Postagens
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➧ TÍTULO DO TEXTO: THE PERCEPTION OF TIME.
➧ FONTE DO TEXTO: Natural History, February 2020.THE PERCEPTION OF TIME
1 A number of competing ideas explain why, as we age, our perception of time accelerates. One theory notes that our metabolism slows as we get older, matching the slowing of our heartbeats and our breathing. Just as with a stopwatch [cronômetro] that is set to run fast, children’s versions of these “biological clocks” tick more quickly. In a fixed period of time children experience more beats of these biological pacemakers [marca-passos] (breaths or heartbeats, for example), making them feel as if a longer time has elapsed.
2 A competing theory suggests that our perception of time’s passage depends on the amount of new perceptual information we are subjected to from our environment. The more novel stimuli, the longer our brains take to process the information. The corresponding period of time seems, at least in retrospect, to last longer. This argument can explain the movie-like perception of events playing out in slow motion in the moments immediately preceding an accident. It might be that rather than time actually slowing during the event, our recollection of the event is decelerated in hindsight [compreensão tardia], as our brain records more detailed memories based on the flood of data it receives. Experiments on subjects experiencing the unfamiliar sensation of free fall [queda livre] have demonstrated this.
3 This theory ties in nicely with the acceleration of perceived time. As we age, we tend to become more familiar with our environments and with life experiences. Our daily commutes [deslocamentos de ida e volta entre a casa e o lugar de trabalho], which might initially have appeared long and challenging, full of new sights and opportunities for wrong turns, now flash by as we navigate familiar routes on autopilot.
4 It is different for children. Their worlds are often surprising places filled with unfamiliar experiences. Youngsters are constantly reconfiguring their models of the world around them, which takes mental effort and seems to make the sand run more slowly through their hourglasses [ampulhetas] than for routine-bound [amarrados à rotina] adults. The greater our acquaintance with the routines of everyday life, the quicker we perceive time to pass, and generally, as we age, this familiarity increases. This theory suggests that, to make our time last longer, we should fill our lives with new and varied experiences, eschewing [evitando] the time-sapping [consumidora de tempo] routine of the mundane.
5 Neither idea explains the almost perfectly regular rate at which our perception of time seems to accelerate. The fact that the length of a fixed period of time appears to reduce continually as we age suggests an “exponential scale” to time. We employ exponential scales instead of traditional linear scales when measuring quantities that vary over a huge range of different values.
Adapted from Natural History, February 2020.
01 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
Which of the following is most supported by the information in the article?
(A) Time itself does not move at a fixed pace, but rather speeds up or slows down depending on the circumstances.
(B) Our perception of time may be linked to the functioning of our heart and lungs.
(C) Since older people have comparatively less time to live, they tend to spend it more wisely than children do.
(D) The faster a heart beats, the shorter a period of time will seem.
(E) For children, their faster metabolism counterbalances the slower passage of time.
02 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
With respect to the information in the article, in which of the following situations would time, in general, most likely pass quicker than usual for a child?
(A) Far from danger, the child is quarantined in a happy, familiar environment.
(B) The child faces an unexpected life-and-death situation in which he needs to act quickly.
(C) The child is falling asleep when he is startled by a loud noise.
(D) A sudden accident has trapped a hungry child in a dark tunnel, and he must find a way out.
(E) For the first time in his life, the child has just run 50 meters as fast as possible.
03 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
At the end of paragraph 2, “this” in the sentence “Experiments on subjects experiencing the unfamiliar sensation of free fall have demonstrated this” most likely refers to a
(A) biological limit that impedes our brain’s ability to process novel stimuli.
(B) speedy flood of new, unrecognizable data.
(C) distorted view of the relative values of time and space.
(D) terrified reaction to an unexpected and dangerous event.
(E) phenomenon that may cause time to seem slower.
04 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
In paragraph 3, the author of the article most likely mentions “Our daily commutes” in order to
(A) help illustrate one common occurrence related to getting older.
(B) show that it is not only in dangerous or extreme events that time seems to pass more quickly.
(C) point out that even simple everyday activities can make time go either faster or slower.
(D) emphasize some key differences between real time and perceived time.
(E) propose a counter-argument to the standard interpretation of a simple, repetitive activity.
05 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
The first sentence in paragraph 4 – “It is different for children” – most likely refers to the idea that
(A) children are rarely able to accurately express their sensations regarding the passage of time.
(B) little children should be careful in approaching new and unfamiliar experiences.
(C) greater experience enables adults to comprehend their environment more easily than children do.
(D) a child’s hourglass and an adult’s hourglass cannot measure the same hour.
(E) ideally, the goal of any child’s education should be to make time pass more quickly.
06 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
Which of the following is most supported by a theory mentioned in the article?
(A) A person’s true understanding of the value of time can only come with age.
(B) Time is unchangeable, but we are not.
(C) If you love life then do not waste time, for that is the stuff of which life is made.
(D) For anyone who loves life, constant novelty can be gratifying.
(E) While childhood can be pleasurable, to truly enjoy life one needs to be an adult.
07 – (FGV-2021/1-VESTIBULAR UNIFICADO)
As explained in the last paragraph, an exponential scale would most likely be applied to help us understand all of the following phenomena except
(A) a 10-year period in a person’s life that seems to pass as quickly as an earlier 5-year period.
(B) a local outbreak of an infectious disease that quickly spreads and turns into a serious epidemic.
(C) the energy released by a major earthquake.
(D) the nature of the sound waves produced by a huge explosion.
(E) the action of one domino knocking over another domino until all the dominos in a long line are down.
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