In all three classes, we had very interesting and intense discussions of the ontology of time, meaning, what exactly is it? This is a space to extend the conversation about whether time is the same thing as change, whether the past and future are "real," and whether our measurements of time are trustworthy. You can also consider how time ties into ethics, as in Buddhism. Post in the comments below (yes, this counts for extra participation points). I'll start us off by referring back to Hugh Mellor's quote on time from the Ontology 101 packet: "Nothing about past, present and future is built into time. What IS built into time is the difference between earlier and later," which is like the difference between "north and south." Time has a "direction," but it does not have future and past as really existing things. "We are 'reading' into the world something that [is part of] our relation to it." (Incidentally, that'd mean Parmenides is wrong, and time travel is impossible.) What do you think??
22 Comments
Kelly Gagliano
9/13/2015 11:02:31 am
I think that the future and the past are existing things. How can we have a present without the future or the past? There is a constant movement of the future becoming the present, and the present becoming the past. What you did 10 seconds ago still exists, and what you will do 10 seconds from now will exist. If the past didn't exist, how could we say that we were born? Or that wars happened? However, I don't think that time travel is possible because we are stuck to our position in time. To go back or forward would be inconceivable.
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Julia Nijnens
9/15/2015 05:42:22 pm
I completely agree with what you are saying. I asked the same questions. Yes, we live in the present but we live in the present because we were here in the past and we are gonna be here in the future. The future can be an hour, a month, several years we never know. But we do know there is a past and a future.
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Biggs
9/24/2015 04:05:40 pm
Does this mean there is a past that literally exists?
Mya
9/13/2015 02:41:43 pm
There's no way of knowing whether or not the past or future exists. We're always in the present. Sure, we can reflect on the past, but how do we know that isn't just an illusion of our minds? Putting that aside, because I feel like too many people approach this with their own internal answer based on how they see the world but are too rigid in their epistemology. There's no way to know.
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Haley Watson
9/14/2015 01:33:37 pm
When we were asked to brainstorm about time in class, one of the questions we had to ask ourselves was if time is subjective or objective. Most people might think that time is objective, particularly because the world revolves around time (e.g. work, school, and sports schedules). In my opinion, time is subjective, meaning individuals define time by their own standards. Take two forty-five year olds for example. One may say that time has treated them fairly, while the other may try to squeeze into their old football varsity jacket and relive the ‘glory days’. This illustration suggests that our measurements of time might not be reliable to one another. It’s similar to how we don’t know if we all see the same colors. One person’s perception of green may be different from another person’s perception of green, just like a person’s definition of an hour may differ from another person’s definition of an hour.
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Biggs
9/24/2015 04:17:58 pm
So, what is the relationship between this subjective aspect of time, the objectivity of change, and the inter-subjective system of clock/calendar time?
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Steven Ansell
9/15/2015 06:51:07 am
In my opinion, change is just a word to express the illusion of time. All humans have fallen victim to this illusion of time all because of the clock. We have become accustomed to our daily routines and doing things at certain times all because of our false measurement of time. Imagine staying awake all night, say until 8 am, and then sleeping all day from 9 am until 6 pm. Imagine going about your day in the wee hours of the night while everyone else is asleep. Running errands at 4 am, doing homework at 5:30 am and not falling asleep until everyone is awake. This would essentially make you nocturnal but it would be going against the traditional beliefs of time; why can't everyone do this? Where did the idea of falling asleep and waking up at a "reasonable" hour start? Who came up with this reasonable hour? Who came up with the 9-5 work hours and why do most adults go along with this traditional schedule? It all had to start somewhere until it became known worldwide as a routine. This leads to my opinion that our measurement of time is not trustworthy. As for past, present and future, I believe that these events are connected through change and our actions.
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Biggs
9/24/2015 04:03:37 pm
Is it possible that time as it exists today is a function of power? Like, a way of regulating human behavior instituted by authorities to maintain order? I know for myself, I would prefer to be essentially nocturnal because I'm much more productive at night, but I'm forced to be on a schedule that is deemed, as you say, "reasonable."
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Olivia Nooney
9/15/2015 12:55:03 pm
I agree with the idea that time has a direction with no definite past or future. The past and future may exist, but it is subjective. For example, when police question witnesses of a crime there are often little details that make each testimony different from one another. Since our versions of the past differ so much, I want to say that neither past nor future are real.
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Biggs
9/24/2015 04:23:33 pm
Oh, great reference with the schema theory! In fact, if there was NO past, we couldn't even have simple habits or memories. Is it possible that the past (and/or future) exists, but our subjective perceptions just prevent us from perceiving it correctly (like in your crime scene example?)
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Julia Nijnens
9/15/2015 05:40:31 pm
Time, in my opinion, is much more than a couple of numbers telling us if its 12 in the morning, or 4 in the afternoon. Time leans towards the idea that there is indeed a definite past or future. How are we supposed to have a future with no past? How can we know about the future if we have no information on the past? For example, our teachers tell us that we learn about history so we don't repeat the same mistakes we committed in the past. Teachers tell us that we are the ones who are going to "change the world". Change is time and time is change.
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Katelyn Johnson
9/15/2015 06:09:35 pm
I have to agree with everyone else when they say that we can only live in the present. What else do we know? I know who I am at this very second, but in an instant I'm a completely different person. I cannot tell you who I was when I woke up this morning or who I will be when I go to bed because I am constantly changing. That uncertainty seems to scare people a lot and make them run away from living in the present moment.
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Jerry T.
9/15/2015 06:13:04 pm
I believe in the past and the present but the future is questionable. Well we live in the present so it has to be real, right? and we lived before the present happened so it makes sense that that is past but the future can be questionable because many philosophers including me (not a philosopher) have come to the idea that the future is meant to happen they believe your destiny is set in stone. But, I believe that time is an idea that helps us be a bit more proficient. many could argue if we didn't have time then we could go by day and night. Day and night sort of defeats the purpose of time because its proof that time is just an illusion because everyone could go by day and night rather than time. SO time is just made up by humans to help us be a bit more.
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:)
9/15/2015 06:15:29 pm
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Biggs
9/24/2015 04:09:13 pm
So "time" is not the same as the change from night to day. In Laozi's terms, you're saying the time that can be told is not the same as the Tao's movements (i.e. physical cycles like day/night or the seasons.)
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Cody Zimmerman
9/15/2015 08:02:11 pm
I just can't get out of my head the idea that things such as time and space and color are only human perceptions. Who cares if there really is a past, present, or future, I think the real question should be why are we limiting ourselves to the three? The human brain has shaped the universe around us, everything we think we know is mere perception, but what if we are wrong? What if everything we have made sense of doesn't even exist?
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Hannah Wallis
9/16/2015 07:45:23 am
Time is an odd concept to discuss. There's really no way to describe it or explain what it does. If time travel does exist, I believe it crosses between dimensions instead of altering time itself. I don't think there is physically a way for us to visit the 1700s or go forward to 2050. If we were to do that it's because another world or dimension is experiencing that year while we are in 2015.
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Logan Applegate
9/16/2015 07:46:05 am
Our world revolves around the concept of time? What is life without time? Do we exist without time? History has changed through time. Time is a hard concept to grasp. I believe there is always change. I do not believe that there is a preset future.
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Biggs
9/24/2015 04:11:08 pm
Start here: is "the concept of time" the same as "change"? Things changed before we had the concept of time...
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Aidan Murphy
9/16/2015 09:36:20 am
Time is change. It is measured by seconds hours days and so on. If nothing has changed no time has past.
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Erin Kelly
9/16/2015 10:14:06 am
Time is something humans made up to make scheduling their days easier based around the cycle of the sun.
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Jasmin F.
9/17/2015 05:56:38 pm
Time. Seconds. Minutes. Hours. Days. Weeks. Months. Years. Those are the basic concepts of time a human being has come up with. How did this all start though. How did we or whomever come to the conclusion that time had to be measured out. And why in the specific form of 60 seconds in a minute , 60 minutes in an hour and so on. Why are we so enrolled in the concept of time when we know everyone views time differently but with such similar ways. I know nothing about time. All I can say is what I think I know which might not even be what I actually know.
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