David Eagleman - Is Time Real?
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- čas přidán 19. 11. 2022
- What does it mean for time to be real? Is time the ultimate stage on which all events play? Some physicists and philosophers would say no, time is an illusion; time is not real. How can that be? Is our sense of time all wrong?
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David Eagleman is a neuroscientist and writer at Stanford University.
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Closer to Truth, hosted by Robert Lawrence Kuhn and directed by Peter Getzels, presents the world’s greatest thinkers exploring humanity’s deepest questions. Discover fundamental issues of existence. Engage new and diverse ways of thinking. Appreciate intense debates. Share your own opinions. Seek your own answers.
The ability of your guest to convey difficult concepts so clearly and succinctly is rare and remarkable. Having an ambassador of science to the public is very important. He and you are doing important work. 🙏
Just once in my life, I got Tea when I had asked for Coffee. It took 7 or 8 seconds and 2 slurps before I realised. I had already decided the outcome, taste and experience and initially it tasted and smelt of coffee. That absolute now moment was a total illusion.
It's this expectatation thing and it feels bizarre. Once i had this with milk and buttermilk.
How high were you?
Compelling stuff RLK. My old late physics teacher here in Britain, Mr Barrowman (and I am myself now 67 years old), once explained to me that if I were a photon that had travelled to a telescope here on earth from a star billions and billions of light years away, that from that photon's perspective the journey would have taken zero time --- it would have been instantaneous departure and arrival whatever the distance travelled, and the journey would have involved zero distance travelled too as far as the photon was concerned. This was completely fascinating but quite baffling to me, and my brain still struggles to get a grasp on this many, many years later --- but thank you and David Eagleman so much for such a fascinating video, and I shall keep on trying, with the help of people like you 👍.
Yeah, time just ceases to exist at the speed of light.
The first thing I did before watching this video was to reflexively check the running time to see if I had the time to watch it.
I'm new to this channel but this is probably the best interviewer i have ever seen. The way he's engaged in the conversations instead of asking scripted questions is outstanding.
Soooo interesting. Neuroscience needs far more exposure to the masses. What we take as absolute reality, is far more complicated than we generally believe. I second the person who has asked for more interviews with this guy. Really fascinating stuff
The extremely rapid advance of neuroscience, especially applied neuroscience, combined with/driven by AI is one of the most exciting developments for me to watch for the next, if I'm lucky, 40 or 50 years of life.
This was awesome. It was exactly what I was looking for.
More interviews with him please
When do you think this interview took place? This week?
You know this is is from _years_ ago, right?
This interview is approximately 10 years old. The last time Eagleman appeared on CTT was in 2017, which may or may not have been filmed in 2017 (CTT reused old interview footage a lot).
@@b.g.5869 yeah but time doesn't exist so y'know ....
@@tales-from-this-crypt 😂
@@b.g.5869 Arabic news aljazira
@@alideeb7906 I don't understand why you're mentioning Al Jazeera. What does that have to do with this?
I love how Robert actually usually knows more than the guests. He's too much a gentleman to describe it that way. Part of the reason he knows more is because he takes is knowledge from so many fields. I try to never miss an episode.
Unfortunately, his politeness often prevents him from asking tough follow-up questions when his guests spew bs. I don''t understand why he bothered to ask a neuroscientist about objective physical time, unless he hoped to show us that neuroscientists can tell us only about the subjective perception of time constructed by the brain.
@@brothermine2292 Not sure about the guest's publishing history, but he may have discussed these things somewhere in his work. Philosophers, neuroscientists, mathematicians, AI/virtual world developers, historians who study the history of science...any of these, and more, can have an interesting POV on time, or the nature of reality. I think he asks follow up questions, he just avoids hammering them to make them uncomfortable.
@@brothermine2292 Because this neuroscientist's work centers on seeing how that subjective internal experience connects with actual physical reality. In this case, his point was that it connects very loosely- which tells us that our subjective experience of time isn't correct- and may even be a complete human construct. This connects very closely with the work of physicists and cosmologists, whom he spoke with in previous shows, who are now saying time is possibly 100% a human construct, that it actually emerges from something more fundamental but does not exist as we experience it. Which describes the block universe- where the past, present, and future all exists simultaneously and which one we experience depends on our reference point. Relativity proves this beyond doubt, and we've tested relativity to the point of exhaustion. Space may also be a construct, very akin to time- relativity tells us they're the same thing after all. One reason we've started to think this is because if something is objectively real then we should be able to talk intelligently about any amount of it- but that's not the case with space or time. We eventually run into the Planck limit- and anything smaller loses the properties that make it space or time- it now becomes something unintelligible that we can't say anything about- because it doesn't really exist. It's like you've gotten to a space so small the constituents that combine to give us the emergent property of space and time can't do it's thing- whatever that is- so we lose the illusion. What if space and time are actually vibrations in a field, and if you just keep looking at a smaller and smaller spaces- you eventually are looking at a space smaller than the wavelength- so you no longer see the emergent property- you see the field it emanates from?
@@stoneysdead689 : Your reply appeals to Relativity and Quantum Mechanics, not to Neuroscience, to argue that objective time & space are different than how we subjectively perceive them. You're essentially making my point, that Neuroscience can't tell us about objective reality.
By the way, Relativity does NOT imply space & time are the same. It implies there is a relationship between them.
@@brothermine2292 Nope- I disagree with you completely- nice try though. Personally, I think neuroscience, which explains the lens through which you experience time- is just as important to understand and at least half the equation. You want to know about objective reality- then you have to understand and decode the lens through which you experience it. Neuro science ha plenty to tell us about objective time. Namely- how we misinterpret it.
Time perception is absolutely personal. Different from other old people I know, time is extremely slow for me. I usually feel one week as long as it was a fortnight or even more. Strange but not disgusting.
I'm not quite sure why but that interview made me laugh with joy.
David Eagleman is one of my most favorite researchers who can communicate their work and findings to the public. He is extremely skilled at giving us keen insights into our neurobiological systems.
I'm so glad you had David Eagleman on. His documentary _The Brain_ highlights the incredible intelligent creative power locked up in this remarkable organ of ours.
😅
Anyone who enjoyed this will love the talk between David Eagleman and Sadhguru. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
Nah, it isn't a given that people interested in philosophy, psychology or physics will like or agree with Sadhguru. For example, I don't agree with most anything he says.
@@SolidSiren if you look only for people you agree with, how open you are to new or challenging ideas? Sadhguru is quite intelligent, and among loads of bullshit he says, he may provide some very insightful thoughts. You don't need to agree to enjoy a good talk. C'mon.
My favourite video on Closer to Truth I've seen, and I've watched hundreds over the years.
Really? What was exactly so good about it? I mean he didn’t told something unexpected. I’m asking that because I maybe missed something about this interview.
It's interesting that in exploring the question "is time real?" the majority of this basic discussion revolves around how long (how much time) it takes for the brain to react...can anyone reconcile that and explain the paradox?
Another beautiful convo, thanks Dr. Kuhn!
It has been discussed for a very long time whether time exists or not. 🤔
Although it was never discussed before the invention of time.
In minimal time the comments are proliferating!
Interesting thing about time and this video segment interview is that it happened 6+ years ago.
Imagine that!
Thought provoking conversation 👌
yes, it's about time.
I've been thinking a lot lately about time, and am leaning more and more towards it not existing.. It's wild to conceive what that means!🤯
It means... it seems to me... there are only lumps of stuff existing.
A lump moves relative to other lumps and not absolutely.
'Relative' means movement is not a property of a lump.
Movement is not a lump nor a property of a lump but
without lumps there can be no movement.
One might say, lumps are the 'substrate' of movement.
There is no mention of time in any of this because
the concept of time is derived from
lumps and movement.
I go even farther and assert
everything for which there is a noun
is derived from lumps and movement.
Fascinating and enlightening interview, thank you for sharing!
complete rubbish, as usual for this channel.
"Now" is felt, but flow of time is reconstructed according to physical laws because no one feels flow of time. It's a story we build to give us meaning of life
There is no flow of time. There is only now.
The arrow of time points forward in time because of the wave function collapse. Because causality has a speed limit every point in space sees itself as the closest to the present moment. When we look out into the universe, we see the past which is made of particles (GR). When we try to look at smaller and smaller sizes and distances, we are actually looking closer and closer to the present moment (QM). The wave property of particles appears when we start looking into the future of that particle. It is a probability wave because the future is probabilistic. Wave function collapse happens when we bring a particle into the present/past.
Fascinating! Great interviewee!
Often people who are involved in or who witness an accident will tell you that time slowed down in those moments, like a movie in slow motion
Intriguing and delightful conversation. And very consumable and understandable.
Fascinating and delightful conversation ! Thank you
That was very interesting and very eloquently presented. Thank you
Sad how this video deserves MILLIONS of views within 24hrs yet only got 17K says a lot about the state the world is in at the moment.
I like to watch a good "is time real" video to start my day ... In case I'm late for work I'll have an excuse my boss just can't argue with :)
Amazing interview! Thank you!
I enjoyed every second of this extraordinary interview!!! Time to watch it again, this time I will get it quicker! 😉
This guest is awesome, really fascinating. Such a tricky topic to even start unpacking, but he does it.
He fails completely. He's all mastery of the obvious. Nothing new here
The discussion about the human perception of time and the discussion about whether time exists seems to be two different discussions. The objective reality of time is independent of human perception. Things are born, they age and they die. My telomeres get shorter with age. My body deteriorates over time and that is independent of my experience or measurement of it. What am I missing?
Just what I'm wondering here, are we talking about the same thing? Time might be an illusion, but ageing is not. So how is ageing explained?
Chronos was the original word for time. Kronos is the Greek god of time who is described as a destructive all devouring force. Which is how people in general view time today but time isn't the culprit it's the destructive, devouring forces of erosion and ageing that are, time just tracks and measures the process.
I got this info from an article on reddit r/time from 12 days ago titled "A brief mystery of time". Worth a read.
Great interview!
Mind....BLOWN!
Asking "Is time real?" is like asking "Is meter real?" "Is celsius real?" "Is kilogram real?" When you try to measure moment, time is the result.
Interesting discussion. This guy is definitely in love with what he studies!
He's in love with the sound of his voice. Thats all😅
Thought-provoking interview.
I love that you refer to a tenth of a second as "a long time ago" 👌
Thought provoking conversation . Interesting. Love to see an interview on relation between reflex and time..
Really good! I love this kind of stuff.
Oh I'm fascinated with time, I love it when you ask them about this topic
Wish youtube had mostly content like this ... great stuff
havent been on the channel for a while but great discussion. should explore more topics with this guest.
I figured this out on a treadmill,when I had a clock in front of me I perceived the run as being longer,but then I ran a mile without a clock,same exact time,same exact distance(+-5sec),but I perceived it as being shorter in my mind.
Just like mathematics, time is a very useful invention/ concept from the mind of man...
Very true. Maths, time and money are only inventions to help make sense of things
New entry into my top 10 CTT speakers. Well sail descriptions on the tough to discern matter of time, compelling. Dig up more of him.
He appeared in 4 episodes. You can see which ones on the Wikipedia article on CTT episodes.
@@b.g.5869 I really appreciate you.. & will use the information. Thanks a bunch!
Everything occurs in the “now”. The perception of time is a construct of our brain. “Now” is constant and will never change.
This is so fascinating
Fantastic interview
This is what keeps me up at night but it’s what also helps me sleep if that makes any sense.
I think I know what you meant. My unsolicited advice, based on my own experience, is to try fiction audiobooks (or radio plays) to help you fall asleep. If you wake up frequently, choose a player that will let you quickly rewind to a point in the story that you remember. (CZcams on my phone is an adequate player for free youtube audiobooks.)
The trick is to choose stories that are interesting enough to suppress your own thoughts about the previous day's events and the next day's upcoming problems, but not so fascinating that they will keep you awake. In my experience, fiction works better than non-fiction for falling asleep. The audio tracks of tv episodes that you've watched before can work well too.
@@brothermine2292 thanks! I’ll give that a go. I’ve had sleep problems all my life. Some nights are great others are not.
This one is gold.
Love the series!
Interesting. Love to see an interview on relation between reflex and time.
Fascinating, thank you.
Well it took me a tenth of a second but I really enjoyed that...
... as I do every episode.
Incredible ability to explain.
This was so awesome
Time is just speed and movement. Like if we go the speed of light time stands still, and if every object in the universe stops moving (speed 0) time stands still. So it's not really a thing at all. I talk about this all the time on my channel. Oh, and we live in a computer. So a computer is going to have a "clock" for it's own absolute time and all that. So what we're dealing with is relative to that, too.
Amazing stuff - thank you
Fascinating and articulate
Robert, please interview Bernardo Kastrup. He is brilliant.
I think of time as an attendant attribute of motion.
Fascinating
I have been mostly persuaded that a presentist account of reality is correct and it was my fondness for presentism that caused me first to wonder if time was real… I think, maybe, it is not real. I think time might be a mental construct… it is a way of understanding what has happened and what might happen as distinct from what is happening.
Time is just one thing changing relative to something else. Every new moment is a change in arrangement.
It isn't time but events that is one thing changing relative to something else. Every new moment is a change in arrangement but moment isn't as it's defined i.e. "..a brief period of time" because moment comes from the latin momentum which is an event related term meaning that moment is actually a "..very brief period of an event" this also reduces period to being an event related term i.e. ".......period of an event".
The best way I think of time is that it 'keeps everything from happening all at once.' That doesn't mean it 'controls' things or instructs events from not happening all at once, but rather it is the default separation of events at the same location. If anything happens in sequence, that sequence becomes time.
Time is, "Everything happening all at once". Space prevents this.
@@frontech3271 "Time is, "Everything happening all at once". Space prevents this."
Prevents what? Prevents time? Or it prevents everything from happening all at once?
This interesting conversation does ignore that the same timestamp has a huge influence on many different individuals. Around midnight in the timezone of Denver, Colorado, some perpetrator killed 5 people and wounded many more in a gay nightclub. This event is irreversible. Something similar happened elsewhere in the past, and might happen again, but this event in Colorado Springs will never occur again.
Mind blowing as usual.
RLK is a master at asking the right questions
*"RLK is a master at asking the right questions"*
... _Time will tell_ if he gets the answers he seeks.
Yes he is! A very bright man, and hardworking!
Time is memory, and arguably completely a conscious construct. It necessitates remembering a previous state and comparing that with a present state and observing some change. Without something to keep track of change, the world is only a bunch of presents, no past no future.
I couldn't agree more
All this moment does is change, from low to high entropy. We misperceive that as time flowing. When we move at the speed of light, it’s not time that slows, it’s entropy. But in reality there is only this moment in constant flux.
Wow last 2 minutes were amazing
Finally ppl are getting what has been understood for thousands of years in spiritual circles.
Next is to understand the two parts of time perceptions, the individual frequency of consciousness creating it's own reality, and the programmed matrix, the lowest base frequency of the collective consciousnesses developed through standardised and taught belief systems. And of course that that collective is still priorotised to individualis to the ppl you have additional etheric connections to, over the matrix itself.
I wonder if we could have had a different notion of time if we hadn't learn it from our ancestors.
Absolutely fascinating, thank you as always.
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The present moment is the only thing that's real. Everything else is a story we tell ourselves. I think this is the start & end of what Buddhism is all about. We can't divorce ourselves from the story we tell ourselves (as a car hurtles toward us). But, we give a lot of space in our mind to the story that doesn't matter. It's noise to drown out the present moment. It's ego (to make the present moment conform).
Great.❤ 👍 This Channel is Great asset and treasure in field of consciousness research.
Informative
Time is a measurement of movement over distance...
Well this was awesome
The only way one can ever understand reality in a whole and satisfying way is to see the incontrovertible truth that is...the only way to make sense of this world is to first understand that the main predictor of intelligible experience is to take into account the validity of the basic experience of the entity itself that's having that experience in the first place.
More please.
Okay, this guy is my number-one candidate for the guy who will actually build a Time Machine. He has that look.
I remember this clip from quite a few years ago.
I would love to see a duo discuss both sides , David E and Tim Maud , wow to see what would come of the two discussing time !!!
Time is a succession of present moments. A present moment is an opportunity for change. When we say, "I wish time would stop," we really mean, "I wish nothing would change." In those moments we get intimations of eternity, the absence of time, which is just one unending present moment. But things change because time allows for it. We long for eternity when we want nothing to change, but we long for more time when we seek change.
Time might not be just an illusion, but it's probably not what we tend to think when we use expressions such as "time flies." Anyhow, maybe time is not what is fleeting, but everything else. Maybe time is like the trees by the side of the road that seem to hurry past us. Maybe time is the still background on which we're able to perceive change. Maybe time is not the hands moving around but the face of the clock. And that's why our subjective perception of time can be so variable: it depends on how fast we're changing. Days seem to go by faster the busier we are. The faster we go, the faster the trees seem to fly by. In this sense, I think time is an illusion: it seems to move, but it is everything else that's moving/changing. Change can happen and be perceived, because time is the fixed background.
There are good reasons to assume that it's us who are moving relative to a background of "events".
If you take GR seriously, that's exactly what it says.
That would make "now" a perspective as one moves along through the "block", it would allow the physical laws to appear exactly as they are, and it would make causality a geometric phenomenon. I suspect that Einstein didn't push the idea only because it was so obvious to him.
It's still "time" but it's not the typical impression we get from it.
It seems odd that we would agree mostly with Einstein but not on this consequence GR.
That's like accepting GR but not the mass energy equivalence.
I'm not uncomfortable with the idea that my worldline intersects with the universe at one point after another. So, maybe the whole thing is 5 dimensional? That's not super crazy or anything. :)
Time is as real as the language we use to define it and the inescapable experience of it, but reality is ineffable and we are amnesiac as to our fullest experience of it.
Yes, more of this.
Time is memory. Without having any memory we wouldn't perceive time.
Yes. Stare at a wall clock with a big second hand. I did this when I was 5. I had a sense of time but didn’t understand it. I though if I could stare hard enough, really look hard at the second hand, I could slow it down or even stop it. No such luck. The hand keeps moving relentlessly. Later I realized that time is the movement of the hand from one point to another. But that requires memory (working memory to be specific) to have that sense of time - spacetime really. We think we understand the world around us but we only understand what our brain is capable of conceiving. You can know what you know, and you can know what you don’t know, but you can’t know what you can’t know. Imannual Cant.
Mind blown-at some point in time. Not really sure when that point is….
Great chemistry between these two
Now I understand now
It is safe to make certain assumptions about the nature of time. Even if different brains perceive time a little differently, the basic nature of time is related to "causality", Caust < Effect relationships that occur in the real world. Things that exist outside our brain. For example, making a road trip. Time might pass for different travelers but certain empirical events are happening and one thing causes another thing that causes another thing, etc. So time does pass simply as a result of causality.
There is a big difference between what happens in the brain during dreams and during driving, shooting,…etc where humans can reach perfection, that will match physics calculations, for instance using robots in driving, shooting,…etc
Our body and nervous system is distributed over space and can only coordinate at neural speeds, which are relatively slow . About every third of a second we subconsciously make a calculation of what us optimal to do next. Within the third of the second we automatically process inputs to outputs as fast as possible to control in accordance with that decision.
Best guest yet🐦🐦🐦
Mind blown …
It took me a long time to understand that I see time as a place. All time (life) I can remember is a place to me. I didn't realize this was something different until I read a paper on that this construct was a dysphasia and not everyone can see time (places in time). It would take me another decade to realize it's a natural skill and not a brain issue. I'm going to go read David's work now (this week) - great video thank you! I'm glad people are having these discussions now - this wasn't available to me say 20 years ago.