Space time and the passage of time
Abstract
This paper examines the various arguments that have been put forward suggesting either that time does not exist, or that it exists but its flow is not real. I argue that (i) time both exists and flows; (ii) an Evolving Block Universe (`EBU') model of spacetime adequately captures this feature, emphasizing the key differences between the past, present, and future; (iii) the associated surfaces of constant time are uniquely geometrically and physically determined in any realistic spacetime model based in General Relativity Theory; (iv) such a model is needed in order to capture the essential aspects of what is happening in circumstances where initial data does not uniquely determine the evolution of spacetime structure because quantum uncertainty plays a key role in that development. Assuming that the functioning of the mind is based in the physical brain, evidence from the way that the mind apprehends the flow of time prefers this evolving time model over those where there is no flow of time.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1208.2611,
title = {Space time and the passage of time},
author = {George F. R. Ellis and Rituparno Goswami},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1208.2611},
year = {2012}
}
Comments
For Springer Handbook of Spacetime; 29 pages, 2 figures. Small improvements in response to comments