the study of how (n - 1) di
mensions relate to n dimensions, and then inferring how n dimensions would relat
e to (n + 1) dimensions.[16]
Dimensional analogy was used by Edwin Abbott Abbott in the book Flatland, which
narrates a story about a square that lives in a two-dimensional world, like the
surface of a piece of paper. From the perspective of this square, a three-dimens
ional being has seemingly god-like powers, such as ability to remove objects fro
m a safe without breaking it open (by moving them across the third dimension), t
o see everything that from the two-dimensional perspective is enclosed behind wa
lls, and to remain completely invisible by standing a few inches away in the thi
rd dimension.
By applying dimensional analogy, one can infer that a four-dimensional being wou
ld be capable of similar feats from our three-dimensional perspective. Rudy Ruck
er illustrates this in his novel Spaceland, in which the protagonist encounters
four-dimensional beings who demonstrate such powers.
Cross-sections[edit]
As a three-dimensional object passes through a two-dimensional plane, a two-dime
nsional being would only see a cross-section of the three-dimensional object. Fo
r example, if a spherical balloon passed through a sheet of paper, a being on th

e paper would see first a single point, then a circle gradually growing larger,
then smaller again until it shrank to a point and then disappeared. Similarly, i
f a four-dimensional object passed through three dimensions, we would see a thre
e-dimensional cross-section of the four-dimensional object for example, a hypersph
ere would appear first as a point, then as a growing sphere, with the sphere the
n shrinking to a single point and then disappearing.[17] This means of visualizi
ng aspects of the fourth dimension was used in the novel Flatland and also in se
veral works of Charles Howard Hinton.[18]
Projections[edit]
A useful application of dimensional analogy in visualizing the fourth dimension
is in projection. A projection is a way for representing an n-dimensional object
in n - 1 dimensions. For instance, computer screens are two-dimensional, and al
l the photographs of three-dimensional people, places and things are represented
in two dimensions by projecting the objects onto a flat surface. When this is d
one, depth is removed and replaced with indirect information. The retina of the
eye is also a two-dimensional array of receptors but the brain is able to percei
ve the nature of three-dimensional objects by inference from indirect informatio
n (such as shading, foreshortening, binocular vision, etc.). Artists often use p
erspective to give an illusion of three-dimensional depth to two-dimensional pic
tures.
Similarly, objects in the fourth dimension can be mathematically projected to th
e familiar 3 dimensions, where they can be more conveniently examined. In this c
ase, the 'retina' of the four-dimensional eye is a three-dimensional array of re
ceptors. A hypothetical being with such an eye would perceive the nature of four
-dimensional objects by inferring four-dimensional depth from indirect informati
on in the three-dimensional images in its retina.
The perspective projection of three-dimensional objects into the retina of the e
ye introduces artifacts such as foreshortening, which the brain interprets as de
pth in the third dimension. In the same way, perspective projection from four di
mensions produces similar foreshortening effects. By applying dimensional analog
y, one may infer four-dimensional "depth" from these effects.
As an illustration of this principle, the following sequence of images compares
various views of the 3-dimensional cube with analogous projections of the 4-dime
nsional tesseract into three-dimensional space.
Cube
Tesseract
Description
Cube-face-first.png
Tesseract-perspective-cell-first.png
The image on the
left is a cube viewed face-on. The analogous viewpoint of the tesseract in 4 di
mensions is the cell-first perspective projection, shown on the right. One may d
raw an analogy between the two: just as the cube projects to a square, the tesse
ract projects to a cube.
Note that the other 5 faces of the cube are not seen here. They are obscured by
the visible face. Similarly, the other 7 cells of the tesseract are not seen her
e because they are obscured by the visible cell.
Cube-edge-first.png
Tesseract-perspective-face-first.png
The image on the
left shows the same cube viewed edge-on. The analogous viewpoint of a tesseract
is the face-first perspective projection, shown on the right. Just as the edgefirst projection of the cube consists of two trapezoids, the face-first projecti
on of the tesseract consists of two frustums.
The nearest edge of the cube in this viewpoint is the one lying between the red
and green faces. Likewise, the nearest face of the tesseract is the one lying be
tween the red and green cells.
Cube-vertex-first.png Tesseract-perspective-edge-first.png
On the left is t
he cube viewed corner-first. This is analogous to the edge-first perspective pro

jection of the tesseract, shown on the right. Just as the cube's vertex-first pr
ojection consists of 3 deltoids surrounding a vertex, the tesseract's edge-first
projection consists of 3 hexahedral volumes surrounding an edge. Just as the ne
arest vertex of the cube is the one where the three faces meet, so the nearest e
dge of the tesseract is the one in the center of the projection volume, where th
e three cells meet.
Cube-edge-first.png
Tesseract-perspective-edge-first.png
A different anal
ogy may be drawn between the edge-first projection of the tesseract and the edge
-first projection of the cube. The cube's edge-first projection has two trapezoi
ds surrounding an edge, while the tesseract has three hexahedral volumes surroun
ding an edge.
Cube-vertex-first.png Tesseract-perspective-vertex-first.png On the left is t
he cube viewed corner-first. The vertex-first perspective projection of the tess
eract is shown on the right. The cube's vertex-first projection has three tetrag
ons surrounding a vertex, but the tesseract's vertex-first projection has four h
exahedral volumes surrounding a vertex. Just as the nearest corner of the cube i
s the one lying at the center of the image, so the nearest vertex of the tessera
ct lies not on boundary of the projected volume, but at its center inside, where
all four cells meet.
Note that only three faces of the cube's 6 faces can be seen here, because the o
ther 3 lie behind these three faces, on the opposite side of the cube. Similarly
, only 4 of the tesseract's 8 cells can be seen here; the remaining 4 lie behind
these 4 in the fourth direction, on the far side of the tesseract.
Shadows[edit]
A concept closely related to projection is the casting of shadows.
Schlegel wireframe 8-cell.png
If a light is shone on a three-dimensional object, a two-dimensional shadow is c
ast. By dimensional analogy, light shone on a two-dimensional object in a two-di
mensional world would cast a one-dimensional shadow, and light on a one-dimensio
nal object in a one-dimensional world would cast a zero-dimensional shadow, that
is, a point of non-light. Going the other way, one may infer that light shone o
n a four-dimensional object in a four-dimensional world would cast a three-dimen
sional shadow.
If the wireframe of a cube is lit from above, the resulting shadow is a square w
ithin a square with the corresponding corners connected. Similarly, if the wiref
rame of a tesseract were lit from above (in the fourth dimension), its shadow woul
d be that of a three-dimensional cube within another three-dimensional cube. (No
te that, technically, the visual representation shown here is actually a two-dim
ensional image of the three-dimensional shadow of the four-dimensional wireframe
figure.)
Bounding volumes[edit]
Dimensional analogy also helps in inferring basic properties of objects in highe
r dimensions. For example, two-dimensional objects are bounded by one-dimensiona
l boundaries: a square is bounded by four edges. Three-dimensional objects are b
ounded by two-dimensional surfaces: a cube is bounded by 6 square faces. By appl
ying dimensional analogy, one may infer that a four-dimensional cube, known as a
tesseract, is bounded by three-dimensional volumes. And indeed, this is the cas
e: mathematics shows that the tesseract is bounded by 8 cubes. Knowing this is k
ey to understanding how to interpret a three-dimensional projection of the tesse
ract. The boundaries of the tesseract project to volumes in the image, not merel
y two-dimensional surfaces.
Visual scope[edit]
Being three-dimensional, we are only able to see the world with our eyes in two
dimensions. A four-dimensional being would be able to see the world in three dim
ensions. For example, it would be able to see all six sides of an opaque box sim

ultaneously, and in fact, what is inside the box at the same time, just as we ca
n see the interior of a square on a piece of paper. It would be able to see all
points in 3-dimensional space simultaneously, including the inner structure of s
olid objects and things obscured from our three-dimensional viewpoint. Our brain
s receive images in the second dimension and use reasoning to help us "picture"
three-dimensional objects.
Limitations[edit]
Reasoning by analogy from familiar lower dimensions can be an excellent intuitiv
e guide, but care must be exercised not to accept results that are not more rigo
rously tested. For example, consider the formulas for the circumference of a cir
cle {\displaystyle C=2\pi r} C = 2\pi r and the surface area of a sphere: {\disp
laystyle A=4\pi r^{2}} A=4\pi r^{2}. One might be tempted to suppose that the su
rface volume of a hypersphere is {\displaystyle V=6\pi r^{3}} V=6\pi r^3, or per
haps {\displaystyle V=8\pi r^{3}} V=8\pi r^3, but either of these would be wrong
. The correct formula is {\displaystyle V=2\pi ^{2}r^{3}} V = 2\pi^2 r^3.[10]