Time and beauty : why time flies and beauty never dies 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 Overview Speeding time Beauty Contrast Shape Idea Perspective Art and science Slowing time Design science.