Pyrotex, thanking you for a lively post. It was a joy to read and freakin spot on.
Arkain, thanks for bringing up a good point!
Time, as Pyro has described, is an inconvertible aspect of our universe. So, we are indeed forced to deal with it. Arkain makes a good point too. Is non-simultaenity a product of our perception or is it a fact of life? (correct me if I've misinterpreted you, arkain)
Here's the big problem with time that I'm wrestling with right now. First, envision a Euclidean system that incorporates a simultaneous now. Second, envision a non-euclidean system that incorporates relativity.
What is really bothering me lately is that these two coordinate systems are mutually exclusive. I think I have a pretty good grasp of Relativity Theory, but I still can not reconcile this issue. Consider the Twin Paradox. We have to somehow reconcile how 70 years can pass for one person while only a year passes for the other. I imagine this by counting the respective ticks and correlating them. 1 tick for the near c traveler and 20 ticks for the earth bound observer (or whatever numbers fit). So, simultainity is not conserved. Time is not static.
So, I'm left with a puzzling dilemma. I don't want to be lazy about my conception of time, but at the same time I have to "deal with it".
All that said, I like time being depicted as the fourth dimension. It works out mathematically in ways that enable us to do Science. It brings a sense of Reason to the world and the Universe, at least from our perspective. And hey, what more could we hope for?
