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About the Arrow of Time

From Natural Philosophy Wiki
Scientific Paper
TitleAbout the Arrow of Time
Read in fullLink to paper
Author(s)Cynthia Kolb Whitney
Keywords{{{keywords}}}
Published2012
JournalProceedings of the NPA
Volume9
No. of pages6
Pages655-660

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Abstract

becomes an inevitable part of the mathematical description of all systems. That point is the appearance of Maxwell?s four coupled field equations. Very early, the four coupled field equations were inserted one into another to produce two uncoupled wave equations. This manipulation revealed the finite wave propagation speed . Compared to Newtonian physics, the finite wave propagation speed was something new in Physics. But it wasn't then tied into the development of irreversibility, because the two wave equations themselves are time reversal invariant. However, the original coupled field equations are not time reversal invariant, and from that fact there flows an important story that has implications concerning the status we should attribute to Einstein's Special Relativity Theory (SRT).