Estação Cronográfica

THE TYRANNY OF THE TICKING CROWD.

HOW A DUTCH CLOCKMAKER DISCOVERED WHY YOUR FRIENDS ARE QUIETLY REWIRING YOUR BRAIN.

In 1665, the Dutch physicist Christiaan Huygens discovered a curious fact about clocks. If you hang two pendulum clocks on the same wall, they eventually stop arguing and begin ticking together, as though they had attended the same committee meeting and reached a consensus.

Humans, it turns out, are much the same. Spend enough time around five pessimists and you'll soon be inspecting clouds for hidden disappointments. Spend enough time around five entrepreneurs and you'll find yourself trying to monetise breakfast.

The great secret of life is that people, like clocks, have a habit of synchronising. The people around you are constantly tugging at your opinions, habits, ambitions, and expectations until, before you know it, you've become a slightly averaged version of the company you keep.

Huygens thought he was studying pendulums. What he was really studying was human nature.

Jamie H. Miller