The theory is one that any self-respecting geek or Donnie Darko fan will be familiar with.  An Einstein-Rosen bridge is a theoretical tunnel through space and time which allows the user to travel further or more quickly than traditional linear travel between the two points.

Science knows a certain amount about this phenomenon, but they do not understand the full story.

The answer to both questions is, simply put, nope.  Wormholes do not bend space and time, and they do not distort time.

While the shape of spacetime is a highly contentious point among the planet’s top minds, NASA have shown to a reasonable degree of accuracy that the universe is in fact flat.

Most standard diagrams of wormholes show an example where a sheet of paper is folded in half to make the opposite corners touch, showing that you can travel to a faraway spot instantaneously.  That’s ridiculous, the universe doesn’t bend over backwards.  The clue is in the name on this one; wormholes are actually holes.

When you fall into a hole there is nothing for you to stand on so you drop into the nothingness, accelerating as you go further down.  Similarly, when you encounter a hole in space, you accelerate (in accordance with Einstein’s theory of special relativity) meaning that when you reach the other side you have gotten there much more quickly than simply travelling there.

So where do the holes come from?  The clue is also in the name.

Imagine that the universe is like the sea, and that things like stones and other fish and debris are suspended in it.   Imagine the actions of a whale, travelling through the sea, filtering the water through baleen plates to eat the delicious plankton and krill and leave the seawater behind.

Now picture giant, 4th dimensional creatures, travelling through space, filtering the dark matter to eat delicious particles and leave the fabric of our universe behind.

Wormholes are the product of giant space worms plunging in and out of our dimensions and eating things.

(Incidentally, the reason the Higgs-Boson is so rare and hard-to-find is because it is delicious to space worms.)