The rules
How to play
Why hitting 3 seconds is so hard
Because the brain has no exact stopwatch: estimating an interval always involves some error, and that error tends to grow with the duration.
This is called the scalar property of timing. In animals, the spread of their timing is proportional to the interval: a constant coefficient of variation (Gibbon, 1977). In people, a study with intervals from 0.1 to 3.2 s found that Weber’s law (the smallest difference you notice grows in proportion to the duration) best described sensitivity to changes in duration, although time perception is not entirely scalar (Haigh et al., 2021).
On top of that, in Pöppel’s model the brain binds events into perceptual units of about 3 seconds, which serve to define the “subjective present” (Pöppel, 1997).
Tips to get closer to 3.00
Watch the ring, not just the numbers, and repeat.
- Don’t just watch the numbers. Follow the ring: one full turn is 3 seconds.
- Repeat. Each try gives you a reference for the next one; compare it with the last.
- Test your reaction too. Here you decide when to stop; in the reaction time test you respond to a signal. They are two different skills.
FAQ
Can you cheat?
With the clock in view, anyone gets close. The skill is nailing it to the hundredth. For the real challenge, Pulse has Hidden Clock: the clock disappears.
Why 3 seconds?
Because 3 s is an Exact Time target in the app and each try is short. Pulse has more targets.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, in any browser. Tap the button to start and to stop; on a computer you can also stop with the space bar.