Thursday, May 26, 2005

Time

Everyone knows that big arguments are over little things. Our family has two camps: the Analog Camp and the Digital Camp. Let's defer to the opposition. The DC is mostly guys who think all watches, alarm clocks, and other public displays of time should be digital. The AC is mostly girls who prefer the analog format.

Now I'm definitely in the AC camp. A clock face helps me visualize time and where I am in it. But I began to wonder... is this because my mind sees time analogously? No.

(If you have ever tried to translate your mental processes into language, you will be kind)

"Time, like an ever-rolling stream..." Let's try that again - Time, like an ever-rolling strip of white tape, on which the times are all digitally entered, begins with 1:00 (A.M. or P.M.) and runs up an inclined plane to 12:00, only to drop off more sharply and begin at 1:00 again. Picture running up the triangle's hyptonuse and falling off the shortest side. This is (very roughly) how time appears to my brain. Analog and digital processes following alarmingly mathematical patterns to attempt reconciling time's infinity with my finite mind.

I'd be very interested to hear how your mind sees time.

1 comment:

Ma Hoyt said...

*glances over shoulder to see if anyone is watching*

(whispers) My real reason for wanting the children to be hopelessly familiear with analogue reading is that my mom made me, so I figure my kids should have to, too.