Bias and Time

Time seems to go by faster and faster as I age. Is there any brain-related expectation for this? My dad thought that this occurred because any time period as one ages is a smaller fraction of the whole lifetime, but that does that cover everything?

I do not know if your dad’s theory covers everything. I doubt it. Some suggest that a person’s bias alters the perception of time. Bias, in case you have not read my previous blogs on the topic of bias, can be defined as prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another; a disproportionate weight in favor of or against an idea or thing, often in a way that is somewhat closed-minded. If you had a bias against the competence of one of your teachers, a lecture period might have seemed to on for half a day. Conversely, you absolutely love a master class you are taking and believe the presenter to be not only smart but humorous in his or her presentation—and are surprised when the class period is over. A study on Routine and the Perception of Time, reported in the Journal of Experimental Psychology, reported that the duration of a task or activity tends to be remembered as being shorter when it occurred in routine conditions as compared with nonroutine ones. More tomorrow.