Imagine you've built a machine that somehow stops time, temporarily . . .?

Question

Everything stops, for a WHILE, but how long is that WHILE? How could you measure, or even estimate, its duration when nothing changes?

Answer 1

It is impossible, and if it were possible then let me think while I can. I will be back!

Hi, I am back, and I am gald that time stood still while I was away. This is what I come up with in that WHILE:

That could be a fun, or perhaps may be not. But frankly speaking it seems quite impossible. It is impossible to measure, or experience, time on any scale, or by any means, other than things that we have in the cruel clutches of time - things that move relative to each other to give us a sense of time, or an illusion of time - time is not absolute reality.

Just like the motion of a car cannot be detected without observing changing positions of a car relative to its surroundings. Similarly, Time cannot be observed independent of the thing of the universe. We cannot take out the time leaving things stand still behind as if someone has pulled the electric plug and the entire factory has come to a complete halt. Things grow, develop, decay, and change - all things from tiny sub-atomic particles to gigantic planets and galaxies.

Nothing in the universe is at rest, and everything is in motion. If we look closely we would find that there is a whole lot going on inside the matter. Without time world would be a different dimension. As all things exits due to motion, all things exist in energy and therefore time can only be stopped of all things lose all the energy – all energy of the universe - energy, which is the basis of all things material. All material things as they appear to us are not as they are; they are in fact energy patterns mad up of energy particles.

But, nevertheless, lets suppose for a moment, that somehow, this is actually happening whatever the consequences - time is not moving. And we are somehow preserved with our eyes in motion, able to perceive and observe this WHILE when all time around it is standing still. It will not be like standing in the middle of a magical quiet and still world of dream, like in a state of trans or something, but we will be experiencing another form of physical reality – or possibly the reality itself. When all forms and functions of all things big and small are gone, and the material world is motionless, we might see all things the same as all elements would be the same. They were distinct because they acted distinctly. When all are motionless, all cars are equally powerful, or equally good in terms of their speed and engine.

Now we will see the reality behind all things - things as they are in there absolute reality. We might realise that different things were in fact the similar in reality they just different; that some people have the same essential nature but they were different in the physical world governed by time, whereas others looked and behaved differently but in reality we find they are essentially the same. In this dimension we might experience everything by its meanings, or by its association to the eternal truth.

Answer 2

When you say that EVERYTHING stops, would that include my (and everyone else's) MIND? In that curcumstance, perhaps time has stopped before and no one has noticed. If everything stopped and my mind was still active, then I suppose I could do what a photographer does when they are doing a long exposure without a stop watch, counting the seconds thus:

One elephant, two elephant, three elephant, four elephant......

The use of the word 'elephant' makes the counting take a bit longer, and hopefully measure the seconds a bit more accurately.

There was an amusing TV show called 'The Magic Boomarang', in which this boy - the owner of the boomerang - would trow it, and for the duration of it's flight, time would stand still!

Answer 3

I always imagine someone creates a time machine, so i can go back and forward in time, imagine this can be, it would be amazing to visit many places in different times..and how it look like. to meet the famous people we read about in a long time, or witness an event before happening, travel to the future for some awesome discovery. it's an adventure 24/7.

Answer 4

Time is relative to the position of the observer. So if you have somehow stopped time for others, you yourself could count the time with your watch, sunrises, whatever you choose. For the observed, no time would have passed at all - from their position.

We can all look back in time anyway - simply look at the sky - the sun light we see is actually aboout 6/7 seconds (I think) old by the time we see it, so as you glance at the sun, the image you see is history to the sun, but now for you. If you are looking at stars, it is possible that they ceased to exist 1000's of years ago as by the time their light (ie what we see) reaches us, 1000's of years have passed due to the immense distance travelled - so the universe we see could be gone already - scared yet? Seeing dead things are we?

Answer 5

As previously mentioned I assume you with the machine are somehow exempt from its affect. Otherwise just would skip over a lapse in time and therefore not notice it. If you were exempt from the time lapse, time could be measured in what ever units you like as you would be in your own universe.

Answer 6

Well it wouldn't be temporary, would it. If you stopped time (by whatever means) you deny your machine, or the process that the machine has set in place any time to operate in. So the swithching-back-on process wouldn't happen. It would be permanent.

Answer 7

I would rather have a machine that allows time-foreward motion.

Answer 8

I've built one. Here, watch this. OK, do you want to see it again?