[ExI] Is there an alternative to the block time view?

[Jason Resch]

Hi Bill,

Thank you again.

If.tky are interested in testing this further, I would follow up by asking
it to consider the Andromeda paradox and ask how that can be reconciled
with an objective present within the context of special relativity.

Jason

On Tue, Mar 4, 2025, 3:52 AM BillK via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

> On Mon, 3 Mar 2025 at 21:58, Jason Resch via extropy-chat <
> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
>
>>
>> Hi Bill,
>>
>> If you ask an AI to give you all the objections, it will do so.
>>
>> What does Grok say when you ask it, instead, to give you all the
>> compelling reasons why physicists, by and large, accept the block-time view
>> (despite it going against what we all think and perceive)?
>>
>> Jason
>>  _______________________________________________
>>
>
>
> I have chatted to Grok 3 a bit more.
> It seemed to think that proving Einstein's Theory of Relativity was
> virtually the same as proving that the Block Universe concept was also
> correct.
> (Which is what I think you are saying about physicists).
>
> Until pushed into a corner, when it grudgingly made some admissions that
> weaken that somewhat.
> See below.
> BillK
>
> Grok 3 comments -
> While a supporter of the Block Universe may accept that time is an
> illusion and all events are predetermined, their lived reality forces them
> to operate within the illusion of a dynamic, flowing time. They plan,
> choose, and live as if the past is fixed and the future is
> unwritten—behaving, in practice, as though the Block Universe does not
> exist. This disconnect between belief and behavior is unavoidable, rooted
> in the limits of human perception and the demands of everyday life.
> Does Proving Relativity Prove the Block Universe?
>
> Not exactly. While relativity provides a foundation that makes the Block
> Universe plausible, it doesn’t directly prove it. Here’s why:
>
>    - *Relativity’s Contribution*: Special relativity shows that time is a
>    dimension, like space, and introduces the *relativity of simultaneity*—different
>    observers moving at different speeds can’t agree on what events happen
>    "now." This challenges the idea of a single, universal present moment,
>    which aligns well with the Block Universe’s view that all moments coexist.
>    The spacetime framework of relativity naturally suggests a structure where
>    past, present, and future could all be real.
>    - *A Philosophical Leap*: However, the Block Universe goes beyond the
>    equations of relativity. The theory itself doesn’t demand that all moments
>    exist simultaneously—it’s silent on whether the past and future are "real"
>    in a metaphysical sense. Deciding that they are is a philosophical choice,
>    not a scientific proof. Other interpretations of time exist.
>
> *No Direct Evidence*: Relativity has been tested and confirmed through
> experiments, but the Block Universe can’t be directly tested. We experience
> time as a sequence, not a block, so the idea that all time exists at once
> remains a conceptual model, not a proven fact.
> -----------------------
>
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