Total time

Since time is three-dimensional, what is the total time given the time in each dimension? The answer is exactly like the total distance. Consider the times t1, t2, and t3. If these are the coordinates of three successive movements, then the total time is their sum: t = t1 + t2 + t3. But if the times t1, t2, and t3 are components of one movement, then the total time is the time displacement, which is Euclidean: t² = t1² + t2² + t3². If the times t1, t2, and t3 are the components of the final point in time of a movement, then the total time is the integral of the time path taken to get to that point in time.

The metric for each axis of movement is the hyperbolic metric dsi² = dti² – dri². The total metric is ds² = ∑i dti² – dri² with i = 1, 2, 3.

This raises the question whether space-time is six-dimensional or two three-dimensional geometries. In some sense 3D space and 3D time might combine to form a 6D unity. As Minkowski said, “Henceforth, space by itself, and time by itself, are doomed to fade away into mere shadows, and only a kind of union of the two will preserve an independent reality. ” That’s an exaggeration but it’s basically correct.