Ep. 54 Manoush Zomorodi "Blissfully Bored"

When was the last time you found yourself truly bored? Have you forfeit those nooks and crannies in the day when you used to let your mind wander aimlessly in a daydream?

On today's episode of Team Human, Douglas is joined by Manoush Zomorodi, host of the popular WNYC Studios podcast, Note to Self. On Note to Self, Manoush initiated a series of listener experiments aimed at breaking the influence of our digital devices and networks on our lives. Those social experiments led her to uncover the creative power of boredom, detailed in her brand new book Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self .

On today's show, Douglas and Manoush wander together, as they interrogate the always-on media environment. In an era of constant entertainment, constant emergency, and constant distraction, must we fight for the mental space to just be bored? We'll learn why boredom matters and more...

This episode begins with a monologue on the news media's recent reporting on natural disaster and catastrophe. Has our appetite for spectacle confused our perception of disaster? As we watch a calamity like Hurricane Harvey or Irma across our screens, what lessons about might we learn from the darker side of our initial response?

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This week's show featured: Mike Watt: beak-holding-letter-man , R.U. Sirius: President Mussolini Makes The Planes Run On Time, Fugazi: Foreman’s Dog

Special thanks to Manoush, Jen Poyant, and all the producers and engineers who welcomed us at WNYC to record this episode.

 

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