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What is time? The 5th-century philosopher St Augustine famously said that he knew what time was, so long as no one asked him. Is time a fourth dimension similar to space or does it flow in some sense? And if it flows, does it make sense to say how fast? Does the future exist? Is time travel possible? Why does time seem to pass in only one direction? These questions and others are among the deepest and most subtle that one can ask, but Introducing Time presents them - many for the first time - in an easily accessible, lucid and engaging manner, wittily illustrated by Ralph Edney. Review: a very informative and interesting book - a very informative and interesting book. it is an overview of the subject which clearly explains the differing viewpoints and theories of various philosophers and physicists concerning time - all the way from those who believe that time is an essential and absolute reality, to those, like goedel, who maintained that it is simply an illusion and does not even exist (the book clearly presents his reasoning for this conclusion.) Review: Brain-numbing concepts explained in a 'fun' way that ultimately proved frustrating. - Gulp. Since this book sets out to explain concepts that originated with Einstein, it was perhaps predictable that this book was going to be a challenge. It was. The comic strip approach helps initially - and the graphics are amazing. But ultimately, it added to my frustration as subliminally I was feeling that I wasn't able to understand a kids comic. Not the best feeling. I managed to gain a little more knowledge about the topic - so kudos to the author for that. But I can't say that I got to the end feeling that I'd enjoyed the book. It was too much like hard work for that.
| Best Sellers Rank | #1,559,159 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #126 in Physics of Time (Books) #921 in Biographies & History Graphic Novels #1,423 in Educational & Nonfiction Graphic Novels |
| Customer Reviews | 4.1 out of 5 stars 260 Reviews |
D**Y
a very informative and interesting book
a very informative and interesting book. it is an overview of the subject which clearly explains the differing viewpoints and theories of various philosophers and physicists concerning time - all the way from those who believe that time is an essential and absolute reality, to those, like goedel, who maintained that it is simply an illusion and does not even exist (the book clearly presents his reasoning for this conclusion.)
D**N
Brain-numbing concepts explained in a 'fun' way that ultimately proved frustrating.
Gulp. Since this book sets out to explain concepts that originated with Einstein, it was perhaps predictable that this book was going to be a challenge. It was. The comic strip approach helps initially - and the graphics are amazing. But ultimately, it added to my frustration as subliminally I was feeling that I wasn't able to understand a kids comic. Not the best feeling. I managed to gain a little more knowledge about the topic - so kudos to the author for that. But I can't say that I got to the end feeling that I'd enjoyed the book. It was too much like hard work for that.
J**C
Answering Some Questions About Time
I found the way the book dealt with time done well, though the graphics didn't really add much. It was a bit of a distraction. If you want to know some of the theories regarding the arrow of time, is time real and can you travel back in time, it's worth a read.
L**G
Very good structure!
The author did a very good job for introducing this big and diffuclt topic within simple paragraphs. Here I'll try to figure out the main points which are hidden in the structure of the book. In the beginning, the author started to talk about several concepts such as 1.Clocks 2.Psychological time 3.Time scenarios 4.Relationalism and absolute time 5.Relative and non-relative 6.Tenseless and tensed 7.Dimensions 8.Motion and change These conceptions can help us to rethink our world in several different ways. Then, he introduced special relativity--to explain Time Travel is logical possible(under the classical logic: A=A).It means that we can not violate the rule "A=A" when we think about Time travel. Further, he continued to discuss General relativity to explain--is it possible for phyical Time Travel? After that,he used a very good,in my opinion,method- Thermodynamics- to explain: 1.where and how did the universe come from? 2.what possible will the universe be in the future? According to a great German philosopher-Kant,we human beings carry a piror facualty-Time,Space,Cause,Effect- when we were born. We percept our surrounding under this framework. Hence,to understand these categories (Time,Space,Cause,Effect) are important. Physics has devoted a big part to Time and Space(or Timespace). In history, many great thinkers-such as Newton, Einstein-proposed thier unique worldview of space and time to promote human beings' intellection. The book included their conceptions and discussed two of categories well. I do not have any background of physics. However, I bet that even you are in lack of fundemental knowledge of physics, you still can learn about "Time(Space)" through this book. Finally, I have to say again that the author introduced the difficult topic very well. By the way, I think my review may be more suitable for someone who has finished the book than those who don't. p.s.Sorry for my poor English.
J**R
A nice intro to the philosophy of time
I know even less about time than I did before reading this book, which means this book did its philosophical job.
A**R
good book about the science of time, just not for me
It's not that the back is not good quality....it just isn't good for ME. It was way too technical and I found myself unable to follow the concepts. But when it comes right down to it, I may not have been that interested, either. The graphics were great and what grabbed my attention in the first in place. So I recommend the book for those who really want to learn more about time, literally.
D**Y
Fun read on a complex topic
Great introduction to the concept of "Time". This book, with it's comic book style illustrations and easy to digest content, helps one begin to fathom the many complexities and paradoxes inherent in our current understanding of "time".
T**L
Very thought provoking
It’s difficult to wrap one’s mind around every concept, but this material is enough to instigate a way of thinking not conventional to the normal way of life. It’s enough to demonstrate how little we understand about the universe.
S**V
Great
Good Gist of various topics on time. Got to know how much we don't know about time after reading it
E**3
Very clear
You will never more consider time as usual . Very very interesting.
M**O
Too superficial
Despite its being recommended by Sean Carroll on his Time TCC lecture, it is a very brief overview of all the topics regarding time in physics. It's hard to grasp any deeper notion of anything. This book can be considered just an introduction to the subject. And the illustrations do not help so much, as they are very simple and superficial.
P**S
Las teorias sobre el tiempo en "novela gráfica"
Muy interesante la forma gráfica de explicación de las diversas teorias sobre "el tiempo". Lamentablemente a veces se torna un poco aburrido, por entrar tanto en el detalle, pero en general esta bien.
P**P
time to read this book
Lovely, thoughtful discussion on time - delightful read. Keeps a great balance between the science and maths and the serious side , comparing it well with the humorous and anecdotal side of the book which shows the light-hearted approach to how much we really don’t understand at the end of the day. Really discusses all of the arguments from the great philosophers, mathematicians and other scientists throughout the years and sets the arguments out plainly and discusses them properly. Really a great read - time to pick up this book !!!!!!!!
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