Evolution in real time

Time is the primary independent variable for evolutionary and paleo-biologists, and a real,absolute and unidirectional arrow of time, is supported by the geological and fossil record. On the other hand, based on kinematic analyses, where a material body is considered as a mathematical point that experiences no friction as it moves through space and time, mathematical physicists conclude that times’ arrow is relative and local. By taking into consideration the Doppler effect expanded to the second order, I show that friction caused by the photons through which any particle moves is inevitable. The optomechanical friction results in an increase of entropy, consistent with an absolute and unidirectional arrow of time. By taking into consideration the optomechanical friction, I contend that the Second Law of Thermodynamics is a primary law of nature and I offer an alternative to the relativity of the magnitude and direction of time posited by Special Relativity and statistical mechanics, respectively. If “Nothing makes sense in biology except in the light of evolution,” then nothing in biology makes sense unless the arrow of time is real. By presenting the strong case for the arrow of time marshalled by the biologists and geologists, and by pointing out neglected physical phenomena such as the optomechanical friction and the mechanical angular momentum of the photon, I show that as biologists we can confidently base our theories and experiments on the assumption that time’s arrow is absolute and unidirectional. This conclusion is consistent with biological, geological and physical observations.