02 March 2009

Why Life is prior to space

We may temporarily permit ourselves a foray into a somewhat unclarified to point out now that the priority of time over space necessitates us to consider life as prior to space. I will endeavor to point out why in the following sections:

We have stated previously that time is the medium in which and through which change was experienced, and that, furthermore, it is the core condition for the possibility of any experience at all. Change, however, ought not be defined as a mechanical but as a formal process. We can show this is correct via the following reasoning:

Nothing that changes remains exactly what it was
A thing that has not altered in any way that is potentially observable (whether immediately or via posterior consequences) has not changed.
No change is potentially observable if there are no observers.
Conversely, if there are no observers there is no change.
Therefore, change only exists if potentially observable (whether immediately or via posterior consequences)

Now, observers only ever view formal characteristics. The concept of non-formal observable objects is absurd, since such objects would be formalized by experience and are therefore self-contradictory. Since observers can only view formal characteristics, we must state that change, which only exists in relation to a (potential) observation, must always be formal.

Formality, however, can exist independently of space. Indeed, formality by definition must be prior to space simply conceived, since space is itself a formalization. Time, however, as we pointed out before, is not necessarily a formalization, and only seems susceptible (at least as far as I am presently able to conceive of it) to a limited and partially extrinsic formalization.

Since we have already brought up (somewhat needlessly) the point that only observers formalize, and that space is a formalization, it is clear that there were observers prior to the formation of space. Observers by definition must be alive (though clearly not necessarily in any traditionally conceived biological sense, if our argument is correct). If there are living things then there is life.

THEREFORE, Life is prior to space.

Further proof of this may be had if one considers the discussion of change above. Since we have stated that time effectively changes into space, it is clear that there must be observers prior to the existence of space.

The reader endowed with forethought will already have realized that we are hurling ourselves, with breakneck speed, against Kant's antimony of the eternity and non-eternity of the world. Perhaps we will soon have gathered enough force behind us to shatter this cave wall and break through to the light of day beyond.

1 comment:

Ned Wilobane said...

Your notes on time and observers dovetails nicely with a point I was trying to make regarding mans relationship with the natural world. I'll admit, I'm a bit less formal in my appraoch(no pun intended). http://fishingthemeander.blogspot.com/