Block universe
Definition
The block universe is the view, encouraged by relativity, that past, present and future are all equally real, and that time passing isn’t a basic feature of the world.
On this site
The Render start slider treats everything before the start as backstory. In a block universe, all of it is equally present.
Role in the model
If all of time already exists, the Render start slider measures the wrong thing. There’s no “before switch-on”, only earlier pages of a book that’s already printed. The sandbox uses the other view, where time unfolds, because it’s the one you can attach a number to.
Related
14 short pages, one per thinker, each with its matching dial. See also the reading list.