PRESENCE and the arrow of time was installed in Chicago’s Sullivan Gallery March 12 through April 1, 2016.
The Arrow Of Time
Contemporary physics has shown that there’s no particular reason why time should go forward rather than backward. There has to be time, mind you, but the math doesn’t care which direction it goes.
However, we can observe that the total entropy in the universe increases over time, and always has. With this odd metric, we can tell the past from the future.
The Speed Of Light
If objects could travel faster than the speed of light, it would create multiple conflicting timelines. If I throw a ball faster than the speed of light, then depending on where you’re standing you might see the ball travel from the earth to the sun or from the sun to the earth. The trouble is, neither of these views would be any more correct than the other.