Probability and time symmetry in classical Markov processes

Guido Bacciagaluppi (1)

1 IHPST - Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et des Techniques

Definitions of time symmetry and examples of time-directed behaviour are discussed in the framework of discrete Markov processes. It is argued that typical examples of time-directed behaviour can be described using time-symmetric transition probabilities. Some current arguments in favour of a distinction between past and future on the basis of probabilistic considerations are thereby judged to be unjustified.

Mots clés: probability; time symmetry; Markov processes; arrow of time

Domaines: Histoire, Philosophie et Sociologie des sciences

Guido Bacciagaluppi. Probability and time symmetry in classical Markov processes. Suárez, Mauricio. Probabilities, Causes and Propensities in Physics, Springer, pp.41-59, 2011, Synthese Library, vol. 347, ⟨10.1007/978-1-4020-9904-5_2⟩. ⟨halshs-00791858⟩