Here's an interesting thought. What if you learned that everything in your
life had been planned out in advance? What if your past, present, and future
are all happening at the same time? Wouldn't that be crazy?
Time does not truly "flow like a river," according to the amazing new idea
known as the "block universe," but rather, everything is always there.
According to Dr. Bradford Skow, a philosophy professor at MIT, if we were
to "look down" on the universe as though it were a sheet of paper, we would
observe time stretching out in all directions just as we do when we look at
space.
Is it conceivable that because that is all our human brains are able to
understand, we only see time as essentially linear?
Let's learn more about this intriguing new hypothesis and what it may mean
for humankind. Not the first scientist to challenge how people understand
time, according to Dr. Skow.
In 1915, Einstein put out a notion of unified space and time. In his
general theory of relativity, Einstein postulates that space-time assumes a
continuous or manifold structure. They produce a four-dimensional vector
space when combined. The "block theory" is the name given to this
vector.
"There is no real difference between the past, present, and future; it is
only a tenaciously persistent illusion."
Most people agree that Einstein's theory provides the most precise
explanation of what the cosmos actually implies from a cosmic perspective.
Therefore, it is not absurd to ponder the possibility of a block
universe.
Dr. Skow totally agrees with this point of view. Perhaps we should assume
that time and events continue to exist and cohabit in many locations
throughout space-time, rather than thinking that they pass us by and then
disappear. Simply put, there is nowhere for us to go outside of this
block.
You'll see that this theory has the potential to alter the way we think
about time travel when you try to conceptualize it.
If this hypothesis is accurate, we cannot just go across time and change
it. If your past, present, and future were all laid out in space and
happening at once, it would be impossible to create "grandfather
paradoxes."
You wouldn't be making any significant adjustments. You will only
experience time as it is now and always has been, not back in time. A
second, equally divisive notion recently emerged in response to Dr. Skow's
novel theory.
According to Dr. Julian Barbour, a physicist in the United Kingdom, and
other researchers, the universe produced a mirror world at the time of the
Big Bang.
And get this—time is reversed in this world of the mirror. In this
alternate universe, people rise from their deaths, pass through old age, and
then wait until they are old enough to start a career before enrolling in
school. It sounds funny, doesn't it?
But if this theory is accurate, it may offer a solution to some of the most
challenging physics problems we are now facing.
What happened to all the antimatter after the Big Bang, for instance? How
come time only moves in one direction? This may appear counterintuitive in
light of the block universe theory, but it really offers solutions to some
of the most puzzling issues in basic physics.
When we think about time, we all think of entropy. The level of disorder in
a system that will ultimately lead to its collapse is known as entropy. It
is found in everything, including our bodies, computers, and motors. Entropy
will consume its own system when it increases exponentially, as it always
does.
A fresh perspective on time was chosen by graduate student Jennifer Chen
and professor Sean Carroll of Caltech. They gave it some gravity
thought.
They looked at 1,000 particles and used Newtonian physics to find proof
that the mirror universe may exist.
These brand-new, extreme notions are all fascinating to consider and
debate. However, if one of them is true, it creates even more issues.
If time is constant, is there a chance for evolution in the way we
currently understand it? Given that there is no chance for change, what is
the point and meaning of life?
In this sense, discussions about time will never end. And it's doubtful
that we'll ever be able to find any of the solutions, much less fully
understand them.
Perhaps the enchantment lies not in knowing the answer, but rather in the
search for it. It could be how we come to understand who we are.
