Do we live in the past?

[Mitera Nikkou]

I was just thinking about our senses and how long it takes to process information. Well, I don't know how fast our brains process information, but, at least in the case of sight, we'd have to be able to process light as fast as light to see the present, right? This has puzzled me for the past few days, so I thought I'd see what other input I could get.

That's where you come in. Duh.

[Tiaiel]

Well it's true that the information takes some time to reach our brain, but since we decide whats reality for us reality is waiting for us
And I think that most people are living in the future, since most people do everything that they will feel fine tomorrow and not today. Just some people live in the past and remember what they once had and not what they want to have.
It's not easy to live in the present ^-^

[Haylie]

Wow, the things that pour from the human mind.

I agree, living in the present is difficult, especially with how busy we tend to get. Either we're working on a task we did five minuets ago or we're working out when to take our break.

[Brnin8r]

Your experience dictates what reality is. As long as your brain is receiving imput from your senses, you can determine a present. It's something that ties us all together. Our senses take in the same data in the same amount of time (or if not...then it's a very small margin of change)...because there is no one who sees slower than any one else (physically anyway...some folk are dense as bricks lol). If someone were to see slower or faster, then what can we dictate as time anyway? Sure there are people that can react to things faster, but not because they're eyes see it before others, but because they've honed and practiced to master that sense.

If we determine that the time it takes for our brain to receive data from the eyes, then when do the blind live? Sound moves slower that sight...wouldn't they live further in the past than us. Not so. I've met some of the coolest blind people who could easily pin point other things that I couldn't have because of my reliance on sight. Awareness is the determining factor of reality and you need only hone that through careful practice of logic, emotion, and your values. (logos pathos and ethos)

[Helel]

I live in a giant bucket, but certainly not the past.

What's past is past.

[Mitera Nikkou]

I'm not really sure I got the point of this across...

For instance, it's a scientific fact that, under certain duress, the brain can process information faster and things will appear to happen slower (with the exception of your awareness). Basically, as you approach the speed of another object, it will appear to move slower, and it will appear motionless once you match its speed. So, if the brain could process information at the speed of light, would all that we see appear to be motionless?

That is what I'm wondering. How can our consciousness be aware of the present if our mind still has room to process faster and, even then, is that even the limit, and what would be beyond? Are we only aware of, and reacting to, something that has already happened, because we can't process it immediately?

See what I'm getting at, now? :O

[Haylie]

...

I didn't think it was possible for your actual brain to hurt, but mine does now.

But I think I see what you're getting at now. It's like looking at the stars at night. They're lightyears away from us. If a star were to explode, there's a good chance we wouldn't know until 20 years later.

Is that a good example, or am I rambling again?

[Mitera Nikkou]

It's something like that. It did come across my mind to use that as an example, but I couldn't think of a way to. But that's mostly because it's an issue of speed and distance. We know how long the light will take to reach us, but, when it does, when does it reach our awareness? Even if it's a fraction of a second after the fact, we'd still be living in the past.

It makes me wonder if deja vu, or visions of the future, are made possible because the events already happened, we're always processing to keep up, but something in the processing screws up and the succession of events gets mixed up? Something that happens later is processed sooner than it's supposed to?