I don't know. I blew off 6 miles to work the other night at the movie theater with a friend of mine and you'd think I'd scaled Mt. Ranier. I rode 12 over the weekend and someone at work asked me what I did and I said so, and they spent the next 30 seconds asking me if I was 'hot' (it was), "okay", if it was 'healthy' for me to do all that way at once, etc etc.
I think people don't perceive a mile anymore. It's not THAT far.