Time Is But a Stubborn Illusion - Sneak Peek | Genius

What is

time

? A deceptively simple question, but one that is the key to understanding relativity. It's kind of the reason my hair is turning gray. When we describe motion, we do so in terms of

time

, 10 meters per second, 100 miles per hour. But the mathematical description of velocity is moot unless we can define time. Is time universal? In other words, is there an audible ticking throughout the galaxy, a master clock, so to speak, ticking like Mozart's metronome? The answer my friends is no. Time is not absolute. In fact, for us living physicists, the distinction between past, present and future is nothing more than a

stubborn

illusion

.

There's a lot to consider, I know. I know. But understanding time is essential to understanding relativity. Now I want everyone to close their eyes. Don't worry, I don't bite. But I'm looking for a new pen. Go ahead, close your eyes. To truly understand the idea of ​​time, we must take a step back and ask ourselves: what is light? So travel with me to the Sun. Light travels from the Sun to the Earth through space, yes. When I was your age, I wanted to know how is it possible for something, light, to travel through nothingness, space? We isolate a beam of light and travel alongside it.

But let's go faster. You are there with me. Faster. Faster! What is time? PROFESSOR WEBER: Sir, Einstein, wake up! I wasn't sleeping, sir. I was thinking. Oh really. About what exactly? The secrets of the cosmos, I guess. I suggest you think about trigonometry with your eyes open. And sit down! Laws of sines and cosines? c squared is equal to a squared plus b squared, subtract 2 cos b. PROFESSOR WEBER: The area of ​​a triangle? STUDENTS: The area is equal to b squared times a times b over 2 times c. PROFESSOR WEBER: What is the solution to the differential equation?

Herr Einstein, are you still too busy contemplating the secrets of the cosmos to solve this equation? Oh, no sir. I have already solved. PROFESSOR WEBER: Leave now. With what crime? PROFESSOR WEBER: Your mere presence ruins my class respect! That is not an objective reason. Outside! The natural logarithm of a constant multiplied by x is equal to the natural logarithm of 1 plus v squared. And since v is equal to y over x, that gives us the final function, x squared plus y squared minus c x cubed equals 0. And speaking honestly, sir, your very presence ruins my respect for the future of mathematics Prussians.

Outside.