Customer Reviews

The Secret Pulse of Time: Making Sense of Life's Scarcest Commodity

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Secret Pulse of Time is a very informative and interesting book. It is in part a discussion of what time is and what it isn't, part a discussion of how humans perceive and measure time, and part self help book.

I've read books on the physics and philosophy of time before and certainly found this to be accurate to the extent that I understood the more complex books on the topic. For those who would like an introduction to the "problem" of time, this one is very lucid with respect to what is known about the physics of the phenomenon. It will surely surprise anyone who has not read anything on the topic to learn what is believed by qualified scientists about it. I know it was to me.

Much of what Stefan Klein writes about our personal perception of time, what it is, how it "flows," why it seems to be unidirectional, is very well researched. Certainly his explanation of the various "times" that our body senses seems logical once contemplated. It was very interesting, not to mention unsettling, to read about the experiments into how the body perceives the passage of time even in an unfamiliar environment without direct resort to the sun and its clues regarding it. Taking our biological cues, even down to cellular level and specific brain regions, the author shows the reader just how we know the various times that dictate our behavior. He also reflects on how the concept of it and the degree to which it is narrowly specified has changed as technology and our cultural needs have changed over the millennia. From what he tells us even the need to measure it has evolved considerably since the 15th century and the Age of Exploration.

At times I found the author's concepts of the expansion and contraction of experienced time somewhat confusing. Feeling the need myself to play with it, I found his suggestions at first difficult to put into practice; however after a reflection on my own experiences in the past with "delaying" or "hastening" its passage, I found what he suggested made a good deal of sense. Some of the issues in my own situation will definitely benefit from his self-help section!

A fascinating account.

I'm closing in on finishing this book, and I have to say that its got it's pros and cons. Many of the pros have already been mentioned here. My personal opinion is that the material is very interesting, and that it can be applied to your life as you read it, which makes the pages turn quickly.

On the downside, this is one of the most poorly edited books I've ever read. Grammatical errors are everywhere, including spelling, punctuation, and tense. I suppose this is more a complaint towards the editors, but it made for some very distracting reads. Some of the authors examples, in addition, felt trivial or poorly thought out. An example: "No matter what lies behind us, we throw a big party when we reach the age of fifty. After another ten or fifteen years at the most, we retire, even if our health would easily allow us to remain on the job." It's nit picky, I know, but the "at most" type writing is everywhere. Generalizations stated as facts left and right.

Now that my rant is over, I want to again stress the fact that the topics covered are very interesting, and that the author covers them in ways that make them understandable. I recommend reading it for anyone interested in the subject of time, but don't go in expecting to read top-notch writing.

About: A primer on everything you wanted to know about time and how humans use and perceive it.

Some things I thought were cool:

Time flies when we're having fun because we don't pay attention to time cues
Every cell in our body has its own "clock"
City dwellers move, speak and react faster than country folk
Humans are very poor judges of long lengths of time
After 200mg of caffeine, people judge time durations as 50% shorter than usual
Racers start with a shot because we react more quickly to sound than light
Humans are very, very poor at multitasking as our brains are not adept at switching gears
Taught time management techniques normally don't stick for a long time

Pros: Very interesting and makes difficult concepts mostly easy to follow. Highlights include spatial hearing, why folks are night owls or morning people, how time is related to stress, memory and attention.

Cons: Dense. A few topics can get confusing.

Grade: B+

Like his book on happiness, I have first-hand, life-long account of this topic yet found most of the information new and fascinating. There are three sections. The first on the mental perception of time - biorhythms, attention, memory, etc. The second on the sociological aspects - time wasters, stress, time management. The third and smallest section on the abstract notion - invention of the clock, Einstein's disproof of absolute time. He ends with 6 recommendations for you to better enjoy your time. Overall very informative and practical.

TIME is a neuropsychological book written by a reporter. Thus, despite the intriguing topic, it can be wordy and lacking in depth at times.

I started TIME, grew tired of the style, put it aside... then found myself thinking about various issues raised in the book. After telling several friends "not to bother" reading TIME, I found myself reading it, drawn in by the subject matter.

So the book grew on me.

More, I'm not aware of other neuropsychological books that address this topic head-on. Our brains have co-opted movement modules to tackle "time." Wow. Now there's a thought to chew on. Time -- for me at least -- certainly does seem longer and richer when I hike or spend 6 hours cycling a century than when I surf the web.

Drawn in my "time" and the psychology of time? You could do a lot worse than TIME. And if you know there may be "style issues" upfront, perhaps they won't trouble you.

Dr. Kirtland Peterson

Klein explores the question of how we experience time throughout our lives, touching upon how we make and evolve our memories, how our bodies are regulated by millions of biological clocks, how our thoughts and our level of perceptiveness affect the way that time flows for us, and what time really is from a physics standpoint. His book is an enjoyable, well organized pop-sci read filled with tons of fascinating anecdotes.

Providing advice on how we can better make use of time is only one of Klein's secondary aims, so in that respect the book jacket is misleading. The few glaring editing oversights don't really interrupt the flow - the translator has done a fine job.

This book is rich in information on the way human beings experience Time. There is a repetition of much well- known and common-sensical material( When you enjoy it flies, when you are in anxious waiting- it stands still) But there is a buttressing of such information with interesting anecdotal and experimental evidence. I especially enjoyed the small section in which Klein talks about 'flow' the concept popularized by Mikhaly Csikszentmihalyi. This refers to the focused, concentrated state- of- mind in which tasks have the exact right level of difficulty- neither too easy or too hard. In this situation mind and perception are we feel in our control and our complete attention in the present means past and future do not disturb us. This state of mind comes when we are engaged in a certain activity.
Klein also explains why the rich despite their ability to delegate all kinds of life tasks to helpers of various kinds feel more pressed for time than most others. The answer is that they have many more options. They are more in Toffler's Future Shock pressured all the time by the many good things than they can give their time to and get.
In his concluding section Klein mentions six areas in which it might be possible for us to improve our lives in relation to 'time'. These involve in some way moving away from the tyranny of the clock and imposing both at the personal and global level better ways of integrating our own circadian rhythms and mechanisms of human perception of thought.
He speaks about the importance of reducing stress, of living in harmony with our own body rhythms, achieving balance and relaxation, having a more conscious perception of the present, actively shaping available time and not simply being passive victims of circumstance.
All these involve using our freedom to use our time more wisely.Efforts of concentration, of honing our powers of perception, of learning to truly take time out and relax, In arguing for a new culture of time Klein says we cannot escape the clock and calendar but need not be obsessed with them. In effect he tells us to follow the advice of Thoreau and 'walk to the sound of our own drummer' to find the personal rhythm of our life which is right for us.

THE SECRET PULSE OF TIME: MAKING SENSE OF LIFE'S SCARCEST COMMODITY explores many time-related issues, from why some folks are morning people and others function best nights, why time either races or crawls, and other perceptions of time, memory, and efficiency. Stefan Klein is one of Europe's leading science journalists and writers, so his scientific perspective on the nature and function of time in society and in personal life makes for excellent, authoritative reading for not only college-level science and psychology collections, but for general-interest libraries who will find it lively enough for easy circulation and lay reader interest.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

In brief: This is a book mainly on the perception of time. It mainly deals with therefore the psychology of time. The biological aspect (regarding the biological clock) of time is also described. There are also social commentries on how we handle our time.

Do not expect however any in-depth discussion on the mathematics or the physics of time. There is indeed a chapter on relativity but it is quite superficial indeed.

The Secret Pulse of Time is a very interesting book that looks at time from a number of angles, most notably cultural and neuroscience angles. I found it to be a refreshing read because it didn't focus on the conventional approach, which is usually physics, but actually delved into other disciplines and there take on time. The author also provided some excellent examples to back up what he was discussing. I found some of his thoughts on information overload particularly relevant, especially with the advent of social media. I highly recommend this book.