What I read
The author’s grandparents with their new ’72 Ford Thunderbird.
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My response
I came across this article from The New York Times Magazine website. At first glance, I was quite interested in the word 'purpose' which is also reminded me of others words such as 'goals' the question that comes up to my mind was 'what people would look like if there is no purpose?'. I am kind of the person who has purposes in every period of my life. My goals always change as many do. Having skimmed the article, it also reminds me of one of my long-unanswered questions- where does the purpose come from?
P. Carter gives an example of why universal operates well without purpose. The second law of thermodynamics states that entropy which refers to the idea of everything in the universe moves from order to disorder, and entropy is the measurement of that change. The physical disorder is all about equilibrium, everything resting randomly and uniformly. Human is a very complicated collection of many particles, they are more becoming more disorderly with time, this is just saying that entropy increase. Every difference between the past and the future will be ultimately be traced to the face that the entropy was low in the past and is growing. The universe was orderly, and it is becoming more disorderly.
The surprising thing is that the universe was ever low entropy at the beginning. The universe began in a highly ordered state. So modern cosmologists are trying to understand why the early universe was in such precise state? why was it so low entropy? P. Carter points that there is no purpose in this process because "Entropy is antagonistic to intrinsic" which is a disorder. He also refers to Sean Carroll, a prominent cosmologist, he says "meaning and purpose aren't built into the architecture of the universe". It springs from our longing for the permanence in an ever-changing universe; It is a reaction to the universe's indifference to us. I think that our stories serve as directives for the ways we want the world to exist.
"Purpose indexes the world's impermanence, namely our own" The article also shows a vivid example that makes me more understand the idea of it. He gives an example of his grandfather's car which will function well as transportation, but that goal only makes sense as an enduring reminder of the stories and memories of his grandfather. One day we will die, his car will decay along with everything in the universe as many things we 're made of return to the inert state in which everything began. Entropy demands this kind of process
P. Carter gives an example of why universal operates well without purpose. The second law of thermodynamics states that entropy which refers to the idea of everything in the universe moves from order to disorder, and entropy is the measurement of that change. The physical disorder is all about equilibrium, everything resting randomly and uniformly. Human is a very complicated collection of many particles, they are more becoming more disorderly with time, this is just saying that entropy increase. Every difference between the past and the future will be ultimately be traced to the face that the entropy was low in the past and is growing. The universe was orderly, and it is becoming more disorderly.
The surprising thing is that the universe was ever low entropy at the beginning. The universe began in a highly ordered state. So modern cosmologists are trying to understand why the early universe was in such precise state? why was it so low entropy? P. Carter points that there is no purpose in this process because "Entropy is antagonistic to intrinsic" which is a disorder. He also refers to Sean Carroll, a prominent cosmologist, he says "meaning and purpose aren't built into the architecture of the universe". It springs from our longing for the permanence in an ever-changing universe; It is a reaction to the universe's indifference to us. I think that our stories serve as directives for the ways we want the world to exist.
"Purpose indexes the world's impermanence, namely our own" The article also shows a vivid example that makes me more understand the idea of it. He gives an example of his grandfather's car which will function well as transportation, but that goal only makes sense as an enduring reminder of the stories and memories of his grandfather. One day we will die, his car will decay along with everything in the universe as many things we 're made of return to the inert state in which everything began. Entropy demands this kind of process
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My question for readers
Do you agree with this statement 'the universe operate well without purpose'? Why? and Why not?
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- P. Carter, J. (2017, July 31). The Universe Doesn’t Care About Your ‘Purpose’. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/opinion/the-universe-doesnt-care-about-your-purpose.html
- [minutephysics]. (2011, November 13). The Arrow of Time feat. Sean Carroll. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdTMuivYF30&vl=en











