For Documentation Purposes Only, Read If You Wish
If we could slow down time, would our thinking slow as well?
Warning: While I may have thought about this question extensively before, I am writing with no plans and therefore may seem random. I have edited this by recalling things that I have written and I have not reread this essay. I may answer the question multiple times, possibly in contradicting fashions, or maybe not at all. Deal with it.
The concept of modifying time has been around since “forever.” Even in the Bible, there is a passage where God stops the “Sun” (I put the Sun in quotes because stopping the Sun does not really do much, relative to us) for King Hezekiah. But Bible stories aside, I suppose we need some form of definition of time. The time, as we generally explain it, is a theory (Actually I have no idea if this is true, but it makes sense that time is not actually proven). It is some kind of force that affects everything. Everything is created of subatomic particles that are constantly in motion. And if something is moving, time has to be moving (Due to time and space being connected). Therefore time affects everything (At least physically). However, we cannot directly measure time, since it is not a physical entity. So as far as I can tell, time is a force (Like gravity, which by the way is actually a theory as well. Gravity has not been proven) that we can only measure through the experiences we have in the physical world (Therefore measured indirectly.)
When asking what time it is, and someone responds 7:25 AM, they are actually saying that it has been 7 hours and 25 minutes since the last full revolution of the Earth. If you don’t understand, consider a stopwatch. The stopwatch’s portrayal of time is relative to the last time you pushed the “Go” button. Therefore, stopping the “Sun” does not stop time, but stops the effectiveness of the clock. If God (whom I don’t believe in, by the way. I merely use God because he would be one of the few who can do this) stopped the Earth from revolving and there was both a clock and stopwatch running, the clock should stop in order to keep time “correctly,” while the stopwatch should keep going. However the measurement of time is assuming that slowing down/speeding up time would make the physical changes on Earth slow down/speed up in a linear fashion (If time slowed down but the physical world didn’t, time seems irrelevant.)
I am not a philosophy student. I have read 2 books of philosophy and that was only for my Philosophy of Religion class that I took last year, which was my only philosophy class that I have taken (so far). I say this because if you start complaining that my explanations don’t make sense with what you “learned,” understand that I don’t care what you think. You probably noticed that I like to use quotes and parentheses. This is because the definition of many things that we think to be clearly defined may not be so clear in the philosophical sense, so I give comments on what I think makes sense.
Anyway, this question is interesting because it questions the connectivity of our mind to our body and the connectivity of our mind and time. If you ever watched Spiderman, you may remember a scene early in the movie when Peter Parker gets into a fight at school and is able to dodge the bully’s punches with ease. There is a part of that scene where Peter is so fast that the director felt that it was necessary to slow down the fight scene and add a voice-over with Peter mentally commenting on the fight in normal speed (Actually I think he just said “huh.” But it was a “normal” speed “huh” which implies “normal” speed thinking at the subnormal time speed). But would that actually happen if time slowed? This begs the question, “If we can slow down time, would our thinking slow down as well?”
Think of a person walking. Notice his/her (I am absolutely pro-equality for men and women but for laziness’ sake and the constant usage of the “slash” I am going to use a man in the example) height, shape, and whatever other physical attributes you may have given him. Now make him walk. Notice that you can speed up and slow down time in this place so that he is walking in fast/slow motion. You can see him right? Now, obviously he isn’t inside your brain. Nor is he in front of you. So where is he? He’s in the mind. But if you can see this person just as well as recalling what your friend looks like, how is it possible to differentiate imagination and reality? Perhaps the mind is not on Earth, but is in a separate dimension, universe, or wherever you want to call it (I have not made up my mind on where it is) and that we are a sort of God of this place. And that whatever we think of, it is created in this place (Just like God can do if he felt like). So perhaps this place we are in is just someone else’s imagination? That’s just a little bonus theory that I like to ask just for fun. Anyway, back to the question. So if the things we create in our mind can be physically described when it isn’t in a physical place (assuming my silly God theory isn’t true), is the mental reaction to time the same as the physical one? I know that I have asked you the question that I have been asked. Then why in the world have I given you this scenario and long (actually not that long since I’m know there are philosophers out there that give entire books on the subject) way of asking you this question?
The problem with people is that they are ignorant. A person tells you something, and as long as it fits with your current beliefs, you widely accept it as true (generally) (assuming the source is at least somewhat reliable). People are afraid to change or even question their beliefs (Know that when I say believe, I mean something that they truly believe to be true. Not just a maybe thing) since most strong beliefs are rooted in childhood experiences, and people hate to think that what they have believed all their life is wrong. But this is just a bash on people. CONTINUING.
Again, why did I give you a long way of asking you the same question you asked me? Because, to be honest (I am ALWAYS honest btw. Well, I try to be honest. I am never going to tell you something that I have no evidence for. For example, I’ve called my mother stupid in front of her face for believing something that I totally disagree with. It’s not that I’m mean; it’s just that I don’t like euphemisms and I don’t care about feelings if feelings are going to affect the search for truth. Maybe that is mean. I don’t care), I’m not sure. My belief on the structure of the universe is currently unsure and incompatible beliefs are a no-no.
I’ll answer the question by saying that if you think that the mind and body are completely connected, your thinking will slow if time slows, and if you think that they are separate, it is possible that your thinking will continue at “normal” speed when time slows (There are scenarios where your thinking will still slow even though the mind and body are not connected.) Not sure if that helped, but at least you have some additional premises and theories to make you question your beliefs on. And that is all I can ask. Question everything. Is 2 + 2 = 4? In the mathematical sense, of course. Math is an idea that we created with our set of rules. But what about 2 toothpicks + 2 toothpicks? How is a toothpick even defined? Check out my entry at http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=2+%2B+2+%3D+5.
Warning: While I may have thought about this question extensively before, I am writing with no plans and therefore may seem random. I have edited this by recalling things that I have written and I have not reread this essay. I may answer the question multiple times, possibly in contradicting fashions, or maybe not at all. Deal with it.
The concept of modifying time has been around since “forever.” Even in the Bible, there is a passage where God stops the “Sun” (I put the Sun in quotes because stopping the Sun does not really do much, relative to us) for King Hezekiah. But Bible stories aside, I suppose we need some form of definition of time. The time, as we generally explain it, is a theory (Actually I have no idea if this is true, but it makes sense that time is not actually proven). It is some kind of force that affects everything. Everything is created of subatomic particles that are constantly in motion. And if something is moving, time has to be moving (Due to time and space being connected). Therefore time affects everything (At least physically). However, we cannot directly measure time, since it is not a physical entity. So as far as I can tell, time is a force (Like gravity, which by the way is actually a theory as well. Gravity has not been proven) that we can only measure through the experiences we have in the physical world (Therefore measured indirectly.)
When asking what time it is, and someone responds 7:25 AM, they are actually saying that it has been 7 hours and 25 minutes since the last full revolution of the Earth. If you don’t understand, consider a stopwatch. The stopwatch’s portrayal of time is relative to the last time you pushed the “Go” button. Therefore, stopping the “Sun” does not stop time, but stops the effectiveness of the clock. If God (whom I don’t believe in, by the way. I merely use God because he would be one of the few who can do this) stopped the Earth from revolving and there was both a clock and stopwatch running, the clock should stop in order to keep time “correctly,” while the stopwatch should keep going. However the measurement of time is assuming that slowing down/speeding up time would make the physical changes on Earth slow down/speed up in a linear fashion (If time slowed down but the physical world didn’t, time seems irrelevant.)
I am not a philosophy student. I have read 2 books of philosophy and that was only for my Philosophy of Religion class that I took last year, which was my only philosophy class that I have taken (so far). I say this because if you start complaining that my explanations don’t make sense with what you “learned,” understand that I don’t care what you think. You probably noticed that I like to use quotes and parentheses. This is because the definition of many things that we think to be clearly defined may not be so clear in the philosophical sense, so I give comments on what I think makes sense.
Anyway, this question is interesting because it questions the connectivity of our mind to our body and the connectivity of our mind and time. If you ever watched Spiderman, you may remember a scene early in the movie when Peter Parker gets into a fight at school and is able to dodge the bully’s punches with ease. There is a part of that scene where Peter is so fast that the director felt that it was necessary to slow down the fight scene and add a voice-over with Peter mentally commenting on the fight in normal speed (Actually I think he just said “huh.” But it was a “normal” speed “huh” which implies “normal” speed thinking at the subnormal time speed). But would that actually happen if time slowed? This begs the question, “If we can slow down time, would our thinking slow down as well?”
Think of a person walking. Notice his/her (I am absolutely pro-equality for men and women but for laziness’ sake and the constant usage of the “slash” I am going to use a man in the example) height, shape, and whatever other physical attributes you may have given him. Now make him walk. Notice that you can speed up and slow down time in this place so that he is walking in fast/slow motion. You can see him right? Now, obviously he isn’t inside your brain. Nor is he in front of you. So where is he? He’s in the mind. But if you can see this person just as well as recalling what your friend looks like, how is it possible to differentiate imagination and reality? Perhaps the mind is not on Earth, but is in a separate dimension, universe, or wherever you want to call it (I have not made up my mind on where it is) and that we are a sort of God of this place. And that whatever we think of, it is created in this place (Just like God can do if he felt like). So perhaps this place we are in is just someone else’s imagination? That’s just a little bonus theory that I like to ask just for fun. Anyway, back to the question. So if the things we create in our mind can be physically described when it isn’t in a physical place (assuming my silly God theory isn’t true), is the mental reaction to time the same as the physical one? I know that I have asked you the question that I have been asked. Then why in the world have I given you this scenario and long (actually not that long since I’m know there are philosophers out there that give entire books on the subject) way of asking you this question?
The problem with people is that they are ignorant. A person tells you something, and as long as it fits with your current beliefs, you widely accept it as true (generally) (assuming the source is at least somewhat reliable). People are afraid to change or even question their beliefs (Know that when I say believe, I mean something that they truly believe to be true. Not just a maybe thing) since most strong beliefs are rooted in childhood experiences, and people hate to think that what they have believed all their life is wrong. But this is just a bash on people. CONTINUING.
Again, why did I give you a long way of asking you the same question you asked me? Because, to be honest (I am ALWAYS honest btw. Well, I try to be honest. I am never going to tell you something that I have no evidence for. For example, I’ve called my mother stupid in front of her face for believing something that I totally disagree with. It’s not that I’m mean; it’s just that I don’t like euphemisms and I don’t care about feelings if feelings are going to affect the search for truth. Maybe that is mean. I don’t care), I’m not sure. My belief on the structure of the universe is currently unsure and incompatible beliefs are a no-no.
I’ll answer the question by saying that if you think that the mind and body are completely connected, your thinking will slow if time slows, and if you think that they are separate, it is possible that your thinking will continue at “normal” speed when time slows (There are scenarios where your thinking will still slow even though the mind and body are not connected.) Not sure if that helped, but at least you have some additional premises and theories to make you question your beliefs on. And that is all I can ask. Question everything. Is 2 + 2 = 4? In the mathematical sense, of course. Math is an idea that we created with our set of rules. But what about 2 toothpicks + 2 toothpicks? How is a toothpick even defined? Check out my entry at http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=2+%2B+2+%3D+5.