Прочитай текст и выполни задания 12–18. В каждом задании запиши в поле ответа цифру 1, 2, 3 или 4, соответствующую выбранному варианту ответа.

Time for a rethink?

Time. Physicists define it as the fourth dimension. Philosophers claim it as a conception of the mind. Mathematicians simply know it as t.

Our perception of time has been a significant field of study for psychologists and neurologists alike. Leaving behind the relativistic effects of time dilation, our perception of time in daily life is subject to many factors. Everyone has been in a lecture where time doesn't seem to pass: the feeling that one of Homer's great epics could have been recited in what the clock shows to be a couple of minutes. Numerous studies have found that boredom, negative emotions and a lack of motivation increase the perceived duration of time for a certain task. These are called temporal illusions. Just like optical illusions alter what we see from what is really there, temporal illusions alter our idea of how much time has passed.

Temporal illusions are so commonplace that we cease to question their absolute bizarreness. None of our traditional five senses accounts for the perception of time. We do not see time pass, or hear or smell it go by. Our 'sense' of time is a crucial part of our brain's perception of reality, yet we barely notice when it is simply wrong.

For example, time seems to pass faster with age. Even though there are no definitive explanations for this, the theories that have been proposed are quite compelling. One hypothesis is that any given time period for an adult, constitutes a smaller fraction of their life than for a child and so it may seem shorter to them. Another theory, relevant to university life, uses stress as an explanation. Most students know the feeling of not having enough time to do things. Studies by Marc Wittman and Sandra Lehnhoff from the University of Munich have shown that people often reinterpret this stress as the feeling that time is passing faster.

Other temporal illusions appear in places you would not expect. A study by John Wearden, Neil Todd and Luke Jones at Manchester University found that visual stimuli appeared shorter in duration than auditory stimuli of the same length. It seems that time not only plays a part in the perception of our senses, its effects are also variable.

At this point, we must pause to consider whether we could ever have a perfect, or even close to perfect, sense of time. Is it realistic to envisage a day where clocks are not necessary and you always know the precise time? Efforts to improve our senses are well underway. Sight and hearing already have a variety of aids available and touch restoration is already becoming a reality. The future could well hold devices or techniques for perfecting our taste and smell, but could our sense of time ever be fixed if we still haven't understood how it works?

For the moment, at least, it seems that the effects of temporal illusions are here to stay. Our sense of time may be analogous to our sense of direction, and just like GPS technology will often prove our intuition wrong, we may have to continue looking at a clock for an accurate reading of the time. Any way around this can only come in the distant future, after we've improved our understanding of how the human brain functions.

Even though we may never see the day when boring family dinners fly by and interesting conversations seem to last forever, our brain's perception and processing of time are truly fascinating. We should stand in awe, for time is probably the single most essential aspect of our reality, and without it, the world as we know it could never exist.

12. A temporal illusion...

1)   is a misrepresentation in the perception of time.

2)   is an illusion that does not last very long.

3)   alters the idea of what we see.

4)   most often occurs in lectures.

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13. What do we know from the 3rd paragraph?

1)   We use our senses to perceive time.

2)   Humans do not question temporal illusions.

3)   We can often track when our sense of time is correct.

4)   Understanding time is an essential part of perceiving the world.

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14. According to the text, why do people think that time passes more quickly with age?

1)   In childhood, people don't understand time well.

2)   Stressful university life affects people's perception of time in adulthood.

3)   In adulthood, people experience more stress, which equates to a feeling of lack of time.

4)   Adults have many things to do, so they don't mention how time really passes.

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15. The word "envisage" ("...to envisage a day…") in the 6th paragraph is closest to the meaning of the word…

1)   Imagine.

2)   Foresee.

3)   Look.

4)   Examine.

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16. What is the problem with making devices for the correct perception of time?

1)   They will be expensive, so not many people can afford them.

2)   They already exist, but they are useless.

3)   We don't know much about time yet.

4)   It is impossible to improve our perception of time.

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17. What is the only solution to prevent temporal illusions?

1)   To somehow modify the GPS technology.

2)   To know more about our brain.

3)   To create a world time clock.

4)   To improve our brain.

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18. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

1)   Time is an important part of our life.

2)   We should cherish every moment of our life.

3)   Boring events in our life are actually not so boring.

4)   The perception of time can be wrong and we should be careful about it.

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