Time speeding up as we age. Theories.

[squeezewax]

When i was young i heard a number of old people tell me that time just shoots by when we get older. I didn't think much about it at the time, but it is absolutely true.
I am now 59 and the weeks and years simply fly by.
This seems to happen to everyone as they age and i'm wondering why? Why has evolution made us like this?
Or if you believe in god, why would he create this as part of a human being?

 

[ShinkanPo]

I think Albert made it fast

 

[Sauk]

I feel this has been true as well. What felt like a legit five years in my teens feels it takes only 1 year.
They say it's because when we're younger each year represents a larger percentage of our life up to that point, but I disagree.
I genuinely think that we process time faster as we get older.
I'm remember turning 30 in 2010 and it's felt like a flash and, poof, here I am at 38.

 

[stepdaddy]

I have thought about this a ton. It’s just because of what percentage a period of time is of your life I think. When you were one day old a day = 100% of your life. Now that I’m 35, one day = 1/22,755 of my life or 0.0000784% of my life. It’s pretty trippy but each day is subsequently a smaller portion of my overall life and thus it makes sense that they would feel less significant or to “go by faster”

 

[gspieler]

Because whatever measure of time you want to use, it represents a smaller percent of your life, the older you are. For example, a year only constitutes 2% of your life if you are 50. If you are 5, it represents 20% of your life. I think it's only natural this would affect the psychological perception one has of the passing of time.

 

[gspieler]

I have thought about this a ton. It’s just because of what percentage a period of time is of your life I think. When you were one day old a day = 100% of your life. Now that I’m 35, one day = 1/22,755 of my life or 0.0000784% of my life. It’s pretty trippy but each day is subsequently a smaller portion of my overall life and thus it makes sense that they would feel less significant or to “go by faster”

Beat me to it.

 

[My name is]

It's just because your old and your memory sucks. You don't remember as much so it seems time flies

 

[Jack Reacheround]

Think about it like this. When you are only 5 years old, one year is 20% of your entire life. When you are 50 years old, one year is only 2% of your entire life. That’s why it seems like time speeds up. Each year makes up less and less of your entire lifetime.

 

[Fox by the Sea]

it's probably because the capital of new experiences is lower and lower.
you basically done most shit. most that you can afford anyway.
no landmarks anymore.
for example. since the start of the year, i've been to russia, china, israel, belgium and i have had dozens of new experiences. feels like 2 years have passed since christmas. other years, when i don't do shit,5 months feels like a week.

why does time fly? cause life is boring, repetitive and lacking excitement.

 

[AGGAMEMNON66]

Because whatever measure of time you want to use, it represents a smaller percent of your life, the older you are. For example, a year only constitutes 2% of your life if you are 50. If you are 5, it represents 20% of your life. I think it's only natural this would affect the psychological perception one has of the passing of time.

I like this answer. I'll add that as most people age, their responsibilities increase and force them to spend a lot of time maintaining and focusing on those things. This preoccupation makes time go by faster because you are focused.


Ever notice a busy day at work seems to make the time go by faster, while a slow day seems to drag? Same/same.


I partied a lot when I was younger, but parties weren't daily either. Even at the height of my partying days I was only really going to those events Thursday thru Saturday. Which leaves 4 days of roughly nothing but working part time, and hanging out with smaller groups of people. I also slept far less -4 hours a night, tops- so that left more time on the table.

 

[Phlog]

It is simple to explain. Your experience of time correlates exactly to your encoding memories.

When you are young the memories comprise of largely new data and so seem more expanxive, as you age a higher and higher percentage of the memory is just place holder information, reference to other detailed memories and so they seem shorter, they contain less data and require less processing.

For example. You have one detailed memory/concept of your coffee table, from that point on every time your coffee table is part of a perception your brain shortcuts to that rather than collecting and storing all the data again.

It saves a vast amount of processing and makes you much more efficient but it does mean that as you get older and suffer fewer and fewer new experiences, that you perceive time to move faster. Remember it is only in your memory that said time is faster. The current experience remains constant.

This phenomena also explains why when looking for your keys in a hurry you look right at the coffee table where they sit in plain sight and do not see them. Your perception of the world is defaulting to memories of familiar items to save time/processing power, to your detriment.

You can combat this by really examining things and seeking new experiences.

 

[AGGAMEMNON66]

it's probably because the capital of new experiences is lower and lower.
you basically done most shit. most that you can afford anyway.
no landmarks anymore.
for example. since the start of the year, i've been to russia, china, israel, belgium and i have had dozens of new experiences. feels like 2 years have passed since christmas. other years, when i don't do shit,5 months feels like a week.

why does time fly? cause life is boring, repetitive and lacking excitement.

^Some of this too. It's a combination of things really. That's why I chill a lot more these days, especially on the weekends. I chill at home, out on the deck, or go cruising on the weekends in one of my rides. Time slows just a little for that, before getting back to the grind of the weekdays.

 

[ralphc1]

I've noticed this time dilation all of my life. Time dragged by slowly while in school. The rest of the day after school went by in a flash. Weekends and holidays went by in a flash. When school was out for the summer, time flew by. During the school year it went by slowly. After school, the work days went by very slowly but the time after work went by fast. Weekends and Holidays also speed by. Once I retired, the weeks just flash past.

 

[moreorless87]

it's probably because the capital of new experiences is lower and lower.
you basically done most shit. most that you can afford anyway.
no landmarks anymore.
for example. since the start of the year, i've been to russia, china, israel, belgium and i have had dozens of new experiences. feels like 2 years have passed since christmas. other years, when i don't do shit,5 months feels like a week.

why does time fly? cause life is boring, repetitive and lacking excitement.

Yep that would me my take as well and as you say travel is what really highlights this for me, an interesting 2 week holiday with a lot of new experiences can feel like a very long time to the degree it becomes my accepted lifestyle and readjusting to coming home is difficult at first. The same period of time spent in my everyday life can just fly past by comparison.

 

[Desdinova]

More time to compare things to, and things change at a slower rate as you get older. The difference and the amount of change that happens between being 10 and 15 is huge, the difference between 45 and 50, not so much.

I think this song sums it up nicely:

Spoiler

 

[Amerikuracana]

The first 10 posts got it..

I will throw in that when you are young you want it to speed up, then when you get old, you want it to slow down. That may have a little effect as well.

It's all just a little dream interrupting infinity anyways.

 

[ODYSSEYMEMPHIS]

I have thought about this a ton. It’s just because of what percentage a period of time is of your life I think. When you were one day old a day = 100% of your life. Now that I’m 35, one day = 1/22,755 of my life or 0.0000784% of my life. It’s pretty trippy but each day is subsequently a smaller portion of my overall life and thus it makes sense that they would feel less significant or to “go by faster”

this. I remember a while back reading an article about this subject and this was the explanation

 

[HomeCheese]

My reason why time goes by so fast when you are older: Time goes by quicker because you have been around longer and have a lager frame of reference. When you are 10 years old one year is 10% of your life. When you are 50 years old one year is 2% of your life. At 50 you have lived through 600 months so one more is nothing. When you are 10 you have only lived through 120 months so it seems like a bigger deal.

I'm not wording this very well but I think you can get what I'm trying to say.

 

[Joe_Armstrong]

I think the accumulated knowledge of an older person messes upt with their perception of time.
You because you process so many thoughts, that you lose track of time.

 

[breadfighter]

I still feel like i'm in 2017, and the year is halfway over.