temporalthings

Temporalthings is a coinage used in speculative discourse to refer to objects, processes, or phenomena that engage with the temporal dimension in novel ways. The term does not refer to a single defined entity but to a family of concepts that cross disciplines such as physics, philosophy, and science fiction. In its broadest sense, a temporalthing is an item or process whose properties depend on time in nontrivial ways, or that can influence the flow of time for itself or other systems.

Classification of temporalthings typically distinguishes several modes: time-sensitivity, where an object's state encodes a historical moment; time-manipulation, where the item alters temporal duration, simultaneity, or order; and temporal persistence, where information or structure persists across temporal intervals beyond ordinary decay. Examples in fiction include time-locked artifacts and devices that experience time at different rates, as well as theoretical constructs that serve as thought experiments about temporality.

Theoretical status in real-world science remains uncertain. There is no experimental evidence for macroscopic temporalthings with controllable time manipulation. Some physical theories treat time as an emergent or constrained dimension, subject to causality, thermodynamics, and quantum effects. Debates center on feasibility, potential paradoxes, and the interpretive frameworks required to describe time-dependent artifacts.

Cultural usage of temporalthings appears primarily in speculative literature and related media, where the term provides a convenient label for discussing imagined capabilities, ethical implications, and narrative consequences of time-related technologies.