The Propagation of Now: Rejecting the Block Universe in Favor of a Relational Cosmos

 J. Rogers, SE Ohio

Abstract

For a century, physics has been dominated by the "Block Universe" interpretation of General Relativity, which models spacetime as a static, four-dimensional sculpture where past, present, and future co-exist equally. This model, while mathematically elegant, renders the fundamental experience of time's flow—its becoming—a subjective illusion. We reject this static view and propose a Dynamic Relational Universe. In this model, the universe is not a noun, but a verb: a continuous process of self-computation. We demonstrate that mass, gravity, time, and inertia are not separate phenomena but different perspectives on a single underlying relational structure. Crucially, we redefine Time as the Act of Update and propose that the fundamental constant c is not merely the speed of light, but the speed at which "now" propagates through the relational network of space. This leads to a fractal model of reality where every system, from an atom to a galaxy, possesses its own local "now," emerging from its own nested set of internal and external relationships.

For simplicity I am ignoring charge for now and focusing on the larger structures that emerge from what we call gravity.

1. The Failure of the Static Block

The Block Universe model, often attributed to Minkowski and Einstein, treats time as a fourth spatial dimension. In this view, the entire history of the universe, from the Big Bang to its ultimate end, already exists. This "frozen geometry" creates a profound philosophical crisis:

1. The Illusion of Becoming: The undeniable, visceral experience of time passing, of cause leading to effect, is reduced to a trick of consciousness. We are merely "reading" a pre-written book, not living a story.

2. The Problem of Interaction: A static block cannot interact. Interaction implies process, change, and a sequence of events. A block universe can contain correlations but not a fundamental causal process. It is a dead universe.

We contend that a model that relegates our most fundamental experience of reality to an illusion is, at best, incomplete and, at worst, incorrect. A true physical theory must account for the process of becoming, not just the state of being.

2. The Dynamic Relational Universe

We propose that the fundamental substance of the universe is not matter or energy within spacetime, but relationships. The universe is a self-contained, self-referential network of relations.

2.1 The Unity of Phenomena

The apparent separation between physical phenomena is an artifact of perspective. The core insight is that mass is gravity is time is inertia is motion. These are not different things linked by laws; they are different projections of a single, underlying reality. The state of the universe at any moment can be described by a web of dimensionless ratios, such as the gravitational potential:

        $$\mathrm{\Phi }\propto \sum \frac{m}{\mathrm{r}}$$      

This web of ratios is the physical reality. There is nothing else.

2.2 Time as the Act of Update

If the universe is a network of relationships, what is time? Time is not a dimension; it is the process by which the network updates itself.

• The Driver: The update is driven by tension within the network. Unbalanced potentials (e.g., a rock held above the Earth) represent a state of high tension.

• The Process: The universe continuously evolves to resolve this tension, effectively minimizing action. The "tick" of the cosmic clock is not a periodic vibration but the global computation of the next state of the network.

• The Nature of Past and Future: In this model, the Past is the previous configuration of the network, which exists only as the trace (memory, momentum) it left on the current state. The Future does not exist, it is the anticipation of the set of possible next states that we pattern match from the memory of previous continuously updating states. The Now is the only reality: it is the active wavefront of this universal computation.

3. The Propagation of Now

This dynamic model provides a physical mechanism for the propagation of reality itself.

3.1 Space is the Medium, Time is the Propagation

The statement "Now propagates. Space is time" captures the essence of this mechanism. The web of relationships (∑m/r) constitutes the medium of space. The "Act of Update" is the propagation of a change in this medium.

This leads to a radical reinterpretation of the speed of light, c:
c is not the speed of light; it is the speed of causality—the speed at which "now" propagates through the network of space.

Light, being massless, simply happens to travel at this fundamental speed of reality. Nothing can travel faster because nothing can outrun the propagation of reality itself.

3.2 The Physical Basis for Relativity of Simultaneity

This mechanism provides a physical, intuitive explanation for the relativity of simultaneity. It is not a matter of perspective; it is a consequence of the finite speed of the universal update.

• An observer's "now" is the spherical wavefront of reality propagating from their position at speed c.

• Two observers in relative motion have different centers for their propagating "now" wavefronts.

• Therefore, their local experience of which distant events are simultaneous will naturally differ. The "Block Universe's" slicing of spacetime is replaced by the overlapping, propagating wavefronts of "now."

4. The Fractal of Nested Nows

This leads to the final, most profound consequence: there is no single, universal "now."

"My now does not have to be your now, because we are a time experience in a nested set of orbits too many to know."

Every physical system is a complex web of nested relationships. An electron "orbits" a nucleus; molecules vibrate; cells form feedback loops; organisms live and die; planets orbit stars. We are each a "time experience" embedded in a vast, incomprehensible hierarchy of "orbits."

• "Now" is Local and Embodied: An individual's "now" is the integrated state of their entire nested system. It is the sum total of all the internal updates, from the quantum to the cognitive, happening within them.

• A Fractal Cosmos: The universe is not a single dynamic system with one "now." It is a fractal of nested systems, each with its own local, emergent "now." An atom's "now" is different from a cell's, which is different from a person's, which is different from a planet's.

• The Co-Evolution of Nows: These local "nows" are not isolated. They are all interconnected and influence each other through the propagation of reality at speed c. The universal "now" is not a single wavefront, but the unfathomably complex, co-evolving tapestry of all these local "nows" interacting.

• Life is a standing wave: Matter and energy flow through this wave, but the wave maintains a separate identity. 

5. Synthesis: Wheeler's Participatory Universe Realized

This model fully embraces the spirit of John Archibald Wheeler's "It from Bit" and his vision of a participatory universe.

• The "Bit": The fundamental information is the relational data of the network—the dimensionless ratios (m/r, E/f, etc.).

• The "It": The physical reality ("It") emerges from the processing of that information (the "Bit"). The universe is a self-observing, self-creating system.

• Participation: We are not passive observers of a pre-existing reality. As complex, nested systems, we are active participants in the universal computation. Our choices and actions are part of the information that determines the next "update" of the network.

6. Conclusion

By rejecting the static Block Universe in favor of a Dynamic Relational model, we restore time to its rightful place as a real, physical process. The universe is not a thing to be observed; it is a process to be experienced. Its fundamental nature is not geometry, but computation. The flow of time is not an illusion, but the propagation of "now" through a fractal web of relationships, and we, as conscious beings, are both a product and a participant in that eternal, creative flow.