PROTEUS Develops 1 New Atemporality Concept to Tackle Physics Time Paradoxes

3 articles · Updated · ERC · Jul 1

ERC-funded PROTEUS said it has formulated a new concept of atemporality aimed at resolving inconsistencies between quantum mechanics, general relativity and philosophy of time.
For more than 70 years, physicists have struggled to unify relativity’s spacetime-based time with quantum mechanics’ external clock, while emergent-time theories still seem to require time for the transition itself.
Drawing on Plato’s Timaeus, Silvia De Bianchi’s team reframed atemporality as forms such as the absolute present and the instant, allowing duration-free transitions that could model spacetime emergence.
De Bianchi said the framework also links atemporality to imaginary time in relativistic settings, producing black-hole results without the singularities predicted by general relativity.
The 2018-2024 project paired physicists, philosophers and historians, and left digital tools including an AI search engine built from 100-plus works and an archive of nearly 500 sources.

Sources

ERC5h ago

PROTEUS Project Develops New Atemporality Concept for Fundamental Physics

EWTN UK18h ago

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Reddit18h ago

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The End of Fundamental Time? Quantum Gravity, Entropy, and the New Physics of Temporal Emergence

Overview

This report explores the ongoing debate in quantum gravity about whether time is a fundamental part of the universe or an emergent phenomenon. Recent theoretical advances challenge the traditional view of time as a basic ingredient, suggesting instead that time may arise from the complex dynamics of quantum information. If time is emergent, this could profoundly change our understanding of cosmology, black holes, and the nature of existence. The discussion highlights how new ideas are reshaping our view of reality, showing that the flow and direction of time might be deeply connected to quantum processes rather than being absolute.

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