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Author Topic:   A speculation that Time is naturally explained
JavaMan
Member (Idle past 2347 days)
Posts: 475
From: York, England
Joined: 08-05-2005


Message 4 of 6 (374649)
01-05-2007 8:26 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by mike the wiz
01-04-2007 5:52 PM


Locke and Time
You might be interested in this passage from Locke's Essay Concerning Human Understanding (Book 2, Chapter XIV):
John Locke writes:
31. Origin of our Ideas of Duration, and of the measures of it.
And thus I think it is plain, that from those two fountains of all
knowledge before mentioned, viz. reflection and sensation, we got the
ideas of duration, and the measures of it.
For, First, by observing what passes in our minds, how our ideas there
in train constantly some vanish and others begin to appear, we come by
the idea of SUCCESSION. Secondly, by observing a distance in the parts
of this succession, we get the idea of DURATION.
Thirdly, by sensation observing certain appearances, at certain regular
and seeming equidistant periods, we get the ideas of certain LENGTHS or
MEASURES OF DURATION, as minutes, hours, days, years, &c.
Fourthly, by being able to repeat those measures of time, or ideas of
stated length of duration, in our minds, as often as we will, we can
come to imagine DURATION,--WHERE NOTHING DOES REALLY ENDURE OR EXIST;
and thus we imagine to-morrow, next year, or seven years hence.
Fifthly, by being able to repeat ideas of any length of time, as of a
minute, a year, or an age, as often as we will in our own thoughts,
and adding them one to another, without ever coming to the end of such
addition, any nearer than we can to the end of number, to which we can
always add; we come by the idea of ETERNITY, as the future eternal
duration of our souls, as well as the eternity of that infinite Being
which must necessarily have always existed.
Sixthly, by considering any part of infinite duration, as set out
by periodical measures, we come by the idea of what we call TIME in
general.

'I can't even fit all my wife's clothes into a suitcase for travelling. So you want me to believe we're going to put all of the planets and stars and everything into a sandwich bag?' - q3psycho on the Big Bang

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by mike the wiz, posted 01-04-2007 5:52 PM mike the wiz has not replied

  
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