More To That

How Life Shocks Cause the Slowdown of Time

Setbacks are hard, but they give us the space to see what truly matters

Illustrations: More To That

In the opening chapter of his book, The Order of Time, physicist Carlo Rovelli writes:

“Let’s begin with a simple fact: Time passes faster in the mountains than it does at sea level.”

He describes a situation where two friends separate, with one going to live in the mountains and one moving to the plains:

When they meet up years later, the one who lived high up in the mountains will have aged more than the one who lived closer to sea level.

This may sound surprising, but it has been repeatedly proven with the usage of specialized timepieces. This holds true even within the narrowest of altitude differences: A clock placed on the floor will run slower than one that is on a table.