> Let's assume for a moment that you could pause time without being paused yourself. Aside from freezing to death (since no atoms would be moving) and not being able to breathe (although you might be able to; I'm not quite sure), what could happen to you?
>
> I don't think you'd be able to see anything while time's paused, since light wouldn't move. For similar reasons, you wouldn't hear anything (not that anything would be moving to make a sound), since the molecules of the air wouldn't move, either.
>
> But what else?
>
> -eric "I've always loved stories and movies and TV shows and stuff where they screwed with time. The time episodes of TNG were the coolest." sleator
> Fri 27 Mar A.D. 2082

Several responses so far have touched on the problem of moving through time-frozen air molecules. Discounting the presence of atmosphere is something that has always bugged me in sci-fi media. Take Star Trek's transporter as an example. You can't just beam a person into a space occupied by air molecules without some kind of adverse results. I suppose the transporter might somehow create a vacuum in that space the instant before the arrival of the person being transported, but the problem is never explored on the show.

Another of my pet peeves is the Flash and his equivalents in other comics empires, such as Marvel's Quicksilver. You can't generate enough friction between the soles of your feet and the pavement to accelerate from zero to 500mph (or however fast) in a split second, even if your body *is* mysteriously able to endure such a rate of motion. Nor would there be enough friction to permit the Flash and his ilk to turn tight corners at Mach3, etc., etc. I'd like to see a super-fast superhero who had to deal with the limitations that normal earthly physics placed on his preternatural abilities.

To me, the idea of slowing the speed of light is just as intriguing as freezing time. It would be really freaky if light traveled at about the same speed as sound. Looking at an object several hundred yards away, you would know that the object could have changed its appearance or location a couple of seconds before the image hit your eyes. It would make driving a horribly tricky undertaking, and of course all the world's snipers would be right out of business. :-)

Iss "watches Star Trek for the characterization much more than for the science" achar