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CHAPTERONE

TheEndofTime
TheNextRevolutioninPhysics
ByJULIANBARBOUR
OxfordUniversityPress

ReadtheReview
TheMainPuzzles

THENEXTREVOLUTIONINPHYSICS

Nothingismoremysteriousandelusivethantime.Itseemstobethe
mostpowerfulforceintheuniverse,carryingusinexorablyfrom
birthtodeath.Butwhatexactlyisit?StAugustine,whodiedinAD
430,summeduptheproblemthus:`Ifnobodyasksme,Iknowwhat
timeis,butifIamaskedthenIamatalosswhattosay.'Allagree
thattimeisassociatedwithchange,growthanddecay,butisitmore
thanthis?Questionsabound.Doestimemoveforward,bringinginto
beinganeverchangingpresent?Doesthepaststillexist?Whereis
thepast?Isthefuturealreadypredetermined,sittingherewaitingfor
usthoughweknownotwhatitis?Allthesequestionswillbe
addressedinthisbook,butthebiggestremainstheoneStAugustine
couldnotanswer:whatistime?
Curiously,physicistshavetendednottoaskthisquestion,
preferringtoleaveittophilosophers.Thereasonisprobablythe
colossalanddominatinginfluenceofIsaacNewtonandAlbert
Einstein.Theyshapedthewayphysiciststhinkaboutspace,time
andmotion.Eachcreatedarepresentationoftheworldof
unsurpassedclarity.Buthavingseentheirwaytoastructureof
things,theydidnotbotherundulyaboutitsfoundations.Thiscreates
potentialforconfusion.Withoutquestion,theirtheoriescontain
wonderfultruths,buttheybothtaketimeasgiven.Itisabuilding
blockonaparwithspace,aprimarysubstance.Infact,Einstein
fuseditwiththreedimensionalspacetomakefourdimensional
spacetime.Thiswasoneofthegreatrevolutionsofphysics(Box
1).

BOX1TheGreatRevolutionsofPhysics

1543:TheCopernicanRevolution.InOntheRevolutionsofthe
CelestialSpheres,NicolausCopernicusproposedthattheEarth
movesaroundthecentreoftheuniverse.Themodernmeaningof
revolutionderivesfromhistitle.Heestablishedtheformofthesolar
system.Curiously,theSunplayslittlepartinhisschemehemerely
placeditnearthecentreoftheuniverse.Aboutsixtyyearslater
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JohannesKeplershowedthattheSunisthetruecentreofthesolar
system,andwithGalileoGalileihepreparedthewayforthenext
revolution.
1687:TheNewtonianRevolution.InTheMathematical
PrinciplesofNaturalPhilosophy,Newtonformulatedhisthree
famouslawsofmotionandthetheoryofuniversalgravitation.He
showedthatallbodiesterrestrialandcelestialobeythesame
laws,andthussetupthefirstschemecapableofdescribingthe
entireuniverseasaunifiedwhole.Newtoncreatedthescienceof
mechanics,nowoftencalleddynamics,whichusheredinthe
modernscientificage.Heclaimedthatallmotionstakeplaceinan
infinite,immovable,absolutespaceandthattimetooisabsoluteand
`flowsuniformlywithoutrelationtoanythingexternal'.
1905:TheSpecialTheoryofRelativity.Inarelativelyshortpaper
onelectromagnetism,Einsteinshowedthatsimultaneitycannotbe
definedabsolutelyatspatiallyseparatedpoints,andthatspaceand
timeareinextricablylinkedtogether.Whatappearsasspaceand
whatappearsastimedependsonthemotionoftheobserver.He
madestartlingpredictionsaboutthebehaviourofmeasuringrods
andclocks,andfoundhisfamousequationE=mc.In1908
HermannMinkowskiformalizedthenotionofspacetimeasarigid,
indissoluble,fourdimensionalarenaofworldevents.
1915:TheGeneralTheoryofRelativity.Thespecialtheoryof
relativitydescribesaworldwithoutgravitation.Afteraneightyear
gestation,Einsteinfinallyformulatedhisgeneraltheoryofrelativity
inwhichtherigidarenaofMinkowski'sspacetimeismadeflexible,
respondingtothepresenceofmatterinit.Gravityisgivena
brilliantlyoriginalinterpretationasaneffectofthecurvingofspace
time.Thetheoryshowedthattimecanhaveabeginning(theBig
Bang)andthattheuniversecanexpandorcontract.Althoughtoa
remarkabledegreeitwasacreationofpurethought,many
predictionsofthistheoryhavenowbeenverywellconfirmed.It
describesthelargescalepropertiesofmatterandtheuniverseasa
whole.
1925/6:QuantumMechanics.Thisgetsitsnamebecauseitshows
thatsomemechanicalquantitiesarefoundinnatureonlyin
multiplesofdiscreteunitscalledquanta.Thisisadistinctive
differencefromthetheoriesofNewtonandEinstein,whicharenow
calledclassical(asopposedtoquantum)theories.Thefirstquantum
effectswerediscoveredanddescribedonanadhocbasisbyMax
Planck(1900),Einstein(1905)andNielsBohr(1913),whilea
consistentquantumtheorywasfoundintwodifferentbutequivalent
forms:matrixmechanics,byWernerHeisenberg(1925),andwave
mechanics,byErwinSchrdinger(1926).PaulDiracalsomade
outstandingcontributions.Quantummechanicsdescribesthe
propertiesoflight,especiallylasers,andthemicroscopicworldof
atomsandmolecules.Itisthebedrockofallmodernelectronic
technology,butitsresultsarebafflinglycounterintuitiveandraise
profoundissuesaboutthenatureofreality.Itisalsopuzzlingthat
theoriesofcompletelydifferentstructuresareusedtodescribethe
macroscopicuniverse(classicalgeneralrelativity)andmicroscopic
atoms(quantummechanics).

Revolutionsarewhatmakephysicssuchafascinatingscience.
Everynowandthenatotallynewperspectiveisopenedup.Butitis
notthatweclosetheshuttersononewindow,openthemonanother,
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andfindourselveslookingoutinwonderonabrandnewlandscape.
Theoldinsightsareretainedwithinthenewpicture.Abetter
metaphorofphysicsismountaineering:thehigherweclimb,the
morecomprehensivetheview.Eachnewvantagepointyieldsa
betterunderstandingoftheinterconnectionofthings.Whatismore,
gradualaccumulationofunderstandingispunctuatedbysuddenand
startlingenlargementsofthehorizon,aswhenwereachthebrowof
ahillandseethingsneverconceivedofintheascent.Oncewehave
foundourbearingsinthenewlandscape,ourpathtothemost
recentlyattainedsummitislaidbareandtakesitshonourableplace
inthenewworld.
Today,physicistsconfidently,indeedimpatiently,awaitthenext
revolution.Butwhatwillitbe?In1979,when,likeNewtonand
Diracbeforehim,StephenHawkingbecametheLucasianProfessor
atCambridge,heannouncedinhisinauguraladdresstheimminent
endofphysics.Withintwentyyearsphysicistswouldpossessa
theoryofeverything,createdbyadoubleunification:ofallthe
forcesofnature,andofEinstein'sgeneraltheoryofrelativitywith
quantummechanics.Physicistswouldthenknowalltheinner
secretsofexistence,anditwouldmerelyremaintoworkoutthe
consequences.
Neitherunificationhasyethappened,thoughoneorboth
certainlycould.(Hawkinghasrecentlysaidthathispredictionstill
standsbutthat`thetwentyyearsstartsnow'.)Formyself,Idoubt
thatwouldspelltheendofphysics.Butunificationofgeneral
relativityandquantummechanicsmaywellspelltheendoftime.By
this,Imeanthatitwillceasetohavearoleinthefoundationsof
physics.Weshallcometoseethattimedoesnotexist.Thoughstill
onlyaprospectonthehorizon,this,Ithink,couldwellbethenext
revolution.Whatadenouementifitis!
Ibelievethatthebasicelementsofthispotentialrevolutionthe
reasonsforitanditslikelyoutcomecanalreadybediscerned.In
fact,asweshallshortlysee,clearhintsthattimemaynotexist,and
thatquantumgravitytheunificationofgeneralrelativityand
quantummechanicswillyieldastaticpictureofthequantum
universe,startedtoemergeaboutthirtyyearsago,butmade
remarkablylittleimpact.Thisisoneofmyreasonsforwritingthis
book:thesethingsshouldbebetterknown.Theyareonlyjust
beginningtobementionedinbooksforthegeneralreader,andeven
mostworkingphysicistsknowlittleornothingaboutthem.
Nodoubtmanypeoplewilldismissthesuggestionthattimemay
notexistasnonsense.Iamnotdenyingthepowerfulphenomenon
wecalltime.Butisitwhatitseemstobe?Afterall,theEarthseems
tobeflat.Ibelievethetruephenomenonissodifferentthat,
presentedtoyouasIthinkitiswithoutanymentionoftheword
`time',itwouldnotoccurtoyoutocallitthat.
Iftimeisremovedfromthefoundationsofphysics,weshallnot
allsuddenlyfeelthattheflowoftimehasceased.Onthecontrary,
newtimelessprincipleswillexplainwhywedofeelthattimeflows.
Thepatternofthefirstgreatrevolutionwillberepeated.
Copernicus,GalileoandKeplertaughtusthattheEarthmovesand
rotateswhiletheheavensstandstill,butthisdidnotchangebyone
iotaourdirectperceptionthattheheavensdomoveandthatthe
Earthdoesnotbudge.Ourgraspoftheinterconnectionofthings
was,however,eventuallychangedoutofrecognitioninwaysthat
wereimpossibletoforesee.NowIthinkwemust,inanironictwist
totheCopernicanrevolution,gofurther,toadeeperrealityinwhich
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nothingatall,neitherheavensnorEarth,moves.Stillnessreigns.
Peopleoftenaskmewhataretheimplicationsofthenon
existenceoftime.Whatwillitmeanforeverydaylife?Ithinkwe
cannotsay.CopernicushadnoinklingofwhatNewton(letalone
Einstein)wouldfind,thoughitallflowedfromhisrevolution.But
wecanbecertainthatourideasabouttime,causalityandorigins
willbetransformed.Atthepersonallevel,thinkingaboutthese
thingshaspersuadedmethatweshouldcherishthepresent.That
certainlyexists,andisperhapsevenmorewonderfulthanwe
realize.Carpediemseizetheday.Iexpandonthisinthe
Epilogue.

THEULTIMATETHINGS

Thisbookrevolvesaroundthreequestions:Whatistime?Whatis
change?Whatistheplanoftheuniverse?Theonlywaytoanswer
themistoexaminethestructureofourmostsuccessfultheories.We
mustfathomthearchitectureofnature.Whatpart,ifany,isplayed
bytimeinthesetheories?Canweidentifytheultimatearenaofthe
world?
ThesequestionswereforceduponphysicistsbytheworkI
mentionedinthePreface.Itisoneofthetwobig(andalmost
certainlyintimatelyconnected)mysteriesofmodernphysics(Box
2).Bothareaspectsofanasyetunbridgedchasmbetweenclassical
andquantumphysics.

BOX2TheTwoBigMysteries

AsexplainedinBox1,physicistscurrentlydescribetheworldby
meansoftwoverydifferenttheories.Largethingsaredescribedby
classicalphysics,smallthingsbyquantumphysics.Therearetwo
problemswiththispicture.
First,generalrelativity,Einstein'stheoryofgravity,seemstobe
incompatiblewiththeprinciplesofquantummechanicsinaway
thatNewtoniandynamicsandthetheoryofelectromagnetism,
developedbyMichaelFaradayandJamesClerkMaxwellinthe
nineteenthcentury,arenot.Forthesetheories,itprovedpossibleto
transformthem,byaprocessknownasquantization,fromclassical
intoquantumtheories.Attemptstoapplythesameprocessto
generalrelativityandcreatequantumgravityfailed.Itwasthis
technicalwork,byDiracandothers,whichbroughttotheforeall
theproblemsabouttimewithwhichthisbookisconcerned.
Thesecondmysteryistherelationshipbetweenquantumand
classicalphysics.Itseemsthatquantumphysicsismore
fundamentalandoughttoapplytolargeobjects,eventheuniverse.
Thereoughttobeaquantumtheoryoftheuniverse:quantum
cosmology.Butquantumphysicsdoesnotyetexistinsuchaform.
Anditspresentformisverymysterious.Partofitseemstodescribe
theactualbehaviourofatoms,moleculesandradiation,butanother
partconsistsofratherstrangerulesthatactattheinterfacebetween
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themicroscopicandmacroscopicworlds.Indeed,theveryexistence
ofaseeminglyuniqueuniverseisagreatpuzzlewithinthe
frameworkofquantummechanics.Thisisveryunsatisfactory,since
physicistshaveadeepfaithintheunityofnature.Becausegeneral
relativityissimultaneouslyatheoryofgravityandthelargescale
structureoftheuniverse,thecreationofquantumcosmologywill
certainlyrequirethesolutionoftheonlyslightlynarrowerproblem
ofquantumgravity.

Oneofthethemesofmybookisthatthischasmhasarisenbecause
physicistshavedeeprootedbutfalseideasaboutthenatureof
space,timeandthings.Preconceptionsobscurethetruenatureofthe
world.Physicistsareusingtoomanyconcepts.Theyassumethat
therearemanythings,andthatthesethingsmoveinagreatinvisible
frameworkofspaceandtime.
AradicalalternativeputforwardbyNewton'srivalLeibniz
providesmycentralidea.Theworldistobeunderstood,notinthe
dualistictermsofatoms(thingsofonekind)thatmoveinthe
frameworkandcontainerofspaceandtime(anotherquitedifferent
kindofthing),butintermsofmorefundamentalentitiesthatfuse
spaceandmatterintothesinglenotionofapossiblearrangement,or
configuration,oftheentireuniverse.Suchconfigurations,whichcan
befabulouslyrichlystructured,aretheultimatethings.Thereare
infinitelymanyofthemtheyarealldifferentinstancesofa
commonprincipleofconstructionandtheyareall,inmyview,the
differentinstantsoftime.Infact,manypeoplewhohavewritten
abouttimehaveconceivedofinstantsoftimeinasomewhatsimilar
way,andhavecalledthem`nows'.SinceImaketheconceptmore
preciseandputitattheheartofmytheoryoftime,Ishallcallthem
Nows.TheworldismadeofNows.
Spaceandtimeintheirpreviousroleasthestageoftheworldare
redundant.Thereisnocontainer.Theworlddoesnotcontainthings,
itisthings.ThesethingsareNowsthat,sotospeak,hoverin
nothing.Newtonianphysics,Einstein'srelativityandquantum
mechanicswillallbeseentododifferentthingswiththeNows.
Theyarrangethemindifferentways.Whatismore,therulesthat
governtheuniverseasawholeleaveimprintsonwhatwefind
aroundus.Theselocalimprints,whichphysiciststakeasthe
fundamentallawsofnature,revealfewhintsoftheiroriginina
deeperschemeofthings.Theattempttounderstandtheuniverseas
awholeby`stringingtogether'theselocalimprintswithoutagrasp
oftheiroriginmustgiveafalsepicture.ItwillbetheflatEarthwrit
large.Myaimistoshowhowthelocalimprintscanarisefroma
deeperreality,howatheoryoftimeemergesfromtimelessness.The
taskisnottostudytime,buttoshowhownaturecreatesthe
impressionoftime.
Itisanambitioustask.Howcanastaticuniverseappearso
dynamic?Howisitpossibletowatchtheflashingcoloursofthe
kingfisherinflightandsaythereisnomotion?Ifyoureadtothe
end,youwillfindthatIdoproposeananswer.Imakenoclaimthat
itisdefinitelyrightchoicesmustbemade,andmanyphysicists
wouldnotmakemine,Ifallwereclear,Ishouldnothavepromised
abutthetheoryoftime.Inordernottointerrupttheflowofthetext,
Imakefewreferencestotheproblemsinmytimelessdescriptionof
theworld.Instead,IhavecollectedtogetherallthoseofwhichIam
awareintheNotes.Although,aswillbeevidentthroughoutthe
book,IdobelieveratherstronglyinthetheoryIpropose,thereisa
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senseinwhichevencleardisproofofmytheorywouldbeexciting
forme.Theproblemsoftimeareverydeep.ClearproofthatIam
wrongwouldcertainlymarkasignificantadvanceinour
understandingoftime.Inaway,Icannotlose!Whateverthe
outcome,Ishallbemorethanhappyifthisbookgivesyouanovel
wayofthinkingabouttime,exposesyoutosomeofthemysteriesof
theuniverse,andencouragesevenonereadertoembark,asIdid35
yearsago,onastudyoftime.
Forthestudyoftimeisnotjustthatitisthestudyof
everything.

GETTINGTOGRIPSWITHELUSIVETIME

Thehardestthingofallistofindablackcatinadark
room,especiallyifthereisnocat.
Confucius

Wemustbeginbytryingtoagreewhattimeis.Theproblemsstart
already,asStAugustinefound.Nearlyeverybodywouldagreethat
timeisexperiencedassomethinglinear.Itseemstomoveforward
relentlessly,throughinstantsstrungoutcontinuouslyonaline.We
rideonaneverchangingNowlikepassengersonatrain.Eachpoint
onthelineisanewinstant.Butistimemovingforwardandifso
throughwhatorarewemovingforwardthroughtime?Itisall
verypuzzling,andphilosophershavegotintointerminable
arguments.Ishallnotattempttosortthemout,sinceIdonotthinkit
wouldgetusanywhere.Thetroublewithtimeisitsinvisibility.We
shallneveragreeunlesswecantalkaboutsomethingwecanseeand
grasp.
Ithinkitismorefruitfultotrytoagreeonwhataninstantoftime
islike.Isuggestitislikea`threedimensionalsnapshot'.Inany
instant,weseeobjectsindefinitepositions.Snapshotsconfirmour
impressionartistswerepaintingpicturesthatlooklikesnapshots
longbeforecameraswereinvented.Thisdoesseemtobeanatural
waytothinkabouttheexperienceofaninstant.Wealsohave
evidencefromtheothersenses.Ifeelanitchatthesametimeas
seeingamovingobjectinacertainposition.AllthethingsIsee,
hear,smellandtasteareknittogetherinawhole.`Knittingtogether'
seemstomethedefiningpropertyofaninstant.Itgivesitaunity.
ThethreedimensionalsnapshotsIhaveinmindcouldbe
constructedifmanydifferentpeopletookordinarytwodimensional
snapshotsofasceneatthesameinstant.Comparisonofthe
informationinthemmakesitpossibletobuildupathree
dimensionalpictureoftheworldinthatinstant.ThatiswhatImean
byaNow.Itisveryremarkablethatsuchcompletelydifferenttwo
dimensionalpicturescanbereconciledinathreedimensional
representation.Thepossibilityofthisorderingiswhatleadsusto
saythatthingsexistinthreedimensionalspace.Itleadstoaneven
deeper`knittingtogether'overandabovethedirectlyexperienced
senseofbeingawareofmanydifferentthingsatonce(itisthisthat
enablesustoknowinstantlythatweareseeing,say,sixdistinct
objectswithoutcountingthemindividually).Iregardspaceasa
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`glue',orasetofrules,thatbindsthingstogether.Itisaplurality
withinadeepunity,anditmakesaNow.
Youmayobjectthatnoexperienceisinstantaneous,justas
snapshotsrequirefiniteexposures.True,butwecanstillliken
instantstosnapshots.ItisthebestidealizationIknow.Itallowsus
tobegintogetourhandsontime,whichisotherwiseforever
slippingthroughourfingers.Asinstants,ratherthananinvisible
river,timebecomesconcrete.Wecanporeoverphotographs,
lookingforevidenceinthemlikemilitaryintelligenceanalysts
studyingsatellitepictures.Wecanimagine`photographing'our
successiveexperiences,obtaininginnumerablesnapshots.Using
them,wecanidentifythemostimportantpropertiesofexperienced
time.

THEPROPERTIESOFEXPERIENCEDTIME

Supposethatthesnapshotsaretakenwhenwearewitnessinglotsof
thingshappening,saypeoplestreamingpastusinastreet,andthat
thesnapshots(eithertwodimensional,asdirectlyexperienced,or
`threedimensional',asexplainedabove),oncetaken,arejumbledup
inaheap.Adifferentperson,giventheheap,couldrelativelyeasily,
byexaminingthedetailsinthesnapshots,arrangethemintheorder
theywereexperienced.Amoviecanbereassembledfromits
individualframes.Mynotionoftimedependscruciallyonthe
detailsthatthe`snapshots'carry.Itrequirestherichlystructured
worldwedoexperience.
Thisimaginaryexercisebringsoutthemostimportantpropertyof
experiencedtime:itsinstantscanallbelaidoutinarow.Theycome
inalinearsequence.Thisisaverystrongimpression.Itiscreated
notbyinvisibletime,butbyconcretethings.
Itishardertopindownotherproperties.Ihavealready
mentionedthedifficultyofsayingpreciselywhatthepowerful
impressionofmovingforwardintimeconsistsof.Wealsohavethe
intuitionoflengthoftime,orduration.Indeed,seconds,minutes,
hoursdominateourage,thoughyoumaynotknowhowthese
precisenotionshavearisen.Thatisanimportantissue.Finally,there
istheremarkablystrongsensethattimehasadirection.Aline
tracedinthesanddoesnotbyitselfdefineadirection.Iftimeisa
line,itisaspecialone.
Theevidencefortime'sdirectionisinthe`snapshots'.Many
containmemoriesofothersnapshots.Wecandoatestontime.We
canstopatoneofourexperiencedinstantslaidoutinaline,andsee
thatitcontainsamemory.Welocatetherememberedinstant
somewhereintheline.Thatdefinesadirectionfromittothe
memoryofit.Wecandothiswithotherpairsofinstants.They
alwaysdefinethesamedirection.Manyotherphenomenadefinea
direction.Coffeecoolsdownunlessweputitinthemicrowaveit
neverheatsup.Cupsshatterwhenwedropthemshardsnever
reassemblethemselvesandleapbackupontothetableasawhole
cup.Allthesephenomena,likememories,defineadirectionintime,
andtheyallpointthesameway.Timehasanarrow.
Thus,experiencedtimeislinear,itcanbemeasuredandithasan
arrow.Thesearenotpropertiesofaninvisibleriver:theybelongto
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concreteinstants.Everythingweknowabouttimeisgarneredfrom
them.Timeisinferredfromthings.

NEWTON'SCONCEPTS

In1687,Newtoncreatedprecisenotionsofspace,timeandmotion.
Despitemajorrevisions,muchofhisschemeremainsintact.Itis
stillclosetothewaymanypeople,includingscientists,thinkabout
time.
Newton'stimeisabsolute.Itflowswithperfectuniformityfor
everandnothingintheworldaffectsitsflow.Space,too,is
absolute.Newtonconceivedofspaceasalimitlesscontainer.It
stretchesfrominfinitytoinfinitylikeatranslucentblockofglass,
throughwhich,nevertheless,objectscanmoveunhindered.Spaceis
ahugearenatimeisaclockinthegrandstand.Botharemore
fundamentalthanthings.Newtoncouldimagineanemptyworldbut
notaworldwithoutspaceandtime.Manyphilosophershaveagreed
withhim.Sodoestheproverbialmaninthepub,convincedthat
spacegoesonforeverandthat`theremusthavebeentimebefore
theBigBang'.
Atanyinstant,allthethingsintheNewtonianworldareat
definitepositions.Hisabsolutespaceperformstwodistinctroles.As
inthediscussionabove,itbinds,orholds,thingstogether,inone
instant.Butitalsoplacestheminacontainer.Imaginetakingtwo
dimensionalsnapshotsofatableinaroom.Paintoutthe
backgroundroom,andyoucouldstillreconstructtheformofthe
threedimensionaltable,butyouwouldnotknowwheretoplaceit.
Newtoninsistedthatthethingsintheworldinanyinstanthavea
definiteplace,andhepositedabsolutespaceasakindofroomto
providethatplace.Hisfixedcontainerpersiststhroughtime.We
couldtakerealsnapshotsofthethingsintheworld(Figure1).
Ideally,thesesnapshotsshouldbethreedimensional,likespace,and
showallthingsrelativetoeachotherandtheirpositionsinabsolute
space,justassnapshotsofasoccermatchshowtheplayers,balland
refereeonthepitchwithitsmarkings.Thegrandstandclockrecords
thetime.
AccordingtoNewton,allbodiesmovethroughabsolutespacein
accordancewithdefinitelawsofmotionwhichgovernthespeedand
directionofthebodiesinthatspaceasmeasuredbyabsolutetime.
Thelawsaresuchthatifthemotionsofthebodiesareknownat
someinstant,thelawsdetermineallthefuturemovements.Allthe
world'shistorycanbedeterminedfromtwosnapshotstakenin
quicksuccession.(Ifyouknowwheresomethingisattwoclosely
spacedinstants,youcantellitsspeedanddirection.Twosuch
snapshotsthusencodethefuture.)
Newton'spictureisclosetoeverydayexperience.Wedonotsee
absolutespaceandtime,butwedoseesomethingquitelikethem
therigidEarth,whichdefinespositions,andtheSun,whosemotion
isakindofclock.Newton'srevolutionwastheestablishmentof
strictlawsthatholdinsuchaframework.

LAWSANDINITIALCONDITIONS
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Theselawshaveacuriousproperty.Theydeterminemotionsonlyif
certaininitialconditionsarecombinedwiththem.Newtonbelieved
thatGod`setup'(created)theuniverseatsometimeinthepastby
placingobjectsinabsolutespacewithdefinitemotionsafterthat,
thelawsofmotiontookover.ThestatementthatNewton'sisa
clockworkuniverseisabitmisleading.Clockshaveone
predeterminedmotion:thependulumofthegrandfatherclock
simplygoesbackwardsandforwards.TheNewtonianuniverseis
muchmoreremarkable,beingcapableofmanymotions.However,
onceaninitialconditionhasbeenchosen,everythingfollows.
Thus,therearetwodisparateelementsinthescientificaccountof
theuniverse:eternallaws,andafreelyspecifiableinitialcondition.
Einstein'srelativityandmajorastronomicaldiscoverieshavemerely
addedtothisdualschemetheexcitingnoveltyofauniverse
explodingintobeingaboutfifteenbillionyearsago.Theinitial
conditionwassetattheBigBang.
Somepeoplequestionthisdualscheme.Isitanimmutable
feature?Mightwenotfindlawsthatstandalone,withoutinitial
conditions?Thesequestionsareparticularlyrelevantbecause
Newton'slaws(andalsoEinstein'stheoriesofrelativity,which
replacedthem)haveapropertythatseemsquiteatvariancewiththe
waywefeeltheuniverseworksthatthepastdeterminesthe
future.Wedonotthinkthatcausalityworksfromthefuturetothe
past.Scientistsalwaysconsiderinitialconditions.ButNewton'sand
Einstein'slawsworkequallywellinbothdirections.Thetruthis
thatthestringoftrianglesinFigure1isdeterminedbyNewton's
lawsactinginbothdirectionsbyanytwoneighboringtriangles
anywherealongthestring.Youcanpersuadeyourselfofthisby
lookingatthefigureagain.Itisimpossibletosayinwhichdirection
timeflows.Thecaptionspeaksof`strobelighting'illuminatingthe
trianglesatequaltimeintervals,butdoesnotsaywhichis
illuminatedfirst.Scientistscouldexaminethetrianglesuntilthe
crackofdoombutcouldneverfindwhichcamefirst.Thisisrelated
tooneofthebiggestpuzzlesinscience.

WHYISTHEUNIVERSESOSPECIAL?

Theuniverseweseearoundustodayisspecial:itisveryhighly
ordered.Forexample,lightstreamsawayinaveryregularflow
frombillionsuponbillionsofstarsthroughouttheuniverse.These
starsarethemselvescollectedtogetheringalaxies,ofwhichthere
arejustafewbasictypes.HereonEarthwefindverycomplex
moleculesandverycomplicatedlifeformsthatcouldnotpossibly
existwereitnotforthesteadystreamofsunlightthatconstantly
bathesourplanet.However,thevastmajorityofconceivableinitial
conditionstherecouldhavebeenattheBigBangwouldhaveledto
universesmuchlessinterestingindeed,positivelydull
comparedwithours.Onlyanexceptionalinitialconditioncould
haveledtothepresentorder.Thatisthepuzzle.Modernscienceis
intheremarkablepositionofpossessingbeautifulandverywell
testedlawswithoutreallybeingabletoexplaintheuniverse.Inthe
dualschemeoflawsandinitialconditions,thegreatburdenof
explainingwhytheuniverseisasitisfallstotheinitialconditions.
Sciencecanasyetgivenoexplanationofwhythoseconditionswere
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astheymusthavebeentoexplainthepresentlyobserveduniverse.
Theuniverselookslikeafluke.
Therearetworemarkablethingsabouttheorderintheuniverse:
theamountofitandthewayitdegrades.Oneofthegreatest
discoveriesofscience,madeaboutahundredandfiftyyearsago,
wasthesecondlawofthermodynamics.Studiesoftheefficiency
withwhichsteamenginesturnheatintomechanicallyusefulmotion
ledtotheconceptofentropy.Asoriginallydiscovered,thisisa
measureofhowmuchusefulworkcanbegotoutofhotgas,say.It
isherethatthearrowoftime,whichweknowfromdirect
experience,entersphysics.Almostallprocessesobservedinthe
universehaveadirectionality.Inanisolatedsystem,temperature
differencesarealwaysequalized.Thismeans,forexample,thatyou
cannotextractenergyfromacoolergastomakeahottergaseven
hotterandchuffalonginyoursteamengineevenfaster.More
strictly,ifyoudid,youwoulddegrademoreenergythanyougain
andfinishupworseoff.
Ihavealreadymentionedtheunidirectionalprocessofacup
breaking.Anotherismixingcreamwithcoffee.Itisvirtually
impossibletoreversetheseprocesses.Thisisbeautifullyillustrated
byrunningafilmbackwards:youseethingsthatareimpossiblein
therealworld.Thisunidirectionality,orarrow,ispreciselyreflected
inthefactthattheentropyofanyisolatedsystemlefttoitself
alwaysincreases(orperhapsstaysconstant).
Itwasrecognizedinthelatenineteenthcenturythatthis
unidirectionalityofobservedprocesseswasinsharpconflictwith
thefactthatNewton'slawsshouldworkequallywellineithertime
direction.Whydonaturalprocessesalwaysrunoneway,whilethe
lawsofphysicssaytheycouldrunequallywelleitherway?Forfour
decades,from1866untilhissuicideon5September1906inthe
picturesqueAdriaticresortofDuino,theAustrianphysicistLudwig
Boltzmannattemptedtoresolvethisconflict.Heintroduceda
theoreticaldefinitionofentropyastheprobabilityofastate.He
firmlybelievedinatomstheexistenceofwhichremained
controversialuntiltheearlyyearsofthetwentiethcentury
conceivedofastinyparticlesrushingaroundatgreatspeedin
accordancewithNewtonianlaws.Heatwasassumedtobea
measureofthespeedofatoms:thefastertheatoms,thehotterthe
substance.Bythesecondhalfofthenineteenthcentury,physicists
hadagoodideaoftheimmensenumberofatoms(assumingthat
theyexisted)theremustbeeveninagrainofsand,andBoltzmann,
amongothers,sawthatstatisticalargumentsmustbeusedto
describehowatomsbehave.
Heaskedhowprobableastateshouldbe.Imagineagridof100
holesintowhichyoudrop1000marblesatrandom.Itishugely
improbablethattheywillallfinishupinonehole.Iamnotgoingto
givenumbers,butitissimpletoworkouttheprobabilitythatall
willlandinoneholeor,say,infouradjacentholes.Infact,onecan
listeverypossibledistributionofthemarblesinthegrid,andthen
seeinhowmanyofthesedistributionsallthemarblesfallinone
hole,infouradjacentholes,eightadjacentholes,andsoon.Ifeach
distributionisassumedtobeequallyprobable,thenumberofwaysa
particularoutcomecanhappenbecomestherelativeprobabilityof
thatoutcome,orstate.Boltzmannhadtheinspiredideathat,applied
toatoms,thisprobability(whichmustalsotakeintoaccountthe
velocitiesoftheatoms)isameasureoftheentropythathadbeen
foundthroughstudyofthethermodynamicsofsteamengines.
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4/2/2016

TheEndofTime

Thereisnoneedtoworryaboutthetechnicaldetails.The
importantthingisthatstateswithlowentropyareinherently
improbable.Boltzmann'sideawasbrilliantlysuccessful,andmuch
ofmodernchemistry,forexample,wouldbeunthinkablewithoutit.
However,hisattempttoexplainthemorefundamentalissues
associatedwiththeunidirectionalityofphysicalprocesseswasonly
partlysuccessful.
Hewantedtoshowthat,matchingthebehaviourofmacroscopic
entropy,hismicroscopicentropywouldnecessarilyincreasesolely
byvirtueofNewton'slaws.Thisseemsplausible.Ifalargenumber
ofatomsareinsomeunlikelystate,sayallinasmallregion,sothat
theyhavealowentropy,itseemsclearthattheywillpasstoamore
probablestatewithhigherentropy.However,itwassoonnotedthat
thereareexactlyasmanydynamicallypossiblemotionsofthe
atomsthatgofromstatesoflowprobabilitytostatesofhigh
probabilityasviceversa.Thisisastraightconsequenceofthefact
thatNewton'slawshavethesameformforthetwodirectionsof
time.Newton'slawsalonecannotexplainthearrowoftime.
Onlytwowayshaveeverbeenfoundtoexplainthearrow:either
theuniversewascreatedinahighlyunlikelyspecialstate,andits
initialorderhasbeen`degrading'eversince,orithasexistedfor
ever,andatsometimeintherecentpastitenteredbychancean
exceedinglyimprobablestateofverylowentropy,fromwhichitis
nowemerging.Thesecondpossibilityisentirelycompatiblewith
thelawsofphysics.Forexample,ifacollectionofatoms(which
obeyNewton'slaws)isconfinedinaboxandcompletelyisolated,it
will,overasufficientlylongperiodoftime,visit(orrathercome
arbitrarilynear)allthestatesthatitcaninprincipleeverreach,even
thosethatarehighlyorderedandstatisticallyveryunlikely.
However,theintervalsoftimebetweenreturnstostatesofverylow
entropyarestupendouslylong(vastlylongerthanthepresently
assumedageoftheuniverse),andneitherexplanationisattractive.
Thefactisthatmechanicallawsofmotionallowanalmost
incomprehensiblylargenumberofdifferentpossiblesituations.
Interestingstructureandorderariseonlyinthetiniestfractionof
them.Scientistsfeeltheyshouldnotinvokemiraclestoexplainthe
orderwesee,butthatleavesonlystatisticalarguments,whichgive
bleakanswers(onlydullsituationscanbeexpected),ortheso
calledanthropicprinciplethatiftheworldwerenotinahighly
structuredbutextremelyunlikelystate,weshouldnotexistandbe
heretoobserveit.
Oneofmyreasonsforwritingthisbookisthattimelessphysics
opensupnewwaysofthinkingaboutstructureandentropy.Itmay
beeasiertoexplainthearrowoftimeifthereisnotime!
(C)1999JulianBarbourAllrightsreserved.ISBN:0195117298

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