Measurement of space and time

To measure means to compare with a standard. A physical movement may be measured in terms of the most direct movement between its beginning and ending. There are two kinds of measures of movement, magnitude and angle, which each have two aspects, spatial and temporal.

First, the magnitude of movement:

(1) Spatial measurement of the magnitude of a movement is by comparison with a standard linear movement, which is divided into units of magnitude and placed along the movement. The result is a number of linear units, called a length or distance.

(2) Temporal measurement of the magnitude of a movement is by comparison with a standard cyclic movement, which is divided into units of magnitude simultaneous with the movement. The result is a number of cyclic units, called a time or duration.

Second, the angle of movement:

(3) Spatial measurement of the angle of a movement is by comparison with a standard circle whose center is placed at the spatial starting-point of movement and divided into for angular units (e.g., a protractor). The result is a number of angular units, called a direction in space.

(4) Temporal measurement of the angle of a movement is by comparison with a circular movement that is simultaneous with the movement along lines from the center and divided into units of angle (e.g., a clock face). The result is a number of angular units, called a direction in time.

The difference between these two angular measurements is the difference between a circle with radii that don’t movement and a circle with a radius that moves at a standard rate. This may also be understood in terms of rectilinear components, each of which is either a spatial measure of magnitude or a temporal measure of magnitude.

Some will likely say that direction is a property of space, not time, but direction is a property of movement, which can be measured by spatial or temporal means. The difference between space and time are in what they measure. They are similar in that they measure aspects of movement, including magnitude and direction.