Time is an Illusion - 2002-02-09
Funnyjust last month I wrote about the passage of time and now I don’t believe that there is such a thing as time. The perception of time is just how we interpret certain properties of the universe, in the same way we see colors in place of electromagnetic frequencies, hear sounds which are really waves of air pressure, smell odors which are actually based on the shapes of different molecules. What we think of time is just our constant motion forward in one direction along a line perpendicular to all three familiar dimensions of space. There really isn’t a before and after. It’s actually just what’s in front and what’s behind. We can’t see what’s up ahead (in the future) because there’s no light coming towards us from that direction. Everything in the universe is moving forward, including light. So we can only see the light that’s coming from behind usbehind us in time, that is. When you see the stars in the sky, you’re not only looking far into space. You’re seeing way back in time, too. Something that’s 100 light years away won’t be visible until the light coming from it hits your eye, 100 years later. Note that everything isn’t moving forward in time at the same rate. A particle of light doesn’t move along the line of time at all. From its point of view, it is created and destroyed at the same instance. The fastest you can possibly move forward in time is by standing still in space. By staying in one spot, you’re moving in a straight line in time. The faster you go in space (north, south, west, east, up, or down) the more diagonal your path is and the less forward in time you’ll be going. Your watch will tick (and you will age) slower than someone who’s moving at a lower speed. The effect is too small to measure, unless you’re on a Concorde or rocket or something.
How consciousness and cause and effect fit into this, I’m not exactly sure. I do have some ideas though. I’m still working on it!