Re-Thinking Time at the Interface of Physics and Philosophy: The Forgotten Present

Description

The current volume of the Parmenides Series “On Thinking” addresses our deepest and most personal experience of the world, the experience of “the present,” from a modern perspective combining physics and philosophy. Many prominent researchers have contributed articles to the volume, in which they present models and express their opinions on and, in some cases, also their skepticism about the subject and how it may be (or may not be) addressed, as well as which aspects they consider most relevant in this context. While Einstein might have once hoped that “the present” would find its place in the theory of general relativity, in a later discussion with Carnap he expressed his disappointment that he was never able to achieve this goal. This collection of articles provides a unique overview of different modern approaches, representing not only a valuable summary for experts, but also a nearly inexhaustible source of profound and novel ideas for those who are simply interested in this question. Front Matter....Pages i-x The Forgotten Present....Pages 1-46 Autogenetic Network Theory....Pages 47-65 Relational Events and the Conflict Between Relativity and the Collapse....Pages 67-91 Relativistic Interactions and the Structure of Time....Pages 93-107 Instants in Physics: Point Mechanics and General Relativity....Pages 109-123 Irreversibility and Collapse Models....Pages 125-146 Time and the Algebraic Theory of Moments....Pages 147-175 The Problem of Time and the Problem of Quantum Measurement....Pages 177-191 Classical and Quantum Probability: The Two Logics of Science....Pages 193-210 Present and Future in Quantum Mechanics....Pages 211-229 Quantum Physics and Presentism....Pages 231-248 Now, Factuality and Conditio Humana....Pages 249-267 Back Matter....Pages 269-274