Earman on the Causal Theory of Time

Abstract

There is an important point behind Earman’s (this volume) criticisms of the causal theory of time and space-time. This point has been made perspicuously in a recent paper by Glymour (1970). It concerns the novel problems raised for a theory of space-time by the general theory of relativity (henceforth GTR), and I shall explain it briefly in Section II below. Section I briefly states my own view of the status of the causal theory, and Sections III and IV deal with Earman’s specific criticisms.

I wish to acknowledge gratefully my debt to Dr. A. Grünbaum, University of Pittsburgh, to Dr. C. Glymour, Princeton University, and to the support of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.