Time's Arrows Today: Recent Physical and Philosophical Work on the Direction of TimeSteven F. Savitt, Steven Frederick Savitt Cambridge University Press, 13.06.1997 - 330 Seiten While it seems manifest in our experience that time flows - from the past to the present moment and into the future, there are a number of philosophical and physical objections to this commonsense view of dynamic time. In the quest to make sense of this conundrum philosophers and physicists confront fascinating and irresistible questions such as: Can effects precede causes? Can one travel in time? Can the expansion of the universe or the process of measurement in quantum mechanics provide a direction of time? In this book eleven eminent scholars, standing at the boundary between physics and philosophy, attempt to answer these questions in an entertaining yet rigorous way. For example, William Unruh's chapter is one of the first non-technical essays by this important cosmologist and Huw Price discusses critically the exciting cosmological views of Hawking and Penrose. Philip Stamp and Anthony Leggett discuss macroscopic quantum phenomena, a subject which has not been discussed much outside the specialist literature. John Earman's paper on time travel is likely to become one of the landmarks in the literature. The book will be enjoyed by anyone of a speculative turn of mind fascinated by the puzzles of time. |
Inhalt
Preface | ix |
Notes on the contributors | x |
Introduction | 1 |
Time gravity and quantum mechanics | 23 |
Cosmology times arrow and that old double standard | 66 |
Times arrow and the quantum measurement problem | 97 |
Time decoherence and reversible measurements | 107 |
Time flow nonlocality and measurement in quantum mechanics | 155 |
The elusive object of desire in pursuit of the kinetic equations and the Second Law | 191 |
Time in experience and in theoretical description of the world | 217 |
When and why does entropy increase? | 230 |
Closed causal chains | 259 |
Recent work on time travel | 268 |
References | 311 |
325 | |
Stochastically branching spacetime topology | 173 |
Andere Ausgaben - Alle anzeigen
Time's Arrows Today: Recent Physical and Philosophical Work on the Direction ... Steven F. Savitt,Steven Frederick Savitt Eingeschränkte Leseprobe - 1997 |
Time's Arrows Today: Recent Physical and Philosophical Work on the Direction ... Steven F. Savitt,Steven Frederick Savitt Keine Leseprobe verfügbar - 1997 |
Time's Arrows Today: Recent Physical and Philosophical Work on the Direction ... Steven F. Savitt Keine Leseprobe verfügbar - 1995 |
Häufige Begriffe und Wortgruppen
accessible microstates Aharonov argument behaviour Big Bang branched model Cauchy surface chapter chronology violating closed causal chains closed timelike curves consistency constraints cosmological coupling CTCs decoherence defined density matrix described direction discussion dynamic earth energy entropy increase environment equation equilibrium evolution example existence experiment explain fact future global Gödel Gödelian time travel grandfather paradox gravity H+(S Hawking Hilbert space initial conditions interaction irreversibility Leggett low entropy macroscopic mathematical measurement microstates motion nature object operator particles Penrose Penrose's phase space philosophical photon Physical Review physical world physically possible population probability distribution problem quantum computer quantum measurement quantum mechanics quantum theory question Relativity result reversal invariance second law sense simply solution spacetime Special Relativity spin statistical mechanics structure symmetric T₁ temporal asymmetry theoretical thermodynamic arrow time's arrow timelike tion topological space trajectories universe vector wave-function wormhole