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Could TIME Really Be an Illusion?

2024-11-22 Science & Technology
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Arvin Ash
Arvin Ash
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Use code ARVINASH at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/arvinash Talk to ME (ARVIN) on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/arvinash REFERENCES Why time only goes one way: https://youtu.be/pvPxCtrXT1c The link between time, entropy & information https://youtu.be/T6CxT4AESCQ Loop quantum gravity https://youtu.be/dpmx8D5CXRA What if time stopped? https://youtu.be/t8e3fdjB_ZM Illusion of time https://tinyurl.com/ya4asocb Is time an illusion? https://tinyurl.com/22e26hkf Does time really exist? https://tinyurl.com/y9xj274e Ask Ethan: Does time exist? https://tinyurl.com/2apbb2nq CHAPTERS 0:00 Attack on time 0:54 Newton' vs Einstein vs Rovelli 3:23 What's the origin of time being an illusion 5:26 How can events occur without time? 6:55 Research showing time not being real & sponsor Incogni 10:03 Why does time FEEL so real? 12:09 Is time an illusion? What's the truth? SUMMARY What if time is not real, but an illusion? Isaac Newton believed time was absolute and ticked at the same rate for everyone, everywhere. But Albert Einstein shattered that view with the theory of relativity. He showed that time is intertwined with space to form what we now call "space-time." Time can stretch and compress. But physicist Carlo Rovelli proposes an even more radical idea. Rovelli argues that time might not exist at all. He suggests that time is not a fundamental feature of reality but an in invention of our brains in order to make sense of the world, to impose a cause and effect to events so they are not nonchaotic. Craig Callender, a professor of philosophy, also supports this idea. The idea of time as an illusion comes from quantum mechanics. Einstein's theory of general relativity treats time as an intrinsic part of reality. But in Quantum mechanics, time isn’t malleable, and doesn’t change like other properties of a quantum system. Recording the passage of time requires an observer to consult a clock external to the quantum system. There's is no arrow of time in quantum mechanics. Quantum theories can be formulated in a way that doesn’t even include time. Time in quantum mechanics is not built into the formulation. Some quantum mechanics equations like the Wheeler-DeWitt equation which is a quantum description of gravity, don’t include time. According to it, the universe can be described purely in terms of events and relationships, and do not require time. How can events occur without time passing? One way to think of it, at least in the standard Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics, is a series interactions happening in the form of quantum wave collapse. The wave function for a particle collapses every time it interacts with its surroundings. And a series of wave collapses, one after another, feels like the passage of time. The analogy is like a set of dominoes. Each domino falling is a wave function collapse. Put them all together in a series and it looks like time passing forwards. Rovelli says that “Events” — not things — are the basic building blocks of reality. Metaphorically, it’s like watching a movie. What you’re really seeing is a series of still pictures or frames. A new research paper seems to support this idea. The authors say that key to this is quantum entanglement. The authors argue that time at a quantum level, is an emergent phenomenon due to entanglement. Their experiments suggest that time emerges for one object through its quantum entanglement with another quantum object acting as a clock. But for an unentangled system, time does not exist. But if time isn’t fundamental, why does it FEEL so real to us? The answer, Rovelli says, lies in our ignorance. The flow of time, the forward march from past to future, is a result of our inability to see the world in all its microscopic detail. Our limited knowledge forces us to experience the world in a simplified way, where time appears to flow in one direction. He says thermodynamics forces this perception of time ticking in only one direction, that is entropy. Rovelli suggests that the "arrow of time" is directly tied to this increase in entropy. There is no other way that our brains can interpret this steady march towards more and more disorder than the ticking of a clock in the forward direction. So, Is time an illusion, a construct of our limited brains? Or is it an intrinsic part of the universe? Most physicists stand by time and will say that time does exist. But the answer is not knowable with what we know today because we cannot test whether time is not real. #time #quantummechanics General relativity makes the concept of time a fundamental part of reality. But this theory also formally killed the concept of gravity. It showed that gravity is an emergent feature from spacetime curvature, not a fundamental property of matter or of the universe, as Newton had defined it. So time could also be similarly shown to not be a fundamental property of the universe but emergent.

Top Comments (10)

@willbrink 2024-11-22

The theory is that time is not fundamental but an emergent property of entropy, I find that one appealing for some reason.

292 134 replies
@Alkis05 2024-11-22

The last guy I expected to not believe in time was someone named Calendar

225 13 replies
@andoletube 2024-11-22

"Time is an illusion. Lunchtime, doubly so." - Ford Prefect.

121 4 replies
@tunnsie 2024-11-24

When you are young, seconds pass by painfully slow as you watch the clock hands approach 3pm at the end of school. When you are old like me, time is indeed an illusion as it disappears in front of you. All that's left of it when you age is a collection of fragmented memories of it's existence and passing.

62 18 replies
@ArvinAsh 2024-11-21

Use code ARVINASH at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/arvinash

30 28 replies
@SmogandBlack 2024-11-23

'Space and time are mere forms of intuition that structure our experiences'. That's a quote from Immanuel Kant (1724 - 1804) who 250 years ago postulated that our brain can't escape its own 'a priori cognition' of things and therefore what we call 'experience' is just a reconciliation between reality and our peculiar ability to make sense of it. A great day to everybody (and my compliments to AA for another very good video 😊).

19 2 replies
@kellywilson7640 2024-12-30

I love how this guy breaks it down. He doesn’t talk over my head. He takes his time. I’m unable to following well. I’m so glad for it. Thank you by the way I’m on the side of. I think time is a construct who knows I’m just a coal Miner

16 1 replies
@danbojtor 2025-02-27

Not only revolutionised physics, but also invented timetravel: Albert Einstein, born in 1979 - died in 1955

8
@MichaelJones-ek3vx 2024-12-27

Thanks!

7
@TheRandomhobo123 2025-10-17

In my humble opinion, as some rando who knows nothing about quantum physics. The idea that time is a result of quantum interactions and entropy makes a lot of sense

4

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