Arrow of Time

What is Carroll's argument in Arrow of Time? Why is the origin of the universe relevant to our everyday lives?
         What are the two different aspects of time? Give an example to illustrate each.

Carroll's argument is that sentient beings measure time by repetitions (such as sunshine and seasons), that the macroscopic universe has a forward pointing arrow of time, and that atomic scale of the universe in unaffected by the direction of time. The origin of the universe is relevant to our everyday lives because whether we are conscious of it or not, the forces and physicality of every moment is determined by the mechanisms of space-time. 
One aspect of time is forward pointing, changing time. This is the seemingly natural event of seedlings growing into trees. The other aspect of time is that the motion of time on the microscopic scale is reversible. For example, the motion of atoms can be reversed without affecting the nature of matter.

Quick and Dead Exhibition

Artist Robert Barry's piece Electromagnetic Energy Field expands outward in time dissolving all preconceptions of the material nature of art. The piece is a battery-powered radio transmitter employing inert gases and radioactive material to create an expanding energy field that undetectably changes the space that viewers occupy. The only aspect of the piece that is detectable to human senses is the box and wires themselves, which are an insignificant aspect of the work of art. The work enters a realm where the expanding space pushes and pulls time, everlastingly reaching for the edges of the galaxy. It calls into question how the inert, dead human interactions that dissolve into space-time fabric ripple out into time and space, affecting countless events until the end of time.

Helen Lehrer

This is a screenshot of a performance documentation. One of my hobbies is performative, interactive light shows  for EDM concerts. At this festival in Fort Myers, Florida, I performed alongside electronic musicians using liquid light show, video projection, projection mapping, and live painting. This particular performance was a turning point in my confidence as a light show designer and performance artist.

Lydia Chapman - Homework 1

Arrow of Time -

In Carroll's Arrow of Time lecture, it is argued that time and its passage is how we can directly relate to the creation of the universe even in this day and age. Time is represented in either repetition or change, when not using the human-made concept developed early in civilization, and is seen amongst the entirety of the universe down to the pendulum swing of a clock here on Earth. The repetitive movement of the sun rotating on its axis and revolving around the sun relates itself to the vibrations of a quartz crystal in that these predictable movements will continue, and has subsequently been used as accurate representations of time passing. On the other hand, change, is something that happens but will never happen or revert back again. We see change as we grow older, from an infant to a senior, and as the universe expands, it will cease to return to its original condensed form. Change goes hand-in-hand with the concept of entropy, where objects will revert into a more chaotic state as time passes, as a form of change. But no matter what, time will never cause these items to return to an orderly fashion. Such as when you drop an egg and it shatters, no amount of time or even assistance will return the egg to its original state. Entropy applies to the aforementioned expansion of the universe: as time passes, it reverts into a more chaotic state and will never return to its super condensed form.

The Quick and the Dead -

Christine Kozlov's piece, Information: No Theory, is a simple black audio recorder that perpetually records the sounds going on in the gallery. However, it never plays back anything that is recorded, and continues to record and inevitably does so over what has already been documented. This piece continually stores the words and sounds of those that pass through the gallery, day by day, and is a good indicator of time in the inevitable fluctuations of the number of people passing through, as well as all the subsequent sounds that accompany people's presence. However, no one ever hears what has been recorded, and though teased by the presence of the recorder, no one will ever know what went on with previous museum-goers' presences. This almost seems like an allegory of decomposition or death of someone rather unimportant. Their life and presence is recorded throughout life, but inevitably disappears to make room for others that live once they pass.

Alison Mosely - Homework 8/27

            The Origin of the Universe and the Arrow of Time: Sean Carroll

            The argument Carroll discusses in his lecture is based off of his theory that the events which have occurred at the beginning of the universe have set a certain stage for us as humans in the present. The origin of the universe has subconsciously affected people, involving the ways we run through our mundane tasks of life. We believe in the credibility of clocks, which truthfully show the current time, while we also believe that one cannot turn an omelet into an egg even though it is true vice versa. These facts are reliable because of the two different aspects of time: some events repeat themselves while other times events change in irreversible ways which describe the arrow of time. An event that occurs with repetition can be exemplified through the passing of the Earth around the sun. A certain amount of revolving around the sun happens every year, it is consistent; thus, we can expect this to never change and can use it as a justified way of telling time. Events that change, never returning to its previous state, can be represented through the hunting of endangered species. If all the animals have all been exterminated, there would be no way of reproducing to expand the species; hence, they would never be seen again and nature would be forced to evolve in a way that cannot be changed. 

            The Quick and the Dead

In Steven Pippin’s work, entitled Fax 69 (1998), a desk is seen with two fax machines, one black the other white, resting in the middle of the surface. Both machines are printing one continuous strip threaded through each machine’s opening; the paper from the white fax machine feeds out and under the table into the opening of the black machine, which then continues out the top of the machine and into the white, completing the loop. This piece represents time through an example of an endless, repetitive action due to its form. The paper will never finish printing, nor will it ever finish becoming the machine’s printing paper.  I enjoy looking at this piece because of its aesthetic pleasing attributes and the way it challenges the viewers to think about how the two machines are connected, eventually deriving a meaning from it.

Zoe Wilson-Groark : Commission Sketch - HOMEWORK I

A client of mine wanted me to sketch out his World of Warcraft troll... so I did. Creatures with bizarre anatomy and facial structures are so entertaining to "work with," especially when the original reference images have a low poly-count so I get to take all sorts of artistic liberties with their design while still sticking to the accepted aesthetic for the species. 

"Are you feeling it NOW, Mr. Krabs??"

(pictured above: not my client's actual troll)

Anyhow, onto homework:

The Arrow Of Time

Carroll's argument in "The Arrow Of Time" is more observation and almost... puzzlement. He talks about how the laws of physics are often so repetitive, circular. Give things enough time, and they will repeat themselves. Pendulums taking the same amount of time to rotate no matter how wide the swing is, historical events... many laws of physics all seem so reversible. And yet, most things are not, in fact, reversible. Entropy takes place, things inevitable get more and more chaotic. The universe is ever-expanding and will never return to its pre-Big-Bang state, a cake will not return to flour and sugar, and all the king's horses and all the king's men can't put Humpty Dumpty back together again (hah!). So, while many physics laws, while so unbreakable and rigid, are often "circular," time and its irreversibility seems to be linear. Events repeat, but the same event can not reverse itself. The origin of the universe is relevant to our everyday lives because its creation follows the same laws that are in effect today. If we learn about the universe around us now, we can learn about the universe at its birth. If we can find out new information about the universe at its conception, we find out more about the world around us today and the laws it abides by.

Two aspects of time are repetition and change. Change is more to do with the topic of The Arrow Of Time, and repetition can be observed and used to measure time. Change is an egg breaking, or billiards balls being set up then broken. Repitition is the change of months, seasons, years, in a set stone pattern.

The Quick And The Dead

A piece I enjoy from the "Quick And The Dead" exhibit would be Rovesciare i propri occhi by Guiseppe Penone. The artist put on a performance piece where he wore mirrored contact lenses. In the picture shown, the artist becomes a rather unsettling figure. Most humans value and treasure eye contact instinctively, as a means of intimacy as well to gauge intent or danger. When they are hidden from view, they are automatically judged suspicious and to be avoided. But when they aren't strictly hidden, and instead are mirrored, it is another matter entirely. Unnerving, yes, but the light that shines off the contact lenses gives off a glow, almost ethereal in appearance; otherworldly. It's as if, while that person is physically standing in front of the viewer, their mind/self is somewhere else, existing in a place outside of time itself.

Homework 1 (Brianna Palmer)

ARROW OF TIME - RESPONSE
The origin of the universe is relevant to our everyday lives because it set in motion a pattern of change that is very much like our own lives. With time, some things change and do not change back (the Arrow of Time), and some other things make the same changes over and over again. The arrow of time is seen in things like the aging of our bodies, which cannot be reversed. The repetion of time can be seen in things like the rotation of the earth around its axis, which repeats every day.

QUICK AND THE DEAD - RESPONSE
Michael Sailstorfer's Zeit ist keine Autobahn - Berlin (Time Is No Highway, Berlin) is a rubber tire mounted to the gallery wall, attached to a motor so that the wheel continuously runs against the wall. Black dust is left behind by wearing of the wall and the tire. Time is a part of this piece in the way that it is constantly making changes to its environment. I think of the noise it would make, both the motor and the constant friction of the tire with the wall. The wall afterwords would no doubt look a lot like Pierre Huyghe's Timekeeper. The piece caught my eye more than any of the other pieces. The perceivable motion in the piece is clear, and the metaphor delivered to the audience spoke to me personally. I am very sensitive to the pressures of constant hard work, and I feel that if I don't take proper care to slow down sometimes, I "wear down" very easily. I feel that the work could be showing this, or perhaps, as suggested by the title, the work is a word of caution to those who want to live the "fast life". I think that the piece is a warning, whatever it is about.
(This piece was on the website but not the exhibition guide)