............................................................................................................................................................
Why Time Flies
Days Gone By: Physics Offers Explanation To Why
Time Flies As We Get Older
DURHAM,
N.C. — For many of us, when we think back to
childhood summers or seemingly endless days spent in the classroom, these
periods of time feel as though they stretched on forever.
In
comparison, our more recent years of adulthood often feel like they’ve passed
us by in a flash.
This is
usually just chalked up as another one of the many peculiarities that come with
growing older.
Now, a
fascinating new study is offering up a more scientific explanation: as we age,
the speed in which our brains obtain and process images gradually slows,
resulting in this temporal discrepancy in memories.
Simply
put, this slowing of the brain’s imaging speed causes perception of time to
speed up.
“People are often amazed at how much they remember from days
that seemed to last forever in their youth,” says main study author
Adrian Bejan, the J.A. Jones Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Duke
University, in a release.
“It’s not that their experiences were much deeper or more
meaningful, it’s just that they were being processed in rapid fire.”
As we
mature, the nerves and neurons in our brains also
mature, growing in size and complexity.
Consequently,
new neural signals (memories), are faced with a longer path to travel than when
we were young.
Our
nerves also deteriorate as we age, slowing down the flow of electrical signals
throughout our minds.
These
developments mean that it takes longer for new mental images and memories to be
obtained and processed.
One
piece of evidence Bejan noted to back up his theory is how much more often
infants’ eyes move in comparison to adults; children process images much
faster than adults, leading to quicker eye movements and a rapid integration of
information.
So, because
older people are processing far fewer images within a given amount of time than
they used to in their youth, it feels like time is passing at a faster rate.
“The
human mind senses time changing when the perceived images change,” Bejan
concludes.
“The present is different from the past because the mental
viewing has changed, not because somebody’s clock rings. Days seemed to last longer in
your youth because the young mind receives more images during one day than the
same mind in old age.”
The study is published
in the scientific journal European Review.
John
Anderer
Originally
from New York, John has been writing professionally for over 7 years.
No comments:
Post a Comment