Paper · Jan 27, 2026
Comment on "Multidimensional arrow of time" (arXiv:2601.14134)
As on arXiv
Abstract
In a recent preprint [arXiv:2601.14134v1], Rubin argues that the arrow of time originates from the monotonic growth of the volume of extra dimensions. While the identification of a geometric origin for time's arrow is compelling in the case of brane-world models, we point out a possible tension between the proposed volume growth and the observational stability of the effective four-dimensional Newton's gravitational constant, G, that may arise in Kaluza-Klein (KK) theory. In standard KK approaches, such volume growth induces a time-variation of G that exceeds Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN) and Lunar Laser Ranging (LLR) bounds by many orders of magnitude. To resolve this tension while preserving the author's key insight in the Kaluza-Klein case, we propose an extension: the "shape-dynamic arrow of time". By utilizing the scale-invariant monotonicity of Perelman's nu-entropy under normalized Ricci flow, we demonstrate how an arrow of time can emerge from the geometric smoothing of extra dimensions at fixed volume, thereby satisfying observational constraints on fundamental constants.
- Submitted
- Jan 27, 2026
- Subjects
- gr-qc
Comments: Comment on arXiv:2601.14134; 6 pages, no figures
Its neighbourhood
Connected papers
The 8 papers on this site closest to this one, judged by the topics they share, the words and phrases in their titles and abstracts, and their authors. They are not its citations, but a map of the work around it. Papers here go back to 2021, plus the canon.
-
Geometry and Analysis of Gradient Ricci Solitons in Dimension Four
Topics 4-manifolds, Stability & uniqueness
-
Rigidity of Gradient Shrinking Ricci Solitons with a Vanishing Bach-like Tensor and Related Variational Formulas
Topics 4-manifolds, Stability & uniqueness · Shared terms “four dimensional”, “variation”
-
Curvature Bounds on Ricci flows with bounded scalar curvature up to dimension 7
Topics 4-manifolds · Shared terms “demonstrate”
-
On curvature estimates for four-dimensional gradient Ricci solitons
Topics 4-manifolds · Shared terms “four dimensional”
-
On Euler characteristic and Hitchin-Thorpe inequality for four-dimensional compact Ricci solitons
Topics 4-manifolds · Shared terms “four dimensional”
-
Ricci Soliton Classification on
Topics 4-manifolds · Shared terms “four dimensional”
-
Nonassociative geometric and quantum information flows and R-flux deformations of wormhole solutions in string gravity
Topics 4-manifolds · Shared terms “four dimensional”, “Perelman”
Read around it
Background reading
The guides for the topics of this paper: what each idea is, why it matters, and the papers to read first.
In the guidebook
- 5A.5Uniformization and the Two-Dimensional Ricci Flow
Constant-curvature metrics on surfaces, and Ricci flow as a heat equation for the conformal factor.
- 10A.12Curve Shortening and Minimal Discs
How loops shrink under curvature, how the discs they bound lose area, and Perelman's extinction estimate.
- 11A.1The Equation and Its First Solutions
A heat equation for the metric: spheres, cylinders and scaling.