TIME: The thing that doesn't exist.
Created | Updated Jul 10, 2002
Ford Prefect himself once said, "Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so."
You see...
If time existed, we would not have clocks. We would simply do things as time dictates. However, because time does not exist, we need clocks to tell us when things should happen.
This, however, leaves a large question mark (a.k.a. ?) during the period before clocks.
Now, clocks have been around for a long time, back to the ancient water clocks of Egypt, and back further to sundials, etc. However, there was a time when clocks did not exist, nor was man smart enough to look up at the sun (to fulfill the purposes of a clock, not to burn out his retinas.)
It only makes sense that time did, as a matter of fact, exist during this period. However, as soon as the first crude clock was developed, time was driven to extinction.
This would indicate that it is impossible for time and clocks to coexist in the same universe at the same time.
Now, I have recently been asked the question of "what would happen if there was only one clock left, and somebody broke it?"
Seeing as nobody (save perhaps the inquirer) would be stupid enough to let a thing such as that happen, this situation is purely of hypothetical nature.
However...
If such a thing WERE to happen, hypothetically, time would NOT come back into existence. Once something is extinct, it does not come back. Never. So, both time and clocks would be gone from the universe. Everything would be at a standstill. The universe would stop its expansion, birds would freeze in mid-flight and fall to the ground like bricks (quite interesting to witness I would imagine,) the tides would stop rolling in and out, day would no longer change to night...
but most importantly...
every single living thing would stop breathing.
And they would all asphyxiate.
Case closed.
You see...
If time existed, we would not have clocks. We would simply do things as time dictates. However, because time does not exist, we need clocks to tell us when things should happen.
This, however, leaves a large question mark (a.k.a. ?) during the period before clocks.
Now, clocks have been around for a long time, back to the ancient water clocks of Egypt, and back further to sundials, etc. However, there was a time when clocks did not exist, nor was man smart enough to look up at the sun (to fulfill the purposes of a clock, not to burn out his retinas.)
It only makes sense that time did, as a matter of fact, exist during this period. However, as soon as the first crude clock was developed, time was driven to extinction.
This would indicate that it is impossible for time and clocks to coexist in the same universe at the same time.
Now, I have recently been asked the question of "what would happen if there was only one clock left, and somebody broke it?"
Seeing as nobody (save perhaps the inquirer) would be stupid enough to let a thing such as that happen, this situation is purely of hypothetical nature.
However...
If such a thing WERE to happen, hypothetically, time would NOT come back into existence. Once something is extinct, it does not come back. Never. So, both time and clocks would be gone from the universe. Everything would be at a standstill. The universe would stop its expansion, birds would freeze in mid-flight and fall to the ground like bricks (quite interesting to witness I would imagine,) the tides would stop rolling in and out, day would no longer change to night...
but most importantly...
every single living thing would stop breathing.
And they would all asphyxiate.
Case closed.
