“An insightful meditation on the curious nature of time…A highly illuminating intellectual investigation” (Kirkus Reviews) explaining the sometimes contradictory ways we experience time. “Time” is the most commonly used noun in the English language; it’s always on our minds and it advances through every living moment. But what is time, exactly? Do children experience it the same way adults do? Why does it seem to slow down when we’re bored and speed by as we get older? How and why does time fly? “Erudite and informative, a joy with many small treasures” (Science), this witty and meditative exploration by award-winning author and New Yorker staff writer Alan Burdick—“one of the finest science writers at work today, with an uncanny ability to explain knotty topics, with humanity, and humor” (Publishers Weekly, staff pick, best books of 2016)—takes readers on a personal quest to understand how time gets in us and why we perceive it the way we do. In the company of scientists, he visits the most accurate clock in the world (which exists only on paper); discovers that “now” actually happened a split-second ago; finds a twenty-fifth hour in the day; lives in the Arctic to lose all sense of time; and, for one fleeting moment in a neuroscientist’s lab, even makes time go backward. “Why Time Flies captures us. Because it opens up a well of fascinating queries and gives us a glimpse of what has become an ever more deepening mystery for humans: the nature of time” (The New York Times Book Review). This “intellectual adventure renders a hefty topic accessible to the general public” (Richmond Times-Dispatch), is an instant classic, a vivid and intimate examination of the clocks that tick inside us all.

A Study Guide for David Ives's "Time Flies," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Drama For Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Drama For Students for all of your research needs.

Time and beauty are two of our most visceral perceptions. Yet, their nature is seldom questioned. In this ground-breaking new work, Adrian Bejan — a true 'original' among physicists — explains, in a scholarly yet colorful style, the scientific basis for the perception of time and beauty.Organized into three main ideas, the book begins first with the perception of time. The author expounds on why we feel that time flies faster as we get older. Perceived time, also called 'mind time,' is different from clock time. In this context, time is another word for 'perceived change'. Next, readers will discover that beauty is appealing because beautifully-shaped images are scanned faster by two eyes. To observe our immediate surroundings and to understand them faster is highly advantageous to survival; hence, there is an underlying evolutionary advantage to our discernment for ideal ratios, shapes, and beauty at large. Finally, time and beauty are jointly understood to explain why the global pandemic had decelerated our mind time. This understanding arms us with techniques to slow down our mind time (which accelerates with age), and to create the conditions for living longer and more creatively.Scientists may have contemplated aspects of time and beauty separately. In contrast, the author submits an original and rewarding approach to understanding them together. In the process, key questions to our cognition are answered. Why does the mind 'try' to make sense of a new mental image? Why is there a natural tendency to organize a new input and mentally position it among past perceptions? Through physics, the book offers a general answer: to empower the individual with speed and clarity of thought, understanding, decision-making and movement. The same answer holds for the other disparate perceptions illustrated in this book, from time and beauty to ideas, message, shape, perspective, art, science, illusions, and dreams.

Playwright David Ives's follow-up collection to the award-winning collection All in the Timing pushes his gift for wacky one-act comedy to new heights: two mayflies on a date realize they have only twenty-four hours to live; a washing-machine repairman falls in love with a perfect washer (should he tell his girlfriend?); an out-of-work shmo decides to spend his day being painter Edgar Degas; two Babylonian blue-collar workers have to build the Tower of Babel -- or else. Zany, thought-provoking, and always original, this anthology brings together all the one-acts from the Off-Broadway hit Mere Mortals and from the all-new Lives of the Saints, as well as several new and uncollected plays, including Bolero, Arabian Nights (which premiered at the celebrated Humana Festival in Louisville), The Green Hill, and Captive Audience.

"After accompanying Melanie and B.J. on their hysterical road trip, readers will feel like they’ve made friends for life.”—Kirkus TWO BEST FRIENDS. A HIGH SCHOOL REUNION. AND A ROLLICKING ROAD TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE. “A spunky, lighthearted road trip down memory lane. Another delightful beach read from Claire Cook.”—Booklist Years ago, Melanie followed her husband Kurt from the New England beach town where their two young sons were thriving to the suburbs of Atlanta. She’s carved out a life as a successful metal sculptor, but when Kurt leaves her for another woman, having the tools on hand to cut up their marriage bed is small consolation. She’s old enough to know that high school reunions are often a big disappointment, but when her best friend makes her buy a ticket and an old flame gets in touch to see if she’ll be going, she fantasizes that returning to her past might help her find her future . . . until her highway driving phobia resurfaces and threatens to hold her back from the adventure of a lifetime. Time Flies is an epic trip filled with fun, heartbreak, and friendship that explores what it takes to conquer your worst fears . . . so you can start living your future. From the New York Times bestselling author of the much-loved book Must Love Dogs, made into a romantic comedy movie starring Diane Lane and John Cusack and now a 7-book series, comes a feisty and fabulous novel about picking up the pieces and reinventing your life when everything falls apart. “Genuine, deftly drawn characters. . . Cook’s poignancy and sassy humor resonate with readers; her theme of reinvention uplifts and inspires . . . It’s the perfect companion for an afternoon under a beach umbrella with sand between your toes.” —Savannah Magazine “Cook’s characters are always looking for the next exciting chapter in their lives . . . Time Flies takes her trademark theme in a thought-provoking new direction . . . the resulting story is both touching and hilarious.”— The Bourne Courier “Cook delivers again . . . Past and present riotously collide and give birth to an ending as heartfelt as it is hopeful.”— Shelf Awareness “The perfect summer beach read . . . Funny, charming and downright lovable!”— Times Record News “The beach-bag-worthy story is one that may appeal to those who can commiserate with starting over.”— The Free Lance-Star “Laugh-out-loud funny . . . Time Flies is the perfect novel to read on your summer vacation or while lounging by the pool.”— The News-Gazette “More than a beach read, Claire Cook’s Time Flies is an absorbing and humorous look at lives lived during a particular era. . . . The author’s facility with setting evocative scenes past and present is refreshing. —New York Journal of Books “Full of engaging characters and humorous situations . . . This lighthearted story will have readers plumbing its hidden depths and enjoying the ride.” —Romance Reviews Today “The exuberant and charming Claire Cook is one of the sassiest and funniest creators of contemporary women’s fiction.”— The Times-Picayune “Reading Claire Cook might be the most fun you have all summer.”— Elin Hilderbrand “Charming, engagingly quirky, and full of fun, Claire Cook just gets it.”— Meg Cabot “Claire Cook has an original voice, sparkling style, and a window int family life that will make you laugh and cry.”— Adriana Trigiani “Inimitably warm and witty . . . Tender, touching, and terribly, terribly funny!”— Mary Kay Andrews

Small town Texas is tough on a gay kid, but this one decided to learn karate. Problem solved, or so he thought. Time Flies is funny. It's the tender story of a young man who doesn't let society or its machinery hold him back. He's going to fall in love, and there's nothing you can do about it. He's going to save the world, and it's so Top Secret that nobody gives him a medal or says Thank You. Those would have been nice, but what he got was love. His whole life is about hope. If bubba doesn't give you hope, you make it yourself. If society says you're substandard, go change the standard. Andreas learns how to do that, and he's really funny doing it. Time Files starts angry. The narrator hates living in Texas, hates the bubbas down the street, and has a generally foul attitude. His rooster is continually stoned on pot seeds from somewhere. The book goes through snarky and funny, and it ends with some of the most loving prose we've seen in years.