@gmirey - you are on to something in regards to the perception of time.
As I see it - the early stages that model the physics of the real world have to stay locked in to those dynamics to understand and predict what is happening. (Perception is active prediction!)
Later stages are not bound by these restrictions and it makes sense that they may be running with a faster clock when required.The flip side of that coin is that when there is no need for rapid response the clock could be much slower, both for a reduction in energy requirements and for possible advantages in the thinking process. (think meditation).
I made a post on clocking of the cortex here:
One of the links was to this excellent bit on the perception of time AND what happens to the perception of time under stress. The internal clock speeds up which seems to slow down time in some parts of the brain. The perception of the physics of the universe does NOT slow down.
This strongly points to at least two clocks in the brain, one being variable.