My father, Michel Treisman, who has died aged 93, was a polymath with a store of knowledge and wise advice for every eventuality. He spent most of his career as a lecturer and researcher at Oxford University, where his work on experimental psychology focused primarily on our perception of time.
He was best known for proposing a model for the brain’s internal clock and devising methods to measure the rate at which it ticks. However, his interests extended to other fields, including evolutionary biology. For instance, he proposed a novel explanation for motion sickness: he suggested that, when you’re riding in a car, the mismatch between the motion you see and the movement you’re actively making produces an effect similar to that caused by ingesting toxins – a situation in which vomiting can save your life.
