Imagine you’re in the middle of a furious fight in a video game. An opponent jumps out from behind a wall without warning. Are you the type of person who jumps right in, or does your screen show the dreadful “Game Over” indication before you even know what happened? Your reaction time is what makes you jump or freeze in place. Reaction time test show how soon your brain tells your body to “Go!” and how quickly it does it.
But what really happens when you take one of these tests? Imagine that you’re looking at a screen and getting a little bored. A loud buzzer or a flash of red suddenly breaks your tranquility. How long does it take for your finger to hit the spacebar, slam a button, or poke your phone? Most folks stay around 250 milliseconds. A blink, for example, lasts almost twice as long. Yes, that’s correct; the whole thing goes faster than you can blink.
Athletes worry a lot about the judgments they make in a split second. For example, race car drivers live or die by tenths of a second. Sometimes the Olympics come down to a difference that is less than a sneeze. But why should anyone else care? Well, every day is a major test of how quickly you can react. Our brains and bodies need to be quick when we cross a busy street, catch a coffee cup before it spills, or see a traffic light change.
Online reaction time tests are all over the place. You can challenge your pals on some websites, which makes them a virtual playground for people who think quickly and like to go fast. If you do one with a bunch, you’ll either get a lot of “Beat that!” or a few shy smiles. It’s like tapping with an old-fashioned reaction hammer, but with more sore losers.
Of course, reaction time isn’t always the same. Stress, coffee, fatigue, and even hunger all play a role. Everyone has a bad day. That second cappuccino might be worth it, or it might just make your fingers shake more than they need to. Sometimes, when you type late at night, everything starts to lag. Not all the time is it your PC. Sometimes, your own intellect is behind.
Want to know how to make your reflexes faster? Believe it or not, video games do more than just make you dumb. Table tennis, fast-paced activities, and several brain-training applications can help you get better at using your senses. But sleep is the most important thing. If you don’t get enough sleep, you’ll be slower than a sloth on vacation.
Have fun putting yourself to the test. Don’t worry about milliseconds unless you’re trying to win a gold medal or at least bragging rights over your best friend. And don’t forget that in some instances, quick reactions win. In some cases, like pie-eating contests, slow and steady wins the cake, which is what they mean. So go ahead and take that test for reaction time. If you spill your coffee on the computer, though, blame the keyboard, not your reflexes.