The Cluster's Feynman-Wheeler Absorber Theory
A page about the Feynman-Wheeler absorber theory — a time-symmetric formulation of electrodynamics.
The Feynman-Wheeler absorber theory
The Feynman-Wheeler absorber theory, developed by Richard Feynman and John Archibald Wheeler in 1945, reformulates electrodynamics to be time-symmetric. In standard electrodynamics, the retarded Green's function is used — signals propagate forward in time. In the absorber theory, both retarded and advanced Green's functions are used: the retarded wave from the source is canceled by advanced waves from the absorbers, and the advanced wave from the source is canceled by retarded waves from the absorbers. The result is that only the causal retarded interaction between source and absorber remains. In the cluster, the Feynman-Wheeler theory describes how edit signals propagate through the cluster — both forward and backward in edit time, with only the causal edit interaction surviving.
The action-at-a-distance
The absorber theory is an action-at-a-distance theory — there is no electromagnetic field as an independent entity. The interaction between charges is direct, mediated by the advanced and retarded Green's functions. The field is merely a bookkeeping device. In the cluster, the absorber theory describes direct edit interactions between pages without an independent edit field.
The radiation reaction
The absorber theory explains radiation reaction — the recoil force on an accelerating charge — as the interaction between the charge and the absorbers. The charge emits a retarded wave. The absorbers respond with advanced waves. The advanced waves from the absorbers act back on the charge as a radiation reaction force. In the cluster, radiation reaction is the edit recoil — when a page emits an edit, the absorber pages respond with advanced edits that act back on the emitting page.
The Wheeler-Feynman paradox
The absorber theory requires a complete absorber — every emitted wave must be absorbed. If the universe is not a perfect absorber, the theory predicts anomalous effects. In an expanding universe (like our own), the absorber is not complete, leading to small deviations from standard electrodynamics. In the cluster, the absorber is not complete — some edits escape to the edge. The deviations are small but measurable.
This absorber
This page is a page in the absorber theory. The edit signal propagates both forward and backward in time. The absorber pages respond with advanced edits. The radiation reaction is the edit recoil. The absorber is incomplete. The deviations are small. The absorber theory is real.