This story is archived

Big Question Wiki: Is time an illusion? »

Posted by: Wil 2 years, 10 months ago
Archived 19 0 drops

Plato argued that time is constant - it's life that's the illusion. Galileo shrugged over the philosophy of time and figured out how to plot it on a graph so he could get on with the important physics. Albert Einstein said that time is just another dimension, a fourth one to go along with the three we move through every day. What do you think?

Read Full Story at socialtext.net »
Submitted By:
Wil

I was a Propeller Scout, and I ran the Geeks Group. AOL sent me to the land of Wind and Ghosts, though, so I don ...

This Story is Archived and Commenting is Closed

Comments: 4
  • Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)mikeymike68
    mikeymike68
    Feb. 2, 2007, 12:48 p.m.

    If time is an illusion then so is my mortgage. Its due this week, but if "this week" is not real then whats the point in paying it? After all, if the bank insists that I pay according to a certain time table (which theoretically is an illusion) then the bank is guilty of perpetrating a fraud based on the reality (or illusion) of time itself.

    I need to gather some astrophysicists and take my mortgage company to court!

    • Avg rating: (+0/-2 -2)JohnChasWebb
      JohnChasWebb
      Feb. 3, 2007, 2:33 a.m.

      Re: Is time an illusion?

      Time is not an illusion; time is a contrivance.

      Our measurement of time is based upon three cyclical events:

      1) The Earth's rotation on her axis and

      2) The Earth's orbit around the Sun and

      3) Lunar (moon) cycles (new moon / full moon)

      These three events form the basis for all human temporal measurements.

      Time.....is geometry in motion. It measures increments of eternity.

      • Avg rating: (+1/-0 1)gfarral
        gfarral
        Feb. 3, 2007, 7:46 a.m.

        Einsteins cohort at the Institute for Advanced Study Marc Godel stated in one hypothesis that time did not exist. He was referring the time travel. If one can access past present and future, then they exit at the same moment and hence there is not time.

        • Avg rating: (+0/-0 0)Sachmo499
          Sachmo499
          Feb. 3, 2007, 9:09 a.m.

          If blackholes exist then there are instances where time is changed and therefore cannot be considered constant.

          All 4 comments are shown.

          Submit a Story

          Advertisement