Arrow Paradox
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Paradox
At any particular instant, a moving arrow is either at rest or in motion.
If the instant is indivisible, the arrow cannot move, because if it did, the instant would immediately be divided.
But time is made up of instants.
As the arrow cannot move in any one instant, it cannot move in time.
Hence the arrow remains at rest.
Resolution
This article needs proofreading. Please check it for mathematical errors. If you believe there are none, please remove {{Proofread}} from the code.To discuss this page in more detail, feel free to use the talk page. When this work has been completed, you may remove this instance of {{Proofread}} from the code. |
This is an example of how an incorrect model of reality (time is made up of instants) leads to incorrect predictions (movement is impossible).
This theorem requires a proof. In particular: Might be able to invoke set theoretical results concerning the notion that time is a continuum and therefore composed of an uncountable number of instants, then deduce the existence of a time interval by invoking something from measure theory. Parp. You can help $\mathsf{Pr} \infty \mathsf{fWiki}$ by crafting such a proof. To discuss this page in more detail, feel free to use the talk page. When this work has been completed, you may remove this instance of {{ProofWanted}} from the code.If you would welcome a second opinion as to whether your work is correct, add a call to {{Proofread}} the page. |
Historical Note
The Arrow Paradox is one of Zeno's Paradoxes, as famously raised by Zeno of Elea.
Sources
- 1937: Eric Temple Bell: Men of Mathematics ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $\text{II}$: Modern Minds in Ancient Bodies
- 1989: Ephraim J. Borowski and Jonathan M. Borwein: Dictionary of Mathematics ... (previous) ... (next): Zeno's paradoxes
- 2014: Christopher Clapham and James Nicholson: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics (5th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Zeno of Elea (5th century bc)
- 2021: Richard Earl and James Nicholson: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics (6th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Zeno of Elea (5th century bc)