Abstract

Picture yourself on a train in a station. The presence or absence of Plasticine porters with looking-glass ties is irrelevant.1 For some reason, the station is called Entity. Entity Junction, in the county of Anywhere.There are two platforms in Entity Junction, and they consist just of the two sides of the concrete sliver on which the very occasional passengers pace up and down—after all, it's just a junction. Rather than having numbers, the platforms have names. As you stand looking out towards the crisp blue sky of Anywhere in one direction, trains arrive on the platform called Platform Past. As you stand looking the other way, you see trains arriving on the platform called Platform Future. The station is quite...