Hello Quantum Quack
I guess the hard part is to determine if "time" is a rate function determined by multi-dimensional parameters or a separate dimension that we move through.
When it comes to defining "time" it is always difficult. So much confusion exists mainly because special relativity by AE was more or less the first accepted multiple time dimension theory and because the only person who came close to fully understanding it was Albert himself the rest of us just made up our own conclusions. IMO.
I work on the premise that:
The future is a potential defined by the present. Therefore it doen't exist except as a potential.
The past is what generates the future potential, And also no longer exists except as a future potential.
The present is the culmination of "ongoing" potentials and nothing more.
The paradox in our thinking is that we use language to decribe "moving into the future" yet we miss out the words "whilst always staying present in the NOW"
You cannot move "through" time as separate to time [ existentialism] you can only be time and always only "time". At this level You can only "be" change and not "cause" change.
If you look at a light globe shining a distance away for 1 second the light globe has changed approx. 300,000 kms within itself. [ like a ball bouncing on the spot] But it is very important to realise that the observer has also changed exactly the same distance.
The light globe and observer have changed simultaneouly 300000kms with in them selves even though they appear at rest to each other. [relative v=0]
So it can not be claimed that either the light globe or the observer are moving "through" time and it can only be claimed that the light globe and observer are moving
"as" time. Yet that movement AS time is only a temporal or hindsight memory.
So it is important to draw the distinction between temporal [ memory - mind ]and physical [ material - matter ] states.
The issue in regard to dilation is that if the observer is traveling at 100kms per sec away from the globe his actual speed of change is now 'c' + 100kps
[ actually it is more probably ('c'+ (100kps/2)) ] yet his change rate must stay at 'c', so time dilates to accomodate the increase in relative velocity so that the observer is still changing at the rate of 'c' as is the globe thus maintaining the same time line and universe.
If they did not they would both be unobservable to each other as they exist in separate time line universes.
Not an easy subject Montec.....