Brian Kierland Argues 1969 Thought Experiment Shows Time Can Pass Without Physical Change
Updated
Updated · IAI · Jun 29
Brian Kierland Argues 1969 Thought Experiment Shows Time Can Pass Without Physical Change
2 articles · Updated · IAI · Jun 29
Summary
Brian Kierland says time may pass even when the physical world undergoes no change, challenging a view many physicists tie to Einstein-inspired block-universe thinking.
A 1969 thought experiment by philosopher Sydney Shoemaker anchors his case: it aims to show there could, in principle, be empirical evidence that a stretch of time elapsed without any change.
That matters because direct timekeeping always relies on change—from sundials and clock hands to cesium-133 atomic transitions—making the idea of changeless time seem counterintuitive.
The argument reaches beyond metaphysics into physics, where identifying time with change supports relationist views, some block-universe interpretations and Julian Barbour’s time-skeptical approach to quantum mechanics.
Kierland’s conclusion is narrower than proving time is independent of change: he argues the growing push to eliminate time from fundamental physics deserves more skepticism.