The more distinct memories there are from a given phase of life, the longer that period tends to seem. An expert in temporal perception explains.

Childhood summers seemed endless. When we returned to school we found an almost new world, and the previous year seemed very distant. Now, as adults, summer passes in an instant. But why?

The explanation may lie less in nostalgia and more in the way the brain perceives and stores time, explains an article in the scientific journal.

The idea is defended by researcher Marc Wittmann, a specialist in temporal perception, who points out the memory as the centerpiece of that fascinating feeling we all feel.

As a child, almost everything is new: the first vacation, the first trips to the beach, the first walks. Unprecedented moments are more likely to be recorded in memory. When we look back later, the subjective duration of a period largely depends on the number of memories we have preserved of it.

The more distinct memories there are, the longer this period tends to seem, explains the expert.

This feeling is reinforced by the fact that the child’s brain is still developing. The child not only lives more new experiences but also processes them through a rapidly changing brain. Each year represents a profoundly different phase from the previous one, with major physical, mental and emotional changes. This helps to fix and separate events more intensely.

In adulthood, everything seems to change. Development stabilizes, and so does day-to-day life. We discover and face fewer and fewer new things. There are fewer surprises. There are fewer and fewer landmarks to which memory can return. And so the sweet summer leaves fewer traces.

As an aside, Wittmann also disputes the common idea that time seems shorter just as a matter of mathematical proportion — for example, because a year represents a much larger portion of life at age five than at age 50: there is no proof that the brain calculates the time lived in this way.

And with age, memories don’t necessarily lose their vividness. On the contrary, those that remain may even seem richer and more emotionally intense. What tends to decrease is the ability to record everyday moments, in a process associated with cognitive decline, which can start in your 30s.

But wait, the conclusion is less fatalistic than it seems. To make the time more memorable, Wittmann recommends seek new experiences, maintain physical activity, cultivate social relationships and challenge the brain.

The more distinct memories there are from a given phase of life, the longer that period tends to seem. An expert in temporal perception explains.

Childhood summers seemed endless. When we returned to school we found an almost new world, and the previous year seemed very distant. Now, as adults, summer passes in an instant. But why?

The explanation may lie less in nostalgia and more in the way the brain perceives and stores time, explains an article in the scientific journal.

The idea is defended by researcher Marc Wittmann, a specialist in temporal perception, who points out the memory as the centerpiece of that fascinating feeling we all feel.

As a child, almost everything is new: the first vacation, the first trips to the beach, the first walks. Unprecedented moments are more likely to be recorded in memory. When we look back later, the subjective duration of a period largely depends on the number of memories we have preserved of it.

The more distinct memories there are, the longer this period tends to seem, explains the expert.

This feeling is reinforced by the fact that the child’s brain is still developing. The child not only lives more new experiences but also processes them through a rapidly changing brain. Each year represents a profoundly different phase from the previous one, with major physical, mental and emotional changes. This helps to fix and separate events more intensely.

In adulthood, everything seems to change. Development stabilizes, and so does day-to-day life. We discover and face fewer and fewer new things. There are fewer surprises. There are fewer and fewer landmarks to which memory can return. And so the sweet summer leaves fewer traces.

As an aside, Wittmann also disputes the common idea that time seems shorter just as a matter of mathematical proportion — for example, because a year represents a much larger portion of life at age five than at age 50: there is no proof that the brain calculates the time lived in this way.

And with age, memories don’t necessarily lose their vividness. On the contrary, those that remain may even seem richer and more emotionally intense. What tends to decrease is the ability to record everyday moments, in a process associated with cognitive decline, which can start in your 30s.

But wait, the conclusion is less fatalistic than it seems. To make the time more memorable, Wittmann recommends seek new experiences, maintain physical activity, cultivate social relationships and challenge the brain.