Relationship of local time asymmetry to cosmology

Abstract

Biological evolution implies time-asymmetry. Thermodynamics also exhibits time asymmetry through its second law. Electromagnetic radiation is a time asymmetrical phenomenon. It is suggested that the various time asymmetrical phenomena in nature are related and their understanding may require us to consider the large scale structure of the universe. Some ideas which relate cosraological time asymmetry to the one-sidedness of radiation are described. It is also suggested that issues relating to the foundations of quantum theory such as the collapse of the wavefunction, on interaction with the observer might be related to the large scale structure of the universe.