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CHAPTER FOR COSMOLOGISTS WHO FAVOR the Big Bang theory, which I oppose, the so-called cosmic time is linked to the expansion of the universe. It is the spitting image of absolute Newton- ian time. They argue that two observers located anywhere in the uni- verse, who are subject neither to gravity, nor to any acceleration, should be able to synchronize their watches and keep them synchro- nized for all eternity. It is possible, they say, to determine the age of the universe based on the knowledge that time flows only in one single " . . tour. direction, towards the future. The problem is the origin of this time! None of the physical laws apply in the first seconds of the universe. They conflict with each other. Hence the abundance of inflation hypotheses consisting, in short, of the image of abrupt and violent phase transition. For water, a phase is a state. It can be solid, liquid or gaseous. Between each state there is a transition when the equilibrium becomes unstable. It is possible to go below zero degrees Celsius while maintaining the liquid state.”' This is called supercooling. It takes only a micro-phenomenon to turn the water to ice instantly. Therefore, this type of phase transition must have been typical for the beginning of the universe. In fact, we do not know anything about how the universe came about, except for the fact that it did, and even less about the origin of time. Speculations come and go as to why the universe is made of mat- ter instead of antimatter (in the traditional sense), or why the universe quite simply exists, whereas it also could not have existed. What time was it before the beginning of time? We are told that this question is irrelevant, but that is perhaps because there never was a beginning, just like there will never be an ending. Dates are a human invention! 131 The time of infinities