Time is an Illusion, And These Physicists Say They Know How It Works

Every few months, some headlines pop up saying that time is an illusion. But just do physicists mean when they say that things are illusions? Is it true that time is an illusion? And what was that recent headline about? I have had a look at the paper.

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#science #sciencenews #phyiscs #physicsnews

[alanreid]

"Time is an illusion lunchtime doubly so" - As Douglas Adams once wrote and after undertaking serious research into lunchtimes I can confirm this to be an accurate observation.😀😀😀

[markdowning]

I've heard that quantum physicists don't go on dates, they just become entangled... 🤔

[JarheadCrayonEater]

I'm a former calibration tech in the Marines and later for Lockheed, and mainly worked in the RF/Microwave labs, often calibrating frequency standards (rubidium, XCO, etc). A fairly used term in that area is "time and frequency", which does make sense for the applications.

I often joked about the "time" part. Knowing that the term "time" we use in our normal lives is in our heads, and the universe doesn't care about it.

[johnfitzgerald]

The Frazer Spiral does have spirals in it. There are multiple spirals defined by different apparent lines. There is only one apparent circle which itself is an illusion. The circle, defined by the average centerline of the black objects is as much an illusion as are the spirals.

[neilgerace]

"Lunchtime, doubly so."

-- Ford Prefect

[ezrawilson]

I for one still believe in free will - not that I have a choice.

[ravenlord]

"Like Sands Through The Hourglass, So Are The Days Of Our Lives"

[donaldstrachan]

In my humble opinion, time is simply one of the metrics (others being distance in three dimensions) by which we measure change. It is change that is real not the metrics we use to measure it.

[FrDismasSayreOP]

"What then is time? If no one asks me, I know what it is. If I wish to explain it to him who asks, I do not know." St Augustine. Yes, a very old question

[Smashy]

"The desk is mostly empty space" as long as you don't ask too many questions about what "space" is and what it means to be "empty".

[zdzislawmeglicki]

Lee Smolin thought so too, then changed his mind. In his book "Time Reborn" he explains why.

[pagodakid]

I went on a date with a young lady once and explained all this to her. She must have had a very different opinion because I never heard from her again.

[PixelRatedGames]

What's not an illusion is the constant stream of top-quality content from Sabine!

[jrhoadley]

As time is an illusion, I should be able to go back and answer the question "do you think my sister is attractive" differently. Yep, no luck there. I'm still in Schrodinger's dog house.

[Dr.M.VincentCurley]

When I get sentenced for my crimes next week, I'm going to remind the judge that time is just an illusion and I'm quite certain that he'll grant me "time served". To be honest, I've always been an "Eternalism" type of guy, even before I knew what it was. Time is a place, we visit it and then we move on to another place (femtosecond #2 perhaps).

[FeriqBV]

What you explain at the end when asked "if it means that time in an illusion" is exactly what I was sure was happening

[MrWildbill]

Time has always been a real mind blower for me, without time nothing can happen and if nothing happens how can you have time. So for me I had to settle with accepting that time is a byproduct of things happening.

[LenSklogW]

Time is a useful interpretation of geometry and Free Will is a useful interpretation of causality. No problem with doing useful instead of fundamental. 😉

[truthpopup]

I would not call time an illusion but a derived construct. It is based on periodic motion, such as the rotation of Earth, and precisely calibrated. As such, time is useful for the synchronization of events.

[alskidan]

What is time?
Baby don’t hurt me
Don’t hurt me
No more.

What is time?