Why time seems to pass faster as we age • Hacker News Board

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#221

Post by whelp_24 » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 1:50 AM UTC

khazhoux wrote: post #203

codethief wrote: post #193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The other day, I heard about this lady that started playing the piano in her 60s when we she retired. Fast forward to 20(?) years later and she's giving professional concerts and everyone just assumes she's been playing the piano all her life. In other words: Keep it up, you'll the reap the fruit of your labor eventually!

> In other words: Keep it up, you'll the reap the fruit of your labor eventually! No, you won't necessarily reap the fruit of your labor. You will certainly improve, but most of us will face a hard upper limit with diminishing returns as an adult. I've played trumpet and guitar since age 13. I started learning piano ~10 years ago, age 40. But even after a decade with thousands of hours of practice, I still can't "nat…

Defeat yourself and you won't need time to do it for you. Maybe there is a hard limit, maybe you've hit a false peak, a local maxima. If you've hit a plateau, try something else, you probably only hit the limit of your current methods.

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#222

Post by RunawayGalaxy » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 1:55 AM UTC

The concept of tolerance is most often used in the context of drugs, but it applies here too.

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#223

Post by 3abiton » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 2:01 AM UTC

bibliotekka wrote: post #184

nerder92 wrote: post #159

One very simple explanation I’ve read is that time perception (as time itself) is relative. Time goes slower when you are a child because your perception of time is relative to the totality of time you’ve experienced. So for instance, when you go from 1 to 2yrs old, it’s double the amount of your entire life, but from 80 to 81 it’s just a small fraction. Not sure if this has been proven or is even possible to prove.

I thought I watched a Vsauce video that debunked this idea. Instead they suggested it was the fact that adults have fewer novel experiences than children. In other words, have lots of new experiences and time seems to extend. Something about the brain storing "same" in some kind of compressed time memory slot. Oh yeah, found it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHL9GP_B30E

Is the brain applying LoRa on our memory model?

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#224

Post by 1vuio0pswjnm7 » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 2:46 AM UTC

jvanderbot wrote: post #17

I've been journalling for 10+ years. In addition to forcing me to actually write down what happened that day, reviewing old entries provides a feeling of history that makes life feel soooo long and so rich. I can review my now-wife's rocky courtship and feel grateful we made it. I looked back 3 years ago and found the day our children were conceived :D (we have twins). I can review the anxieties of my PhD years, etc…

"# get years and day range from args"

What are example initial values of $days and $years in "args".

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#225

Post by type0 » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 4:11 AM UTC

jvanderbot wrote: post #17

I've been journalling for 10+ years. In addition to forcing me to actually write down what happened that day, reviewing old entries provides a feeling of history that makes life feel soooo long and so rich. I can review my now-wife's rocky courtship and feel grateful we made it. I looked back 3 years ago and found the day our children were conceived :D (we have twins). I can review the anxieties of my PhD years, etc…

> but for me the perception of the shortness of life is best fought by reminding yourself that it is not short

Memento mori

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#226

Post by richardw » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 4:17 AM UTC

fufufu123 wrote: post #94

jvanderbot wrote: post #17

I've been journalling for 10+ years. In addition to forcing me to actually write down what happened that day, reviewing old entries provides a feeling of history that makes life feel soooo long and so rich. I can review my now-wife's rocky courtship and feel grateful we made it. I looked back 3 years ago and found the day our children were conceived :D (we have twins). I can review the anxieties of my PhD years, etc…

You're apparently in a good place so looking back is your path to your joyful present. I'm in a bad place so looking back is my seeing back when I was still hopeful for my various life goals. I'd meet someone and have someone to share my life with, do activities with, travel with, raise kids with, etc. I never met that person and now at 60+ that's nearly impossible so looking back hurts. It hurts a-lot. Seeing the op…

Almost 51 here. I moved countries partly because it refreshes my mental clock. So much to learn and experience and try new things. I've lived more in the past year than the previous 5, and filled up the photo book so much.

I'm truly sorry about all the bad memories. I do know what that is like, many what-ifs. If you're receptive to any thoughts: Mourn them, but try not to waste the present being angry about the past, or you'll regret missing out on this time too. Give yourself another shot, try again. There will be a time where you don't get any more chances, but it's not yet. I know post-70 year olds that have cycled up mountains in France. One that just stopped being a climber after two replaced hips. I'm sorry about the kids. Maybe travel and meeting someone is still an option. Take care.

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#227

Post by rayrey » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 4:26 AM UTC

My father in law opined that life is a toilet paper roll. It spins faster towards the end

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#228

Post by rjh29 » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 4:38 AM UTC

plmpsu wrote: post #4

rjh29 wrote: post #2

I'm also obsessed with this and have mostly countered it so far by moving house every few years, living and studying in several countries and trying new things. The negative being that I don't have any stability.

To each his own. I've been enjoying getting familiar with the sun's location and cyclic changes of nature as the seasons and years pass where I live.

You can do that for a year or two, then move on to somewhere else.

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#229

Post by rjh29 » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 4:39 AM UTC

ourmandave wrote: post #46

rjh29 wrote: post #2

I'm also obsessed with this and have mostly countered it so far by moving house every few years, living and studying in several countries and trying new things. The negative being that I don't have any stability.

How do you deal with no stability? Do you have any sort of home base you can always go back to?

At the moment I got a visa that allows me to stay for 15 months, which provides a good deal of stability. I think a few years is probably the sweet spot before moving on.

Re: Why time seems to pass faster as we age

#230

Post by WuxiFingerHold » Wed, Feb 28, 2024, 4:50 AM UTC

This touches the personal topic of life choices and I find many posts here inspiring.

I'm striving for not causing harm to others, avoiding things that lead to ill mental states like compulsion or anger, seeking things that lead to healthy mental states like calmness and focus.

This seems to be a boring life from the outside, but doesn't feel like that to me. Maybe because I've got enough challenges. Time perception is not important to me.