Series: Physics Research and Technology
BISAC: SCI055000

Physics leaves big questions unanswered. For example, why does time seem to move only from the past toward the future? In fact, there is no good definition of past, present, and future. Experiments show there is no universal “flowing river of time.” Is time “the fourth dimension?” Is there a “place” we can visit called “the past?” Is there no unifying theory to join the theories of quantum mechanics and relativity? The nature of time is critical in answering these questions.

Physics is not wrong – simply incomplete. More facts have been learned about our universe in the last thirty years than have been learned in all of previous history. Mostly what has been learned is how little we actually know. The nature of time is a good example. This book describes experiments that have proved that gravity, velocity, and acceleration slow time. Analysis shows that (1) perception of distance and time depends on relative velocity, (2) time can slow and stop, (3) time gets really strange near black holes, (4) photons traveling toward each other at the speed of light see the other moving only at the speed of light, due to time effects; and there are other strange effects. The truth is that most time experiment results have no real explanation. In physics there is no good definition for time and no logic foundation for a definition of time – until this book.

Enter the new science and technology of time. Here the relatively new sciences of computer technology and communication theory have an important contribution to make. At the heart of the science we find the computer logic of state machines and the physical structure of information as a physical entity. In this world, “state change” is the pivot around which the world turns. We learn that logic is essential for understanding how time works. We discover how state change is essential for the very existence of time! Logic symbols provide a framework for thought about time. We even find a basis for some of the definitions physics has been searching for. We find an information-based state- transition-based definition of time. There is a way to define past, present, and future.

In this book we find very compelling motivation for some interesting conclusions. For example, time is essentially the result of state transitions. If nothing happens, there is no evidence of time passing. We find that energy exchange motivates time. There is no experience of time without sequence of events.

Could the new science and technology of time be the next leap forward in physics? Many current science writers seem to think so.
(Imprint: Nova)