eternity

[wforme]

If erternity exists, could it definetely have an end to it? What are your thoughts?

[woofgang]

Ermmmmm by definition, eternity is endless.......

[Duncer]

.............and is endlessly debated.

[Graham-W]

Eternity goes on for an infinite amount of time. That's like, mmm, forever.

[Duncer]

Or the duration of a reality show......

[Gizmonster]

If the eternity ends, then it's not an eternity.

[DaisyNonna]

Eternity exists as long as there is someone to remember

[Graham-W]

Eternity is like infinity.
Think of the biggest number of years that you can, then add one.

[Duncer]

None of it exists, nor do we. We are all figments of each others' imaginations.

[DaisyNonna]

Does not an imagination need a sentient being to bring it into being?

[Duncer]

Only if you imagine so.

[mibn2cweus]

Time is relative and eternity is like sex . . . it takes forever to get there then it's over in an instant.

[Duncer]

Very good.

[owdhamer]

Mrs Owd just woke me I was havng a mare,no wonder after reading this, far to deep for me.

[jake-the-peg]

Of course you could ask a slightly more subtle question along this line.

Cantor showed that there are different sorts of infinity and that some are larger than others.

So there are infinitely many counting numbers

There are also infinitely many decimals

But the infinity of decimals is bigger than the infinity of counting numbers.

What then is the infinity of time?


In point of fact whether eternity exists is also interesting - time is deeply attached to space - "before" the big bang there was no time - if the universe were to end in a big crunch there would be no time again - eternity then would not exist as time would have a beginning and an end.

Time's a very tricky concept and getting a grip on it is very difficult - no it's impossible in natural language like English

[johnny37]

I find this question baffling. Eminent physicists can only theorise what is beyond the unverse. My own theory is that it does not end but meets up again somewhere, like a never ending sphere. There may be things about the laws of physics that we do not yet know. It will take a million, a billion years before we even get near to it. As I always say, mankind has to find ways of getting out of here before the sun dies in five billion years.

[jake-the-peg]

Well "only theorise" is a bit unfair because these theories have to be consistant with known science and observation and be self consistant they're a bit more than a bunch of blokes sitting down the pub deciding on what they "reckon"

The idea of the Universe meeting up on it's edges is a "closed" universe model.

This has a long history

Einstein developed what are called the "field equations" for describing the shape of the Universe - he couldn't solve them but others found different solutions describing different possible configurations.

Whether the Universe is open or closed (as you favour) depends on how much matter is in it. For quite a long time it was closely poised but over the last 20 years I think the open Universe model has slowly won out.

That's not to say you're wrong just that it's a bit of a minority opinion these days.

[douglas9401]

If there was no time before the big bang, how did they do the countdown?

[McMouse]

If Ed bans you from AB........thats eternity.

[woofgang]

and more interestingly.....WHO did the countdown?

[jomifl]

Reading some threads on AB certainly feels like eternity, but then we can at least go to bed.