Maybe there is no such thing as past, present, and future. It's all one thing, but to creatures like us it seems to be crawling along slowly with spaces in between.
2006-10-09 13:57:06 · 8 answers · asked by Sinner & Saint 2 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Do you think this could be supported? Is it possible?
2006-10-09 14:00:35 · update #1
You either just read, or need to read Slaughter House Five by Kurt Vonnegut, which describes a race of aliens that can see in four dimensions. To them humans look like a millipede with baby legs at the beginning and adult legs at the end. Then you need to read a Brief History of Time, wherein Stephen Hawking describes why we can remember the past but not the future using the second law of thermodynamics.
2006-10-09 14:08:59 · answer #1 · answered by Calico_Jack 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's an interesting question. Since pretty much everything in this world is about perception, it's certainly not an "out there" question.
My grandmother had a stroke several years ago. Afterward, her perception of time changed drastically. We would be at a red light behind another car. The moment the light turned green, she would be yelling at the car in front of us because she thought they weren't paying attention (of course, she wasn't driving - she never did again after the stroke).
I read a great sci-fi book once about a race of creatures whose life span was 8 days. They did everything we did in those 8 days. I remember thinking how sad it was that they had such a short lifespan - and as I get older, I realize that it's all about perception. I used to think that life was really really long - and now, at 40, I realize it's really not - for someone with a lifespan of 8 days, where aging occurs just like with us just accelerated, they probably felt in the first few days as though life would stretch on forever. I imagine by day 4, they were starting to feel their mortality too.
Perception is interesting...
2006-10-09 14:03:34 · answer #2 · answered by tagi_65 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Everything does happen at once and it is impossible for anyone to perceive all of it.
Past is just recorded information.
Future is prediction based on recorded information.
Just enjoy it.
2006-10-09 14:23:35 · answer #3 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You know when you stay up for a few days and it just seems like one huge day, everything is happening at once.
2006-10-09 15:40:31 · answer #4 · answered by bigbearquest 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Isn't that exactly what Quantum Physics is all about. Watch the DVD "What the Bleep Do I Know", you'll like it!
2006-10-09 14:14:28 · answer #5 · answered by Sweetie Poo 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only if we let it. Focus. Be selective.
2006-10-09 14:02:40 · answer #6 · answered by Valac Gypsy 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
are you talking about a time machine?
2006-10-09 14:02:37 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
so whats your question?
2006-10-09 13:58:35 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋