I think I should start putting a picture in near the beginning or something. When I share my blogs on facebook, the little picture that pops up is just my profile picture from blogger, which is also my picture on facebook... and twitter. I JUST LIKE IT, OKAY?! But, it's still redundant and could use some...sprucing, I suppose the word would be. So, I suppose I'll put this picture in:
(you'll see why soon :})
I've started playing Skyrim again, this time around, I'm playing a mage. This is actually the first time really that I've ever played a mage in any sort of game, unless the protagonist was one to begin with. Whenever I play RPGs, I usually play a class that is close-quarters-oriented. In WoW, my main was a paladin, which I loved SO much more than any of the other classes. I felt so much more in-the-action. In Skyrim, I played as just a warrior, and would only use magic or archery when I felt it was REALLY necessary. In Skyrim though, at one point, a mage describes magic as being a natural force that we are able to control with years of practice. The point was, was that I could literally harness the forces of nature. Mages are wizards are also generally seen as being so brilliant and wise. And as someone who seeks further wisdom, I felt I could actually relate to being a mage more than I could being a warrior. So far, everything has been going splendidly, except that I accidentally killed my housecarl, Lydia, so I am kind of in mourning right now. From the standpoint of an on-looker, it's relatively pathetic... But to each their own.
Well, fuck. I know there were a couple other things I wanted to talk about, but for the life of me, I can't remember.... let me think for a moment.............. Oh yeah, Christmas is in a couple of days, and for those of you who celebrate Hanukkah, it's difficult to spell your holiday (Thank science and man for Google). How odd, when I look at the written word, 'Google,' I can actually see the colors of each letter change to what they are on the website. Blue, red, yellow, blue, green, red. ...Let's check if that's right.... It is. Interesting, I'll need to look into this further at some other time. Anyway, for those of you who celebrate Hanukkah, I believe this is day #3? I suppose I should at least acknowledge any other religious holidays that happen around this time. Either way, I hope all goes well and all have happiness, whether it's the holiday or not. If you're not happy, then go find what makes you happy. Don't think about it, just go.
Tomorrow, I will be reprising the role of Buddy the Elf, accompanying Santa, played by my dad. Together we go out each year and bring a bunch of gifts to a couple families who are... not as well off, I suppose; the less fortunate. It's a program put on by the school where my mom works, but now that she's retiring at the end of this year, I don't know whether this will be our last year doing this or not. Only time will tell.
Which brings me to what I want to talk about today (Ah, what a great transition and lead-in that was). This is actually something that I wanted to talk about the next day after I cleared out that swamp with Colin, but I figured I should hold off. This is one of those subjects that I've been keeping since before I started this blog, and boy (or girl), I'm excited to explain my theory. But first, let's set up the contextual backdrop in which I formed this idea, shall we?
It was some random weekend, leading up to the release of Skyrim. The only reason that this is relavent, is because since Skyrim wasn't out yet, I was trying to satiate my hunger for fantasy-genre media. So, for the fourth time during this past semester, I was doing The Lord of the Rings Extended Edition marathon. Let me also add, that I was not sober in the least when this happened (which, for me, makes this even better). To liken this to someone who may be confused, or perhaps intimidated by the length and seeming complexity of it, don't fret. This is very VERY simple. Think of it as the moment when the apple dropped on Newton's head and he finally put together his theory of Gravity. This is about as close to that as I can get.
Okay, I'll begin as I do whenever I explain to someone in person. What is on X-axis of almost any and every graph? More importantly, what yields movement in our universe? The answer? Time. How does one define 'Time' off the top of their heads? Usually, it's seen as its own entity, an anomalous thing that just happens. This may hurt me in some fashion, but I've never looked at the dictionary definition of 'Time.' On Dictionary.com, Time is defined as:
the system of those sequential relations that any event has to any other, as past, present, or future; indefinite and continuous duration regarded as that in which events succeed one another.
(Well, at least I know where and how Dan came up with his definition of time so quickly when I asked him haha)
So anyway, while watching The Fellowship of the Ring, I was at the part when Gandalf talks with Frodo in Moria In the scene (at like 1:55 in the linked video), Gandalf says, "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." Sidenote: This is actually my favorite line in the entire movie, ...possibly the entire series. It really resonates with my beliefs, which perhaps I should outline to give more context to this whole thing...
Okay, I was saving this for another whole blog, so I guess I'll just give the highlights: I do not believe in any such god, though I do not reject the possibility that I may be wrong after all is said and done. Until there is some definitive proof of such a divine presence working in our universe, I'm sticking with a "What you sense is what you get" mentality. My perspective tries to see things as they are in nature, not how people see things in their mind. We let our conventions control us and we have become close-minded. I am trying to change that, if not in others, then at least within myself. The universe is made up of particles and forces, not some intended path that has been rolled out for Humans. I try to be as logical as I can be and try not to let my emotions interfere when observing, but when interacting with others, try to be as relatively courteous and nice as I can possibly be. I do realize that at times, this may not be the case, and I can at least recognize that I, along with everyone else, is a (presumably) walking contradiction. We see contradiction as being a stain on our identities, when we should just recognize that everyone does it, so now that we see it, let's do something about it, together.
I think that's enough on that subject, at least for now. Anyway, when Gandalf says the line mentioned above, I suddenly recalled another instance in The Two Towers, when he is telling the three hunters his tale and how he "moved across time and space, where every day was as long as a life-age of the earth" (Or so I think it goes.... It's close enough). I can honestly say that I cannot remember what it was about these two lines that sparked it for me, but the idea rushed forward as if I was uncovering it from a lost memory. Oh, how wonderful it was... The metaphorical light that switched on shined brighter than any almost any other (the almost being in comparison to two other huge events, one of which is what led me to my current way of thinking, which I briefly articulated above). I was about to redefine the concept of Time.
We are able to measure relative time, but as it's own separate entity. Time is its own category. This is not the case. In quantum theory and particle physics, there are four forces of nature: gravity, electro-magnetism, Strong Nuclear Force, and Weak Nuclear Force. I don't want to get into explaining the nature of each one, so I'll link this very helpful video, here. A curiosity just struck me as I finished watching that video. At the end, Brian mentions eventually discovering a "Theory of Everything," through the unification of these four forces of nature. How poetic and romantic that sounds... Perhaps, and this is the short version of my theory, Time is actually a fifth force of nature.
Since the Big Bang event that, for all intensive purposes, started the universe as we know it, any and all bodies of mass and particles have been extending outwards, in all directions, at an exponential rate. Aside from the other four forces, which obviously work in conjunction with time, time is almost solely responsible for everything in our universe. Everything that has any sort of movement or change to it, is solely due to time. If there was no time, the big bang would never have happened because nothing moved. All the mass in our universe was collected in one singular spot within space. Time is what changed that.
My theory suggests that perhaps time, as an almost physical force striking that matter, or more likely, time exploded out from within the singular mass. The explosion shoots everything outward and continues to carry everything outward on a wave- a time wave. The time explosion, the big bang is still in the first half of its sequence, or perhaps even the first quarter. I suppose I should explain it this way: think of gravity as the antagonist of time. Gravity is what held together all bodies of mass into that singular point prior to the big bang event. Where time moves things out, gravity pulls it back in. It's also why particles like light move in waves rather than just straight lines. Time is a wave.
Time is also the largest measurement of distance that our universe can reach. This may seem confusing, but think of time as a measurement of distance, rather than of just...well, time. Go look at a clock, not a digital one, but an old-fashioned round clock that you have to read to tell the time. Now go and cut in on the '12' line. Now pull the two sides apart until it's flat. For all intensive purposes, that clock is now a ruler. This is how we measure time through space. The length at which our universe finally stops expanding (the wave of time) is measured as (and I'm going to put this in quotes to distinguish it more), "1 Time." Time is the largest unit of measuring distance in our universe.
Things like video and audio? They're time machines! We are recording past events that actually happened and we watch/hear them because we cannot physically go back in time...yet. When we edit these recordings, we have then discovered the nature of the term, "false" or "Fiction." We are able to manipulate the appearance of events in time so much that we are able to create whole new existences within our minds, which are just pseudo-realities that we create to try and understand nature.
We are able to predict the trajectory of a rocket or something that we launch off. Through calculation, we are able to figure out the relative position, and possibly the exact position of where the rocket went. So here's the kicker, if this is how time works, why can't we do the same thing with literally every body of mass in the universe? Down to the last proton in your body, the trajectory of time (along with the other forces of nature) dictates how each particle moves and acts. So just magnify that to a larger scale. The particles make up cells, which make up tissue, which make up your body chemistry, which pretty much defines who you are, plus your experiences. Anything and everything anyone or anything that has ever happened or ever WILL happen can be predicted through probability. Now, what I sort of mentioned way up above is that I also don't believe in any intended path, nothing is predetermined. That belief has been shaken more than ever since I thought of this. With this, everything is predetermined from probabilities and the dictatorship of nature. Some may see this as being a very scary thought, knowing that there is no real free will and that it's just time moving your particles around enough to make the decision for you. Others may feel a bit more free, knowing that despite what they think, what happens, happens. I tend to lean to the latter.
A further theory from this is that perhaps, when the time wave comes to its stop and gravity begins pulling everything back in, perhaps time will just be going backwards. We, being long dead by this point will come back to life and shrink younger and younger until we are no more yet again until the universe is back to the singular mass it was so long ago. Perhaps that if everything went back exactly how it was before, that when the big bang should happen again, time as we have seen it unfold, and will see it unfold in the future, will just repeat itself. Making the universe the biggest phoenix-metaphor ever! Amazing...
So keep this in mind. You may continue it forward until everyone sees it. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask! And for those that would ask me to prove it, just watch things happen as they do. Don't influence it with your wants and your emotions, just watch it happen and you'll see it.
If you like heavier, more intense, electronic music, this is a good song for you. I went through a small kick with it, but I prefer stuff that's... well, just not as intense - more danceable. Anyway, enjoy Bassnectar's "Timestretch."
Until next time... (Hah! Now it works on two levels.)
So....
ReplyDeleteYou are suggesting that time is in fact a measurement of the expansion of space, where gravity is the resistance of whatever space may or may not be pushing against during the expansion?
And that the oscillations of this "wave" of time is due to the resistance of gravity, and that once this wave stabilizes, gravity will start forcing it down again?
That's some heavy stuff.
Took me about 2 and a half minutes to read through this blogpost, and another minute or so to really get it.
I would reword it like this: The Time Wave moves all bodies of mass within space. The distance it takes for the wave to stop is measured as 1 Time.
ReplyDeleteYes, when the wave finally slows to a stop and the universe that has been made stops expanding, it could be theorized that gravity will pull everything back in, possibly reversing time.
It's so wonderful and amazing. I can't help but wonder the possibilities. How many times have there been? How many times have I existed?
Also, in regards to:
ReplyDelete"So here's the kicker, if this is how time works, why can't we do the same thing with literally every body of mass in the universe? ... Anything and everything anyone or anything that has ever happened or ever WILL happen can be predicted through probability."
We CAN predict that, more or less. The issue is that we can only measure what we can identify (see, hear, feel, etc), or indirectly so by measuring something around it.
So we can't measure anything beyond the visble portion of universe, nor perdict anything past that (Well, we can, kinda, by measuring the changes of objects really far away since we are looking into the past that way, but we are so short lived in the cosmic scheme of things that it's not really an option).
That, and the actions of sentient entities are unpredictable down to a certain point due to not understanding the exact mechanics by which "sentience" itself works.
EDIT:
Right, like how the "raisin bread model" of space works: the "rasins" shift based on the expansion of the "bread".
But was my understanding that "Time" is the movement/expansion of the universe correct?
I'll go to your EDIT first, as it's the shorter answer. Yes, exactly. The movement and expansion that we see is the force of Time at work.
ReplyDeleteNow, on to the bigger portion. Well, the point I was trying to get across wasn't necessarily predicting far away planets, but our own actions as human beings and the course we will take. If we can correctly measure how our molecules will act and react in the future, we can predict everything we will do. That's why I put in the molecules>cells>tissue>brain, etc. Time also dictates the signals we send in our brain to the rest of our body. It dictates it because time dictates everything on both a bigger, and a smaller scale, whether it be each individual molecule or the planet on which we reside. In other words, where the planets and the stars have their own trajectories through space, every molecule, including (& in particular) those that make up the human being, mind and body together, also have their own trajectories through space. That's what we can measure, and that's how we can predict out future.
So if time dictates how our brains work, then it pretty much dictates everything we think or do, ever. Time tells us what we need, what we want, who we are, everything about everything is a slave to Time. I actually wrote both paragraphs at the same time, and the last bit of the paragraph above actually says what I was going to say here.
Right, but even if we can predict the actions of every single cell in the human nervious system, it wouldn't really helo us in any way, because we don't know how the nerological cells actually form thought yet.
ReplyDeleteWe know that a neuron and a skin cell are different, but we don't know what physical portion of the neuron enables it to think en masse vs. a skin cell not being able too.
We can, however, "reverse engineer" thought, in a way.
We can look at brain activity as it looks at a picture, then cross examine it with reactions to a bunch of other pictures, and get a rough idea of what the brain is doing differently when it see's a dog vs. a plane, as seen in http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-09/mind-reading-tech-reconstructs-videos-brain-images
Yes, purely speaking, if this is true and even if your idea is not, the following in fact still is:
When the universe was first forming, all the trajectories and such of the matter defined what it would lead too. Everything that we do today is a result of the cause and effect structure of the exact actions that took place then, much like you can say where a baseball will land if you know the wind, how fast it will be going, the angle, etc.
Since in some way or another, sentience is the effect of the physical form of nervous tissue, every choice or idea we make is set as a reaction to... you get the point right?
The issue is that the human brain is so utterly complex, that any attempt to translate physcial reactions/movements would fail, because even if we say "X atom of Y molucule of Z cell did This, then that", we have no idea of what that "this" and "that" actually effects.
It's like jenga, only on a much, much, much larger scale.
Imagine ever grain of sand in the sahera desert was organized so it forms a rectangle X paricles wide, Y long, and Z tall.
Then, the whole thing moves at (functional, in terms of what we can measure)once. Every grain.
How can we know what grain caused the entire reaction?
...Oh wow.
Despite the above idea being really ovbious and logical, i've never really thought about it before.
But who knows, perhaps we are wrong.
Maybe conscious operates on such a small scale it defies sense and logic, like how subatomic particles can be at two places at once.