158 | David Wallace on the Arrow of Time
August 2, 2021
1 hr 47 min
158
Full
172 of 432
Episode 158 · August 2, 2021
158 | David Wallace on the Arrow of Time
0:00 / 1:47:59
Excerpt playback isn’t available for this episode — use the full-episode link.
Search the Record
Moment search isn’t open for this episode yet
When it opens, you’ll be able to type any phrase and jump straight to the second it was said.
Sean Carroll Episodes Around August 2, 2021
Episode 172 of 432 — walk the feed in the order it was published.
2:40:46155 | Stephen Wolfram on Computation, Hypergraphs, and Fundamental Physics
1:47:59This episode158 | David Wallace on the Arrow of Time
Summary
<p>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.</p> <p><em>Support Mindscape on </em><a href="https://www.patreon.com/seanmcarroll" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Patreon</em></a><em>.</em></p> <p>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 <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-emergent-multiverse-9780199546961?cc=us&lang=en&" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Emergent Multiverse: Quantum Theory According to the Everett Interpretation</em></a>. Among his honors are the Lakatos Award for outstanding contribution to the philosophy of science. His most recent book is <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/philosophy-of-physics-a-very-short-introduction-9780198814320?cc=us&lang=en&" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Philosophy of Physics: A Very Short Introduction</em></a>.</p> <ul> <li><a href="http://www.pitt.edu/~dmw121/index.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Web site</a></li> <li><a href="https://philpeople.org/profiles/david-wallace" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">PhilPeople profile</a></li> <li><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Z35CeHAAAAAJ&hl=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Google Scholar publications</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/David-Wallace/e/B001H6WJWI/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Amazon.com author page</a></li> </ul> <p><br /></p>
Episode details and artwork are published by the show’s own feed. Sentinel plays short cited excerpts and links every episode back to its publisher.