Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Time

Thing: A blog post using illustrating and connecting concepts to construct both a concrete and an abstract definition and examples of the abstract concept of time.
Audience: E12 classes
Writer: me
Purpose: To create a piece of writing that illustrates both the abstract and concrete understanding of time. . To connect my own theory of time to an accessible text and explain its impact on my decision making process.

Context: I am studying self-reflection in E12 and gathering information about the brain's process in abstract and concrete thinking. I am creating definitions of the different theories and connecting these to my own ability to self-reflect and make decisions.


Define Abstract: Concepts that cannot physically be touched, i.e. love, trust, hate, injustice, truth.
Define Concrete: Items that are tangible, they are able to be touched, i.e. pencil, pen, desk, chair.

In what ways is the concept of time both abstract and concrete?

Time Quote: "The best thing about the future is it happens one day at a time"(Abraham Lincoln)
Time Question(s): Does our age affect how we see time? Do children experience time differently than adults and if so why?
Find an Image of Time: Cite this


Trials: 
Watch and take notes on Philip Zambardo’s lecture “Secret Powers of Time”



Listen to and take notes on NPR’s “Shifting Time”


My youngest son just started Kindergarten and he says the days are "so long" and he returns from his day just exhausted. My nine year old thinks the time that elapses between summer and Christmas could very well be ten years. For me, I blink and the day is done; I never finish Christmas shopping even when I begin in the summer. So, what's up with our concepts of time? Are my sons and I existing in the same 365 day year, 24 hour day, 60 minute hour, 60 second minute? While time may be concrete on a clock; it is clearly an abstraction in terms of individual perception.

In Brain Games, "It's All About Time", Cal Tech scientist Chess Stetson explain how our brains process time depending on our exposure to stimuli. For example, our brain perceives time slowing down when we are exposed to something new, "The Oddball Effect". My guess is my five year old is experiencing all kinds of new stimuli in Kindergarten; I bet his days are like my years relative to our time experience. Time according to the experts on Brain Games is malleable and can change given our experiences and perceptions. I am guessing as we mature and our actions and choices change, so do our time perceptions which eventually affect our character. At least this happens gradually, so we virtually don't even notice the change in perception.
 I am not the only one to notice the power of time and the investments we make with our time though. "The best thing about the future is it happens one day at a time"(Abraham Lincoln). Lincoln clearly believes in time's power to change, but he also addresses personal control over choice and time. Zimbardo categorizes people into one of six types: "Past Positive", "Past Negative", "Present Hedonistic", "Present Fated", "Future Goal-Oriented", "Future Immortality". Zimbardo does not label these types as bad or good perspectives, rather he distinguishes the characteristics and consequences of each perception and each individual's choices which control that perception. So in connection to Lincoln, the "Future Goal-Oriented" planner sees the clear consequences and continually behaves and makes choices in line with those consequences in mind. While the "Present Hedonist" secures the pleasure of every moment despite the consequences. This pattern or repeated choice does indeed have the power to determine who we become. Indeed such power that Malcom Gladwell notes that it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to become an expert at anything, once again proving that the choice to invest in time lies in our own power. Eventually, as time accrues, those investments in time produce dividends or bankruptcy.
It's been six years since I wrote this original post about time. And true to my concept of time passing quickly, once again, it has been a blink of an eye. Now, my-then-kindergartener is a sixth grader, and I have two oldests: both sophomores. In the past six years, I have been down quite a few different paths. One trail let me to a new chuchurch and renewed faith, another to the Philippines and back. Each stop on these trails has taken time, time that I have invested my time in my family, my kids, my students, my athletes. Although, I had a vision of what my future might look like; I am not sure if I pictured it quite like this. Time is an unstoppable force; it is a pathway we walk down. Yet, time is an abstract concept, one our brain can manipulate; it is a memory we recall, a moment we slow down. Time is a resource, one that our lives are made of, and the way I choose to spend my time ultimately shapes who I become.
Sources:
Dali, Salvador. The Persistence of Time. Google Images
Zimbardo, Philip. "The Secret Powers of Time." Lecture. 24 Sept. 2013. You Tube. RSA Animate, 24 May 2010. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
National Geographic. ""It's About Time"" Brain Games. Nat Geo. 2013. Television.
Gladwell, Malcolm. ""10,000 Hour Rule"" Outliers: The Story of Success. New York: Little, Brown and, 2008. N. pag. Print.

Kuriyama, Caesar, Rives, Dan Gilbert, and Sean Carroll. Shifting Time. Ted Talks. Rec. 19 June 2015. NPR, 2015.

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