The closer we look at time, the stranger it gets

Subjective vs. Physical “Flow” of Time

• Several comments argue that time doesn’t literally “flow”; flow is a subjective experience tied to memory and records of the past, while the future is open or unpredictable.
• Some propose that in more predictable environments (e.g., planetary orbits) a hypothetical experiencer might feel less directional “flow” of time.
• Others push back that we do empirically observe a one‑way arrow of time; if time went backward in any detectable way, we’d expect some evidence.

Arrow of Time, Entropy, and the Past Hypothesis

• A “canonical” physics view is raised: fundamental laws are time‑symmetric, but a very low‑entropy early universe (“past hypothesis”) explains why entropy increases in what we call the future.
• From a macrostate view, running dynamics forward or backward from “now” mostly leads to higher entropy either way; direction emerges from boundary conditions, not local laws.

Relativity, Light, and Proper Time

• Multiple comments explore relativistic time dilation: higher speeds or stronger gravity slow proper time relative to other frames.
• Discussion of photons: in the limit of speed of light, proper time along the path goes to zero, raising questions about what it means for a photon to “experience” creation and absorption, and whether it even has a meaningful frame of reference.
• Some debate whether “zero lifetime” or “infinitesimal lifetime” is a better way to talk about photons, and what counts as the universal speed limit.

What Time Is: Fundamental, Emergent, or Illusory?

• Views range from time as a survival‑oriented sensory construct to time as a fundamental, irreducible aspect of reality.
• Others suggest time could be related to entropy/heat, gravity, or even consciousness, including fringe ideas like “time as emergent from quantum consciousness” or occult notions of reverse‑running “etheric time.”
• Philosophical resources (e.g., Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) and lectures are linked for deeper treatments.

Measuring or Talking About the “Speed” of Time

• One thread dissects the phrase “speed of time”: “seconds per second” is seen as either trivial or meaningless without a second‑order time.
• Counterpoint: in practice we compare clock rates in different frames; that relative change is what we mean by time “running faster or slower.”

Meta and Tone of the Thread

• Some lament a high density of “crank” or speculative comments on such topics; others jokingly invoke simulated universes, lazy loading, and “creator as programmer.”
• Complaints about intrusive ads, speculation about AI‑written comments, and reading recommendations (e.g., popular physics books on time) round out the discussion.