Time's Arrow, Detail Balance, Onsager Reci- procity and Mechanical Reversibility: I. Basic Considerations

This first part analyses the mechanical and statistical basis of time reversibility con-cepts which have played a pivotal role in constructing fundamental theories in irre-versible thermodynamics and quantum physics. It is concluded that these concepts cannot be derived from classical mechanics and statistics, but seem to be more like axioms, which claim to have foundations in classical mechanics and statistics. The sequel will attempt to suggest how alternative formulations might be developed