The Order of Time
by Unknown author · first published 2018
66% recommend32% neutral3% critical
Why HN recommends it
Beautifully written, non-technical tour of what physics says about time, covering entropy, relativity and quantum gravity with almost no math. Suits general readers wanting clear explanations plus some philosophy.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Why do we remember the past and not the future? What does it mean for time to "flow"? Do we exist in time or does time exist in us? In lyric, accessible prose, Carlo Rovelli invites us to consider questions about the nature of time that continue to puzzle physicists and philosophers alike. For most readers this is unfamiliar terrain. We all experience time, but the more scientists learn about it, the more mysterious it remains. We think of it as uniform and universal, moving steadily from past to future, measured by clocks. Rovelli tears down these assumptions one by one, revealing a strang
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The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli (https://www.amazon.com/Order-Time-Carlo-Rovelli/dp/073521610...) is an amazing and eye opening book on the topic of time. Carlo, a theoretical physicist who specializes in quantum gravity,…
on “Why the Flow of Time Is an Illusion” ↗The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli. Mind-bending read that made all the principles that had previously confused me (relatively, thermodynamics, entropy, etc) clear and awe-inspiring.
on “Ask HN: Do you recall any book or course that made a topic finally click?” ↗Gravitation by Misner, Thorne, and Wheeler The Road to Reality by Penrose The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli "For a long time, we have tried to understand the world in terms of some primary substance. Perhaps physics, more than any other discipline, has pursued this primary substance. But…
on “Ask HN: What's one book that changed your life?” ↗Speaking of physics, I just read The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli. The book is about time in physics and the title refers to the fact that is no real ordering of events. Good read.
on “UTC Is Enough for Everyone, Right?” ↗For more on this topic, I recommend Carlo Rovelli's The Order of Time. The book is very accessible to non-experts in the field (like me), and it opened my eyes to some super interesting and unintuitive ideas about time.
on “Does Time Exist?” ↗Yes, good book on that is The Order of Time, for anyone who hasn’t read it. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36442813-the-order-of-ti...
on “Does Time Exist?” ↗I must admit the foundation of the argument presented punches well above my understanding, but I recently read Carlo Rovelli's short work "The Order of Time" and found it wonderfully engaging and relatable.
on “Carlo Rovelli’s radical perspective on reality” ↗You might be interested in The Order of Time by Carlo Ravelli. Time and gravity are certainly linked, but from what I took away from the book (which is a lot to digest, even as non-mathy as it tries to be) is that Time is really heat. Heat moves…
on “The closer we look at time, the stranger it gets” ↗…concept of time and developed the fragile but persistent belief that time is a human invention and not a fundamental part of the natural world. It was a very unsettling experience, until Carlo Rovelli’s The Order of Time restored my sense of mental sanity. I’m currently rereading it because it made me an instant fanboy of Rovelli and this is one of his most tender books. The prose gently rocks you while delivering a…
on “Ask HN: What are you reading?” ↗Brian Greene's 'Fabric of the Cosmos'[1] has some great explanations of space and time and their relationship. If you are very interested, I highly recommend Carlo Rovelli's 'The Order of Time.'[2] And 'Your Brain is a Time Machine'[3], though I ultimately found it unsatisfying, goes directly at the apparent contradiction between our sense of the 'flow' of time, and the implications of general…
on “Exotic Physics Phenomenon Involving Time Reversal Observed for First Time” ↗The Order of Time - Carlo Rovalli, great read if anyone is looking for a book on time. Also, Your brain is a time machine - Dean Buonomano
on “Problem of Time” ↗…ramifications if it does end up being correct. It will have interesting implications for time and human existence, and he isn't afraid to tackle the philosophical portions of it without getting preachy. The Order of Time is my favorite from him.
on “Book Review: “Quantum Supremacy” by Michio Kaku (Tl;Dr Do Not Buy)” ↗…physicist, very involved in the development of Quantum Loop Gravity (one of the attempted approaches to bridge GR and QM). Turns out he is also a good pop-sci writer, so I would begin there. His book "The Order of Time" deals with the nature of time, which is not about the nature of space, but then again reading it you see that the mental gimnastics are similar. I also found useful contributions from regular contributors…
on “Monster gravitational waves spotted for first time” ↗I just finished reading Rovelli's book "The Order of Time." The article is the last chapter, where the author summarizes the results of the "journey" of the book. I recommend the book, it was an enjoyable read. The author is able to explain clearly concepts…
on “In the fundamental physics of the world, there is neither space nor time” ↗Not OP, but I just fininshed reading Carlo Rovelli's "The Order of Time" and it helped me figure out some pieces of the puzzle a bit better. High level and divulgatory, not an hard science/math book.
on “The discrete-time physics hiding inside our continuous-time world” ↗