The Arrow of Time

The arrow of time refers to the one-way direction in which events occur, moving from the past, through the present, to the future. It is often associated with the second law of thermodynamics, which states that systems tend to move towards increased disorder or entropy. For example, if you break a glass, it shatters into pieces, but those pieces will not spontaneously reassemble. This concept highlights how time seems to flow forward, as we experience irreversible processes in nature, contrasting with the idea of time being symmetrical in physics, where fundamental laws don't distinguish between past and future.