Writer Mike Mariani explores the widespread perception that time is moving faster than in previous decades, particularly since the Covid pandemic. He documents how this conviction has shifted from introspection to alarm across all age groups, appearing in online forums and everyday conversation, while examining whether something fundamental has changed in how humans gauge the passage of time.
A philosophical essay exploring consciousness through the lens of precision measurement, atypical perception, and information systems. The author argues that consciousness emerges from measurement and sensing across all systems—from thermostats to humans—and critiques overstated claims about artificial intelligence while drawing connections between temporal databases, Buddhist meditation, and the nature of reality itself.
Wittgenstein argued that if a lion could speak, we still couldn't understand it because language expresses a creature's lived experience, not just words. The article explores how different species perceive reality through distinct sensory universes—bats navigate by echolocation, bees see ultraviolet patterns—suggesting understanding another consciousness requires access to its perceptual world, a challenge modern science may help overcome.