A new definition of time suggests that what we once thought was a fundamental element of our physical reality could actually just be an illusion created by quantum entanglement. That’s a very bold statement and one that certainly requires a little digging into to fully understand. So, let’s dig in.
To understand the core of this new theory, we need to
understand a few things, including quantum entanglement. By its most basic
definition, quantum entanglement is when two objects are so inextricably linked
that when one is disturbed, the other is also disturbed, no matter how far
apart they are. We also need to understand how time works in “general
relativity.”
General relativity says that time is baked into our
universe, that our physical reality is set in space-time, and that time can
warp and dilate in the presence of gravity; scientists believe we have seen the
Milky Way’s black hole warp space-time around it. However, quantum theory says
that time isn’t bendable in any way. It does not change. Many physicists
believe that the definition of time across both theories should be consistent.
To prove this, Alessandro Coppo and other researchers went hunting for a new
way to define time.
The suggestion here, at its core, seems to point to time
being purely a consequence of entanglement. It states that the only reason that
an object appears to change over time is because it is entangled with a clock.
As such, anyone observing the universe externally would see it as completely
static and unchanging.
It’s certainly an interesting new way to try to define time.
While many physicists believe that the new definition of time is promising,
there are still some details that need to be ironed out to really fully
understand exactly what time is and whether or not it is truly a consequence of
quantum entanglement. There’s also the matter of whether we can even test any
of these ideas.