# Does the past exist?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-past-exist/506595
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [August 16, 2009, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-past-exist/506595 "2009-08-16T02:14:35Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Showing post:** 6

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)
#### Post date: [August 16, 2009, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-past-exist/506595/6 "2009-08-16T22:35:34Z")

</div>

Nope, the past is gone; all the atoms that comprised the past have been recycled into the present. This is why time travel is impossible: becuase you and i contain millions of atoms that were once part of other people. Take my body-I have several million atoms that were once part of Julius Caesar-he doesn’t exist anymore.

---

_[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-past-exist/506595)._