Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas

158 | David Wallace on the Arrow of Time

Aug 2, 2021

David Wallace, a leading philosopher of science from the University of Pittsburgh, dives into the arrow of time and its philosophical implications. He explores how increasing entropy connects our perception of memory and aging to fundamental physics. The discussion connects the early universe's conditions to the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. Wallace also critiques traditional views on time while examining the complexities of macrostates and entropy dynamics, ultimately intertwining science with profound philosophical questions.

01:47:58

Episode guests

David Wallace

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Episode notes

Intro

5min

From Physics to Philosophy: Navigating Time and Interdisciplinarity

15min

Exploring Probability and Entropy in Statistical Mechanics

4min

Exploring the Arrow of Time

14min

Exploring the Past Hypothesis and the Nature of Time

5min

Understanding Macrostates and Entropy Dynamics

15min

Unraveling Time: Entropy, Irreversibility, and the Nature of Existence

6min

Entropy, Time, and Quantum Realities

19min

Exploring Quantum Realities: Emergence and Schrödinger's Cat

5min

10.

Emergence and Branching in Quantum Mechanics

22min

11.

Exploring Green Flags in Relationships

2min

The arrow of time — all the ways in which the past differs from the future — is a fascinating subject because it connects everyday phenomena (memory, aging, cause and effect) to deep questions in physics and philosophy. At its heart is the fact that entropy increases over time, which in turn can be traced to special conditions in the early universe. David Wallace is one of the world’s leading philosophers working on the foundations of physics, including space and time as well as quantum mechanics. We talk about how increasing entropy gives rise to the arrow of time, and what it is about the early universe that makes this happen. Then we cannot help but connecting this story to features of the Many-Worlds (Everett) interpretation of quantum mechanics.

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David Wallace received a D.Phil. in Physics and a D.Phil. in Philosophy from Oxford University. He is currently W.A. Mellon Professor of Philosophy of Science, with joint appointments in the Philosophy Department and the Department of History and Philosophy of Science, at the University of Pittsburgh. He is the author of The Emergent Multiverse: Quantum Theory According to the Everett Interpretation. Among his honors are the Lakatos Award for outstanding contribution to the philosophy of science. His most recent book is Philosophy of Physics: A Very Short Introduction.

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