The Time Traveller
JS Bach Cantata BWV 84 ‘Ich bin vergnügt mit meinem Glücke’
Dr Fay Dowker, Professor of Theoretical Physics at Imperial College London
THE MUSIC
This cantata sets a modest tone for the morning. Bach focuses his listeners on life as it is now; we should be content with our lot and ‘that which God has allocated to us’, not longing for more in future, nor regretting the past when our end comes.
THE SCIENCE
“I’ve always dreamed of seeing the future, looking beyond my years, seeing the progress of mankind. I’ll also be able to see who wins the next twenty-five World Series.” Emmett ‘Doc’ Brown, Back to the Future.
The promise of knowing the future has fascinated generations of great thinkers, but the concept of ‘the future’ depends on the theory that time progresses forwards. Leading physicist in space-time wormholes, Professor Fay Dowker from Imperial College London, talks us through the competing philosophies on the passage of time if, indeed, time passes at all.
If you are unable to watch this event in person, digital tickets are available through the Kings Place website
