Why Time Speeds Up As You Get Older (And How to Slow It Down)

Summer used to last forever. Now you blink and it's December. Jessica and Jamahal dig into why time speeds up as you get older: a 150-year-old theory that says you're halfway through your life by 20, a brain that "films on a potato", a scientist who timed his feverish wife, volunteers dropped 100 feet into a net, and a man who lost 25 days in a cave. Then the good part: 5 science-backed ways to make your life feel longer. What's the last thing you did for the very first time? Tell us in the comments 👇 CHAPTERS 0:00 You have already lived half your life? 1:34 Theory #1: the shrinking year 3:07 Theory #2: your brain filming on a potato 4:05 The fever experiment (1930s) 5:02 Theory #3: memory (the 100-ft free fall) 6:19 Why adult years vanish 7:36 The man who lost 25 days in a cave 8:32 5 ways to slow time down 10:19 So... is half your life gone? Sources & further reading • Paul Janet (1877) — the proportional theory of time perception • Adrian Bejan, Duke University (2019), "Why the days seem shorter as we get older", European Review • Hudson Hoagland (1933), temperature and the internal clock • Stetson, Fiesta & Eagleman (2007), "Does time really slow down during a frightening event?", PLoS ONE • Claudia Hammond, "Time Warped" (2012) — the Holiday Paradox • Ogden (2020), "The passage of time during the UK Covid-19 lockdown", PLoS ONE • Michel Siffre (1962), Scarasson cave experiment #time #psychology #brain #science #animation