How fast are you? Not as fast as ...
the thing the might kill you. Events happen fast in this world, while the neuro-mechanics of our senses always lag behind. In reality, we are always living in the past. By the time our senses react to produce a perception, the world has moved on.
Writing at Sentient Developments, neuroscientist David Eagleman provides perspective on how the speed of our reactions compare to those of the machines around us. He illustrates this by providing the time scale of an auto accident. From first impact to deployment of air bags through deflation, the events of the crash occur before a human even begins to perceive the impact.