Imaginary time can describe universe from "summary" of A Brief History of Time by Stephen W. Hawking
One might wonder how a concept as seemingly unanchored from reality as imaginary time could possibly have any relevance to the description of the universe. After all, imagination is usually associated with the realm of fiction and fantasy, rather than the cold, hard truths of science. However, in the realm of theoretical physics, where the boundaries between reality and speculation blur, imaginary time plays a crucial role in helping us make sense of the universe. When we speak of time in the context of physics, we are not referring to the subjective experience of the passing of moments, but rather to a dimension that is intimately woven into the fabric of spacetime. However, the nature of time, particularly when it comes to the extreme conditions of the early universe or the vicinity of black holes, presents challenges that cannot be adequately addressed within the confines of traditional, real-valued time. Enter imaginary time. By allowing time to take on imaginary values, we effectively transform the familiar, linear flow of time into a multidimensional space that can be traversed in ways that are not possible in our everyday experience. This transformation opens up new mathematical avenues for describing the behavior of the universe under conditions that defy our intuitive understanding. In this framework, the big bang singularity, which represents the beginning of the universe as we know it, ceases to be a point of infinite density and instead becomes a smooth, continuous surface in imaginary time. Similarly, the event horizon of a black hole, where time as we know it comes to an apparent halt, can be reinterpreted as a boundary in imaginary time that is more amenable to mathematical treatment. While the concept of imaginary time may seem esoteric and detached from our everyday reality, its utility lies in its ability to provide physicists with a powerful tool for exploring the deepest mysteries of the universe. By transcending the limitations of conventional time, imaginary time allows us to venture into realms where the rules of the game are fundamentally different, yet still governed by the elegant laws of mathematics. In this sense, imaginary time is not just a flight of fancy, but a valid and indispensable component of our quest to unravel the secrets of the cosmos.
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