Time
hideTime is a component of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify the motions of objects. Time has been a major subject of religion, philosophy, and science, but defining it in a non-controversial manner applicable to all fields of study has consistently eluded the greatest scholars.
In physics as well as in other sciences, time is considered one of the few fundamental quantities. Time is used to define other quantities – such as velocity – and defining time in terms of such quantities would result in circularity of definition. An operational definition of time, wherein one says that observing a certain number of repetitions of one or another standard cyclical event (such as the passage of a free-swinging pendulum) constitutes one standard unit such as the second, is highly useful in the conduct of both advanced experiments and everyday affairs of life. The operational definition leaves aside the question whether there is something called time, apart from the counting activity just mentioned, that flows and that can be measured. Investigations of a single continuum called spacetime brings the nature of time into association with related questions into the nature of space, questions that have their roots in the works of early students of natural philosophy.
Among prominent philosophers, there are two distinct viewpoints on time. One view is that time is part of the fundamental structure of the universe, a dimension in which events occur in sequence. Time travel, in this view, becomes a possibility as other "times" persist like frames of a film strip, spread out across the time line. Sir Isaac Newton subscribed to this realist view, and hence it is sometimes referred to as Newtonian time. The opposing view is that time does not refer to any kind of "container" that events and objects "move through", nor to any entity that "flows", but that it is instead part of a fundamental intellectual structure (together with space and number) within which humans sequence and compare events. This second view, in the tradition of Gottfried Leibniz and Immanuel Kant, holds that time is neither an event nor a thing, and thus is not itself measurable nor can it be travelled.
Temporal measurement has occupied scientists and technologists, and was a prime motivation in navigation and astronomy. Periodic events and periodic motion have long served as standards for units of time. Examples include the apparent motion of the sun across the sky, the phases of the moon, the swing of a pendulum, and the beat of a heart. Currently, the international unit of time, the second, is defined in terms of radiation emitted by caesium atoms (see below). Time is also of significant social importance, having economic value ("time is money") as well as personal value, due to an awareness of the limited time in each day and in human life spans.
For more information about Time, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with time
AOL offers buyouts to over a third of work force
Nov 19, 2009 |
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(AP) -- The struggling Internet company AOL plans to shed up to 2,500 jobs - more than a third of its work force - as it prepares to separate from Time Warner and finally sever their ill-fated marriage.
Study: Can meditation sharpen our attention?
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Nov 13, 2009 |
4 / 5 (10) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison suggests that people can train their minds to stay focused.
AOL to log additional $200M in restructuring costs
Nov 12, 2009 |
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(AP) -- New regulatory filings suggest many more layoffs could be coming at AOL LLC as it separates from Time Warner Inc. by the end of the year.
Earthquakes actually aftershocks of 19th century quakes
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 04, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (19) |
13
(PhysOrg.com) -- When small earthquakes shake the central U.S., citizens often fear the rumbles are signs a big earthquake is coming. Fortunately, new research instead shows that most of these earthquakes ...
Capturing those in-between moments: Researchers solves timing problem in molecular modeling
Nov 04, 2009 |
5 / 5 (5) |
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A theoretical physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology has developed a method for calculating the motions and forces of thousands of atoms simultaneously over a wider range of time scales ...
Developmental drug may help bone fractures heal after radiation exposure
Nov 02, 2009 |
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A drug currently under development by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine may help bone fractures heal more quickly after radiation exposure, according to a study by Pitt researchers. The study's results will ...
Major layoffs loom at Time Inc.: reports
Oct 30, 2009 |
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Time Inc., publisher of Time, Fortune, Sports Illustrated, People and other magazines, plans to lay off some 540 employees starting next week, or six percent of its workforce, The New York Post reported Friday.
Study Shows Thousands of Consumer Internet Connectivity Devices Are Vulnerable to Attack
Technology / Computer Sciences
Oct 26, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Following news reports that 65,000 modems and wireless routers used by Time Warner Cable customers are vulnerable to attack by hackers, a Columbia University expert on computer security and ...
Major advance in organic solar cells
Oct 19, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (14) |
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Professor Guillermo Bazan and a team of postgraduate researchers at UC Santa Barbara's Center for Polymers and Organic Solids (CPOS) today announced a major advance in the synthesis of organic polymers for plastic solar cells. ...
Mayo Clinic tests non-incision, endoscopic ulcer repair
Oct 14, 2009 |
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Mayo Clinic surgical researchers are reporting a 93 percent success rate in recent animal tests of endoscopic repair of perforated ulcers. The goal is to advance the use of an endoscope -- which allows access to organs through ...
How to win by concession and avoid unproductive conflict
Other Sciences / Social Sciences
Oct 13, 2009 |
3.7 / 5 (3) |
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A new study published in Economic Inquiry explores the seminal question: "If we can make a deal, why fight?" The authors conclude that a combination of common knowledge and a common rate of time preference allow a potent ...
Comcast looks to future in bid for NBC Universal
Oct 02, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Years ago, Comcast Corp. CEO Brian Roberts was asked at a conference what kept him awake at night. His answer: A new technology that would severely hurt the cable TV business.
Study shows that elderly women sleep better than they think, men sleep worse
Oct 01, 2009 |
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A study in the Oct.1 issue of the journal Sleep shows that elderly women sleep better than elderly men even though women consistently report that their sleep is shorter and poorer.
Time Lens Speeds Up Optical Data Transmission
Sep 28, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (14) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Cornell University have developed a device called a "time lens" which is a silicon device for speeding up optical data. The basic components of this device are an optical-fiber ...
Investors need not lose sleep over daylight saving
Sep 24, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The changeover to and from daylight saving does not have a detrimental effect on financial markets, according to new research.
