Includes bibliographical references (p. 301-316) and index
CONTENTS NOTE
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Introduction. The discovery of inner time -- pt. I. Experiencing time -- 1. Twenty-five hours : what happens when nothing happens -- A hidden clock -- How long does an hour last? -- The trouble with time -- 2. Owls and larks : a biological clock guides us through the day -- Even flowers are aware of time -- Trillions of clocks -- The Sun sets the internal clock -- Why there are morning people and night people -- When sex is best -- Why teenagers are night owls -- Twilight gloom -- Better to be well-heeled and worn out than hale and hearty -- Tailor-made time -- 3. A sense of seconds : the origin of inner time -- Under the spell of Bolro -- Pacemakers in the brain -- Time is motion -- Distorted minutes -- An orchestra under the cranium -- The art of cooking goulash -- When the world begins to race -- Country folk, city folk -- 4. The longest hour : why time races and crawls -- Two minutes on a hot oven -- The rhythm of breath -- Why murders take forever -- Time flies when you're having fun -- Let the good times last -- 5. Atoms of time : how long does the present last? -- Time in a black hole -- A mosquito beating its wings -- The now is an illusion -- Consciousness lags behind -- Mind-reading airplanes -- The longest moment -- 6. "Twinkies, granola" : neglecting the now -- Head in the clouds -- Banal banter -- Consciousness on autopilot -- Three minutes of eternity -- 7. Frozen in time : we are the architects of our memory -- Life without past and future -- Several kinds of memory -- How the present become memory--and vice versa -- Memory transforms us -- His own history -- No watch, no calendar -- Retouching experiences -- A house of splinters and chips -- 8. Seven years are like a moment : why life speeds up as we grow older -- Why the way back is always shorter -- Machines that kill time -- "An house is not merely an hour" -- Crossing the threshold of the moment -- The teddy bear test -- Pioneers on an empty continent -- Revamping the brain -- Short on time -- Racing to the home stretch -- Applying the brakes as we age -- Where the years do not count --
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pt. II. Using time -- 9. The allure of speed : how fast a pace can we endure? -- The three time wasters -- Measuring device as moral barometer -- The push for punctuality -- Faster! -- The race is on -- A journey through time to Weimar -- Craving stimulation -- The battle of life -- Why we are no longer able to listen -- 10. The cup of life runneth over : why it is so difficult to stay focused, and how to do it -- The manager of our intentions -- A god with six hands -- The sluggish mind -- Thoughts adrift -- Sushi chef and fidgety Philip -- Card games to combat distractibility -- 11. Ruled by the clock : little time [is not equal to] big stress -- What stress is -- The myth of "hurry sickness" -- When we lose our heads -- Calm and controlled -- Why managers don't get ulcers -- Dogged by a duck -- A shortage of time is a matter of perspective -- 12. Masters of our time : a matter of motivation -- Pleasure or pressure? -- Why we always finish things at the last possible minute -- That prickle of anticipation -- The rich run themselves ragged -- The hunger for more -- pt. III. What time is -- 13. Dismantling the clock : is time just an illusion? -- A voyage to Jamaica -- The universal clock -- Do we need a cosmic time? -- Thelma, Louise, and the rocket -- Why moving watches are slower -- If you travel to the East, you live longer -- Life is faster at the top -- The succession of earlier and later -- The teacup and the big bang -- At the limits of physics -- Transcending time -- Epilogue. A new culture of time : six steps to a more relaxed life -- Can one "have" time? -- A new culture of time -- First step : sovereignty over time -- Second step : living in harmony with your biological clock -- Third step : cultivating leisure time -- Fourth step : experiencing the moments -- Fifth step : learning to concentrate -- Sixth step : setting your priorities -- Taking it easy -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Illustration permissions -- Acknowledgments -- Index
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SUMMARY OR ABSTRACT
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"Have you ever fantasized about having more time - now, this minute, to accomplish everything you need and want to get done today? Or wondered why time flies when you are thoroughly engrossed in something? Or why minutes pass so slowly when you're standing in line at the store or airport, or on hold waiting for a customer service rep to answer your call? Or how, simply, to find more time to relax and unwind?" From the bookjacket