Product Description

Time is an illusion. Although the laws of physics create a powerful impression that time is flowing, in fact there are only timeless 'nows'. In The End of Time, the British theoretical physicist Julian Barbour describes the coming revolution in our understanding of the world: a quantum theory of the universe that brings together Einstein's general theory of relativity - which denies the existence of a unique time - and quantum mechanics - which demands one. Barbour believes that only the most radical of ideas can resolve the conflict between these two theories: that there is, quite literally, no time at all. The End of Time is the first full-length account of the crisis in our understanding that has enveloped quantum cosmology. Unifying thinking that has never been brought together before in a book for the general reader, Barbour reveals the true architecture of the universe and demonstrates how physics is coming up sharp against the extraordinary possibility that the sense of time passing emerges from a universe that is timeless. The heart of the book is the author's lucid description of how a world of stillness can appear to be teeming with motion: in this timeless world where all possible instants coexist, complex mathematical rules of quantum mechanics bind together a special selection of these instants in a coherent order that consciousness perceives as the flow of time. Finally, in a lucid and eloquent epilogue, the author speculates on the philosophical implications of his theory: Does free will exist? Is time travel possible? How did the universe begin? Where is heaven? Does the denial of time make life meaningless? Written with exceptional clarity and elegance, this profound and original work presents a dazzlingly powerful argument that all will be able to follow, but no-one with an interest in the workings of the universe will be able to ignore.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #603911 in Books
• Published on: 1999-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The End of Time is a fascinating contribution to physics by a scholar and thinker who is taken seriously by physicists of the calibre of Wheeler and Smolin. But he has pursued a career outside the mainstream, living on a farm and refusing to get involved in traditional teaching and research. He argues that time is a purely local phenomenon, a way of seeing things, rather than something that actually meaningfully exists at the core of the universe. This consists of a vast agglomeration of Nows, single moments whose relationship with each other is intimate, but not intrinsically one of causation.

"If time is removed from the foundations of physics, we shall not all suddenly feel that the flow of time has ceased. On the contrary, new timeless principles will explain why we do feel that time flows. The pattern of the first great revolution will be repeated. Copernicus, Galileo and Kepler taught us that the Earth moves and rotates while the heavens stand still, but this did not change by one iota our direct perception that the heavens do move and that the Earth does not budge."

The many worlds hypothesis is also true and the worlds that derive from alternate possibility exist alongside each other moment by moment. Seeing things in this way solves the more recondite problems of quantum physics--Schrodinger's Cat is both dead, and alive, and never in the box in the first place and at a time before the box was thought of, and long dead all in a set of Nows that sit alongside each other in the Platonic realm which is underlying reality. There are no paradoxes because Sequence is an illusion: this is philosophical physics for those of us who like to have our brains hurt. --Roz Kaveney

Review
This is a cracker. Julian Barbour subscribes to the version of quantum theory which holds that everything that could possibly happen exists 'all the time' in some set of alternative realities that are stacked together forwards, backwards, up, down and sideways. We're accustomed to thinking of there being a smooth flow of time but in the picture the author creates, there is no such flow but rather an ordering of things analogous to a series of still images on a strip of movie film which merely gives an illusion of time passing. No short review can do justice to these ideas or to the cogent way in which he presents a case that will intrigue you and make you think deeply about the world, even if you conclude that he is as mad as a hatter. (Kirkus UK)

From the Publisher
Jacket copy and endorsements, and media reviews
TIME DOES NOT EXIST. Although the laws of nature create a powerful illusion that time is flowing, in fact there are only timeless 'nows'. In this lucid and original book, the theoretical physicist Julian Barbour describes the coming revolution in our understanding of the cosmos: a quantum theory of the universe that brings together Einstein's general theory of relativity - which denies the existence of a unique time - and quantum mechanics - which demands one. Barbour contends that only the most radical of ideas can resolve the profound conflict between these two foundational pillars of modern physics, and in this book he proposes it: there is, quite literally, no time at all.

'The End of Time' is the first full-length account of this new worldview. Unifying thinking that has never before been brought together in a book for the general reader, 'The End of Time' reveals the true architecture of the universe and demonstrates how physics, after centuries of advancement, is now coming up sharp against the extraordinary possibility that the sense of time passing actually emnerges from a universe that is timeless. The book concludes with the author's brilliant description of how a world of Platonic stillness can appear to be teeming with motion.

This ground-breaking book presents a dazzling and inspiring argument in a way that all will be able to follow, but no-one with an interest in the universe will be able to ignore.

'JULIAN BARBOUR'S theory is the most interesting and provocative new idea about time to be proposed in many years. If true, it will change the way we see reality. Experts in the field of quantum gravity have for years looked up to Julian Barbour for his wisdom and imagination, as he is one of the few people who is truly both a scientist and a philosopher. Written with rare clarity and force, this book makes his thinking accessible to all interested readers', LEE SMOLIN, Professor of Physics at Pennsylvania State University, and author of 'The Life of the Cosmos'

'PLATO AND ARISTOTLE, if they had read this book, would still be discussing it, because it deals with the greatest of all mysteries: how come existence?', JOHN ARCHIBALD WHEELER, Emeritus Professor of Physics at Princeton University, and author of 'Geons, Black Holes and Quantum Foam'

FROM THE REVIEWS:

'[These are] ideas that are new, mind-blowing and have taken Barbour 30 years to develop... The story is fascinating... I feel mentally enriched by the experience of reading Barbour's book, and I am sure I will read it again, more than once. I urge you to do the same', JOHN GRIBBIN, THE SUNDAY TIMES

'[The author has a] generally appealing style which interlaces the science of space and time with snippets of autobiography, history and geography. Despite Barbour's eloquent advocacy, one begins to suspect that even if time does not ultimately exist, it must be the concept that has provided us with the greatest possible simplification in making sense of the world', JOHN BARROW, THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

'[Barbour] is clearly a serious scientist... There are many carefully wrought analogies and nice touches in the explanation, even a multiply-configured cat which is a distant relative of Schrodinger's famous feline... [an] impressive book', JOHN TURNEY, THE GUARDIAN

'Barbour is a brilliant British physicist', (4 star review), MICHAEL HANLON, DAILY EXPRESS

Customer Reviews

An excellent discussion on the very foundation of Physics
I am highly impressed with this book. Dr. Barbour certainly provides a totally new perspective to the very fundamental concepts in Physics, and I think this is absolutely necessary to stimulate the thought process.

I am sure a lot of leading researchers may not agree with some of the cocepts that he has introduced. But this is Science. No theory can survive unless its predictions are verified by observation. Dr. Barbour has provided lot of materials, which if found true will simply destroy his theory. It certainly is not a Philosophical discussion and I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Physics and enjoys pondering over the very fundamental questions of why the universe is as we see.

Not suitable for the layman but some good deep thinking,
I may as well start by saying that I have a degree in Applied physics and I'm more exposed to this kind of thinking than the average reader. This book is more an excercise in deep thought than an enlightening read.
I can't imagine anyone not finding some of the ideas and imaginings in this book hard to grasp unless they have a technical science background and are used to thinking in this manner. His overall view of time I disagree with but that doesn't mean I regret reading it. In fact I found it to be a very thought provoking book which is always a good thing.
Because of the obscurity of the subject the author in no way really convinced me of his beliefs, since the arguments he puts forward are a mesh between his own eccentric thoughts about timelessness coupled with an underlying quantum mechanical structure to it. A process which would seem to be impossible to prove anyway. But still a eye-opening read.
I'm giving it 3 stars because of the difficulty of understanding some of the material he puts across which I don't recommend for someone looking for a nice and easy interesting science read, the book is hard to get through compared to most popular science books.
As a result of the awkward material presented I can't say that I found this book to be an exciting read either.

A long, confusing and eventually a frustrating read.
There are currently several books dealing with new theories in physics, they are fascinating but I found the "End of Time" a bit disappointing after all the hype (see reviews above). What I want in a book of this type are three things, firstly to be educated on the general theoretical background, entertainingly presented the history of the subject up to the present day, secondly the author must, as succinctly as possible, explain their theory; show where it supports and where it overturns conventional ideas. Finally the books must present conclusions, sketch out the likely impact of the new concept. The "End of Time" devotes many pages to arguments in favour of the author's thesis, in a way that will bore the general reader but is unlikely to convince the physicists. Near the end of the book my feeling was ok ok you win, just tell me the implications, but that's the problem, the author refuses to speculate, possibly on the spurious grounds that predictions are impossible in a world without time. In summary a long, confusing and eventually a frustrating read. If you want to see how a book of this type should be handled read the unbelievably good "The Inflationary Universe" by Alan H. Guth.