What is Time? | General Physics Discussion

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the nature of time, exploring its existence, measurement, and implications in both physics and philosophy. Participants examine various perspectives on time, including its relationship with space, gravity, and consciousness, as well as the possibility of time travel.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested
  • Philosophical

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants question whether time truly exists or is merely a measurement created for convenience in formulas.
  • Others suggest that time is fundamentally linked to change and our perception of it, raising the issue of whether time travel is feasible.
  • One participant proposes that time is a function of observation, influenced by mass and velocity, and is not a simple variable.
  • There is a discussion about the relationship between time and gravitational fields, with some asserting that time runs slower in stronger gravitational fields.
  • Participants differentiate between "coordinate time" and "proper time," suggesting that the ambiguity in the term "time" complicates the discussion.
  • Philosophical perspectives are introduced, positing that time may be an illusion of consciousness, while scientific views focus on measurable aspects of time.
  • One participant mentions the historical evolution of the concept of time from Newton's constant time to Einstein's relativistic view, which introduces complexities such as time travel.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of views on the nature of time, with no consensus reached. Some agree on the complexity of defining time, while others maintain differing opinions on its existence and implications.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights the limitations in measuring time accurately and the unresolved nature of its definition, which varies between philosophical and scientific contexts.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to those exploring the philosophical implications of time, as well as individuals seeking to understand the scientific complexities surrounding the concept of time in physics.

  • #61
moving finger, your last sentence above
I do not need to be able to see a sunset in order to understand what a sunset is.
contradicts your second sentence above
This argument leads to the conclusion that a blind person could never understand the meaning of the word "moon"
All of our words ultimately lead back to things that we can sense. language begins when we recognize the correlation of a symbol (spoken word, printed word, or language sign) with something that we can sense.

Your understanding of an unseen sunset is only possible because we define things we cannot sense in terms of what we can sense.

We cannot sense time. Anderson has defined it in terms of the positions and the changes of positions of things that we can sense.
 
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  • #62
Drachir said:
moving finger, your last sentence above contradicts your second sentence above.

That's because the second sentence is not supposed to agree with the first sentence - rather it follows logically from the argument in YOUR earlier post, which argument I believe is false (hence my second sentence would also be false - therefore no reason why it should agree with my first sentence).

Drachir said:
All of our words ultimately lead back to things that we can sense. language begins when we recognize the correlation of a symbol (spoken word, printed word, or language sign) with something that we can sense.
I agree that humans develop their language in conjunction with sensory input (sensory input is how we normally learn a language in practice), but I do not agree that sensory input is a necessary pre-requisite for the in-principle acquisition of knowledge of a language.
 
  • #63
moving finger, I referred to your second and last sentence.
 
  • #64
I can give you what I think time is exactly, it is only one dimension that is smooth, curved, has a intrinsic motion of dilation, and is always measured as a constant locally. Planck named it the smallest common denominator of reality, and I think we measure it relative to ourselves, starting at one Planck’s time after the big bang.
 
  • #65
Time is what you read of a clock.
 
  • #66
I say that time is what clocks measure, and that is all it is.
Time is what you read of a clock.

A atomic clock measures the intrinsic motion of a cesium 133-isotope, a light clock measures the intrinsic motion of a photon between mirrors, so if time is what a clock measures or what you read of a clock, does it mean that time is intrinsic motion? Can I think of a cesium 133-isotope as a little bundle of time? Can I think of a photon as a little bundle of time? If I think like this doesn’t it seem to make time the anther, with everything that exists with intrinsic motion being the motion of time?
 
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  • #67
with everything that exists with intrinsic motion being the motion of time
Time is not motion--time is the MEASURE of motion and of being moved, time is the "number of motion". Time is a type of number. Time is what is counted, not that which with we count [Aristotle, Physica, Book IV]
 
  • #68
Drachir said:
moving finger, I referred to your second and last sentence.
sorry, my typo. What I should have said was:

That's because the second sentence is not supposed to agree with the last sentence - rather the second sentence follows logically from the argument in YOUR earlier post, which argument I believe is false (hence my second sentence would also be false - therefore no reason why it should agree with my last sentence).
 
  • #69
Moridin said:
Time is what you read of a clock.

Does this sound familiar to anybody who has read the full thread? The clock hand has turned a full circle...:wink:
 
  • #70
Could it be that time is two things?

Why can't time be both the screen and the moving images?

Without the images the screen of time is blank, and can't be represented to the senses

Without the screen there is nothing on which to show the moving pictures?

Perhaps the two things cannot be separated!

Like the thread, thought I'd muscle in
 

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