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Thursday, July 19, 2012
Box Office Report: 'Dark Knight Rises' Outpacing 'Avengers' in Advance Sales
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The Holy Trinity of Inactivity: How Boredom, Distraction, and Procrastination Are Vital to Healthy Living
July 19th, 2012Top StoryThe Holy Trinity of Inactivity: How Boredom, Distraction, and Procrastination Are Vital to Healthy LivingBy Thorin Klosowski
It probably sounds a little counterintuitive to suggest to anyone that they start slacking off, but in reality it's about as important to your brain's health as sleeping is. Being bored, procrastinating, and embracing distraction all help your brain function. In turn, you understand decisions better. You learn easier. You even foster creativity and productivity better. Let's take a look at this holy trinity of inactivity from the points of view of both science and creative types. How Boredom Works to Boost Creativity and Positive Behavior
It's that boredom that comedy writer Graham Linehan embraces as part of his creative ritual. In an interview with The Guardian, Linehan describes his process:
Psychology Today also notes boredom is a stepping stone to bigger and better things:
The argument is that boredom gives you a blank slate to work with. This is echoed in research from the University of Limerick that suggests boredom can lead to more prosocial behavior because it pushes you toward meaningful activities. Boredom on a large scale might be a sign of depression, but cutting off the world for a little while each day is a good way to help make sense of it. Photo by Monica Kaneko. How Distraction and Focus Work Together
Distractions aren't just necessary for creative types and problem solvers, they're important for you to focus.NY Magazine explains:
The ideas in NY Magazine are backed up with research from the Journal of Neuroscience that suggests that daydreaming improves focus by creating long-range neural connections. In short, getting distracted and letting your mind wander can actually make you smarter and more focused in the long term. You shouldn't stop in the middle of a productive moment and surf the internet, but if you catch yourself being distracted you don't always have to fight it. Photo by Ben and Kaz Askins. Why Procrastination Helps You Make Better Decisions
In his book Wait: The Art and Science of Delay, author Frank Partnoy suggests that procrastination is integral to good decision making. He also suggests a simple two-step method is necessary for making good decisions and being happy. He calls this, "don't just do something, stand there." At a presentation at the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), Partnoy lays out his process:
If Partnoy's philosophy sounds a little odd, it's because it's in exact opposition with Malcolm Gladwell's praise of gut-reaction thinking in his book Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking. Where Gladwell praised our innate decision making ability, Partnoy's idea is that we're not good at decisions and we should give them more time by procrastinating. These aren't just decisions about yourself or your life, but also political decisions, corporate decisions, and everything else. In an interview with the Smithsonian Magazine, Partnoy adds an importantant disclaimer to this idea:
The study Partnoy refers to is out of Columbia University and suggests that some procrastinators make a deliberate decision to put things off. In itself, this isn't a bad thing and provided you know the time frame you can take action within, procrastination can have the same positive effects as getting things done right away. Photo by Paul Swansen. How to Avoid the Excess and Embrace Inactivity Without Becoming a Slob
We've talked before about prioritizing nothing as a means to give yourself a break and just relax. It's advice I've had to take myself because I found I was filling every moment of my day with something. If there wasn't a screen in front of me there was audio playing. Now, I'll let myself be a little bored when I'm cooking dinner instead of listening to a podcast, and I don't always force myself to focus on things all the time. More importantly, I've taken Partnoy's advice stopped using procrastination as a bad word. After a couple weeks of this I feel less anxious, and more resolved in my decisions. As for other methods? Here's Linehan again, with his solution:
As for procrastination, Partnoy has his own solution to delay without forgetting entirely:
With all three pillars of inactivity it's about finding what works for you. You might need to actually schedule in a time on your calendar where you're not doing anything. Or force yourself to take a walk outside, linger around the coffee cooler, or take a nap. Photo by Kiran Jonnalagadda. We can't be inactive all the time, but it's a task we're losing touch with. Like all things, it's about balance, but the next time you're sitting at the bus stop, consider leaving your phone in your pocket. Take a walk without those headphones now and again. Procrastinate on your decisions for a couple of days. A lot of things in life happen at warp speed and you can't do anything about it, but a few moments each day can help you better understand the world. Title image remixed from Subbotina Anna (Shutterstock). |
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Assassin's Creed III's Top Creator Is Answering Your Questions Right Here, Right Now
Behold the Architectural Genius of Mexico's Subterranean Drug-Smuggling Tunnels
July 19th, 2012Top StoryBehold the Architectural Genius of Mexico's Subterranean Drug-Smuggling TunnelsBy Miguel A. RodrÃguez
With the blessing of Jesús Malverde and, of course, the Virgin of Guadalupe, the drug cartels have had to figure out how to introduce their contraband into the US territories without the authorities detecting and seizing it. In just one week, three narco-tunnels have been discovered, with one located in Sonora and two in Tijuana. These are attributed to JoaquÃn "El Chapo" Guzmán who has, for years, been enlisting the help of engineers and architects in the construction of subterranean corridors in order to avoid customs and sneak drugs into the United States. It is not the first time—nor do we believe it will be the last—that the narco-traffickers have built a tunnel, which is truly a great example of modern engineering and through which they brought drugs, people, weapons and money from San Luis RÃo Colorado, Sonora to San Luis Arizona, in the United States. The narco-tunnel was discovered by the National Defense Secretary, in cooperation with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), who had, since January, already been investigating the construction located on Morelos Street and Internacional Avenue, next to the Mexican border. This was where they had announced the opening of a new business to sell purified water with the corporate name "Ice Land." Rumors say that the cartels are so desperate to find ways of sneaking drugs into the United States that it has pushed both them and the engineers to unsuspected lengths in order to create constructions like this tunnel 18 meters in depth, 230 meters in length, 1.3 meters high and one meter wide. The tunnel has electric installations, ventilation, beam reinforcements every 30 centimeters, wood clad walls, a ceiling and floor, as well as carts to carry the drugs to a warehouse located in San Luis, Arizona. It is believed to have been used for approximately a year and it is said that drugs and migrant workers were smuggled from Mexico to the United States while money and weapons were transported from the United States into Mexico. Oddly enough, the operation was concluded with no arrests made nor were any drugs or weapons found. However, it is believed to be a project headed by JoaquÃn "El Chapo" Guzmán, leader of Sinaloa cartel, as no other organization would dare to build a construction of this type and with such dimensions. The work is said to have cost approximately two million dollars, an amount which could only have been paid by El Chapo, who has been reported to be one of the wealthiest persons in the world by Forbes magazine. Welcome to San Diego, Narco
There is little information available about who could have constructed it, but it is also believed to be the work of Chapo Guzman, as Jesús Malvede is a "saint" mainly idolized in Sinaloa, home to the headquarters of the cartel led by the world's most wanted narco-trafficker. The entrance to the subterranean corridor was under a toilet in a recycling warehouse in Tijuana, in the borough of Centenario, Mesa de Otay, approximately 350 meters from the border. It still did not have any exit to the United States, even though it was already constructed some 100 meters inside the North American territory. In this operation, the Mexican Army found at least 50 tons of marijuana in three trucks and arrested three people who are already being investigated. The other narco-tunnel was found in a warehouse located on Noria and Praderas avenues, in Granjas Familiares del Matamoros. This tunnel is less sophisticated than the others and has a depth of approximately 10 meters, which can be accessed by pipes. The entrance was hidden by packages, but it could be entered with no problem further down the corridor. It also had mini-train rails for transporting drugs. This tunnel is close to the place where a similar construction was found which had been used years ago by people from the Sinaloa cartel, leaded by JoaquÃn "El Chapo" Guzmán. The cartels, and in this case specifically the Sinaloa cartel, are said to be desperate because they can no longer smuggle drugs into the United Stated by land or by air. They have had to figure out how to evade the authorities, who are increasingly alert to drug trafficking. However, the construction of tunnels is nothing new. El Chapo Guzmán is said to have ordered the construction of one of them by the architect Felipe de Jesús Corona, whose work really pleased the narco-trafficker.The tunnel was 61 meters long and had an entrance which was elevated by means of a hydraulic system and opened through a false water valve. The architect was arrested and condemned in 2006 to 18 years in prison. Because of this and other precedents, it is almost certain that these narco-tunnels discovered are the work of Chapo Guzmán, as they are becoming increasingly more sophisticated and are constructed with modern machinery that costs thousands of dollars, which only the Sinaloa cartel can afford. During the six years that president Felipe Calderón has been in government, more than 100 tunnels have been discovered—twice as many as were unearthed throughout the 15 years prior to his government service. Translated by Rosa Gregori. Images courtesy of Especial. Miguel Angel Rodriguez Vazquez has been editor of El Nuevo Alarma! since 1981. |
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