We are used to not relying too much on our inner rhythms in the process of work: it seems that only clear task lists combined with the wonders of time management can lead us to significant victories. But science does not quite agree with this: from the point of view of psychophysiology, "doing nothing" is no less important occupation than strenuous work. Alpina Publishers are about to publish neuroscientist Andrew Smart's book On The Benefits of Laziness, where he explains why it is dangerous to push ourselves into deadlines and how periods of inactivity help us think more effectively.
Everyone knows the story about Newton's apple. In the theory of gravity, a law is formulated, which to this day is the basis of physical science. However, in Newton's time, the very idea of gravity as a fundamental force in the universe seemed extremely pretentious. In fact, people then believed that invisible forces acting at a distance could be either devilish or divine. It was not easy for Newton himself to accept the fact of "action at a distance." He even discouraged people from finding out the true cause of gravity, and instead advised them to focus on successful calculations and experiments.
From the point of view of the modern culture of time management, sitting in the garden "in a pensive mood" is a waste of pure time. This activity (or rather a lack of activity) would tell the recruiter that Newton was an unreliable candidate. Should Newton add to his to-do list: "5 pm: sit in the garden, think about falling objects"? How many sane people would think of Sir Isaac Newton making a to-do list?
In fact, Newton was known for his passion for a rigorous work ethic. But he could afford to sit in the garden and laze around, because it never occurred to him that this to a waste of time. Popular magazines today advise readers to plan "downtime" because the demands of corporate schedules are inhuman. Of course, people are not told the essence of the problem, they are only advised to "fit" their free time into their routine, if it does not contradict their responsibilities. Downtime is meant to optimize our productivity. Newton was literally his own boss. He worked when he wanted and sat in the garden when he pleased. Of course, you will notice that this is impractical and even unattainable in the current state of affairs. But I will answer that then we deserve that scarcity of thought,
The natural sciences before Newton were in transition. From the end of the 15th to the 18th century, the greatest scientific revolution in human history took place in the world. Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Brahe and Newton - all of them made an enormous contribution to the development of sciences. The 17th century was particularly marked by an intellectual upsurge that suddenly and powerfully expanded our understanding of the universe. Our knowledge of the natural world began to accumulate in an increasing progression, which has not been interrupted to this day. Our understanding of nature has been transformed from popular beliefs into real science. It was during this revolution that a scientific community emerged, which began to publish magazines and arrange meetings like modern conferences. Centuries after Newton, natural science has made remarkable advances. And usually the fact that Newton drew attention to the falling apple seems to us to be a happy accident. This story is retold in different ways, but, be that as it may, the apple fell under Newton, he understood it and wrote the greatest monograph, Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica ("Mathematical principles of natural philosophy"), which sets out the formal theory of gravity.
Newton did not bury himself in papers and tore his hair out in fear of the impending deadline for the project, trying to understand why objects fall to the earth, and the planets revolve around the sun. And the productivity specialist didn't look over Newton's shoulder to see if he was performing effectively. But we can imagine him relaxing on a warm summer evening in the garden: birds chirped quietly, foliage rustled in the wind, he closed his eyes or absent-mindedly looked around the yard. He probably felt peace and tranquility. He plunged into pleasant thought. His network of passive brain mode began to increase activity. The blood flow in the pre-wedge, in the lateral zones of the parietal cortex, in the median prefrontal cortex, and in the anterior cingulate cortex increased as these areas began to enthusiastically consume oxygen and glucose. The network of the passive mode of the brain was warming up. The neurons in her zones were firing more often. The anterior cingulate cortex informed the parasympathetic nervous system that everything was going well, and Newton's blood pressure dropped. The pulse slowed down, the heart rate became slightly more variable. This physiological response was reported to the brain and the relaxation process continued. In this state of inaction, in the absence of an external task, Newton's brain got down to business. His thoughts began to wander, turn to himself, become reflective. in the absence of an external task, Newton's brain got down to business. His thoughts began to wander, turn to himself, become reflective. in the absence of an external task, Newton's brain got down to business. His thoughts began to wander, turn to himself, become reflective.
So, the nodes of the network of the passive mode of operation of the brain tuned in to communication. Millions of neurons in its regions synchronized vibrational electrical activity at different frequencies and their messages began to travel through the brain. Since its nodes are large centers, they could receive information from almost any part of the brain. Memories and associations, mathematical and spatial concepts that were stored in the zones of the parietal cortex, also became available to the networks of the passive mode of the brain. These concepts began to seethe in Newton's mind, while the middle prefrontal cortex communicated to the rest of the network about what was happening at the back of his unconscious. That is, Newton's broad knowledge of physics, which was stored in his long-term memory and was not fully realized in everyday life, now became available for thought: after all, the brain did not need to spend money on conversations, scheduling meetings and schedules for the day, as well as trying to catch all this. The movement of planets, the law of inverse squares, attraction, mass and acceleration - all those concepts that Newton studied, appeared in the field of his consciousness. Earlier that very day, before coming to the garden, Newton did not form a holistic image of them, because in an ordinary situation they could not immediately fall into the focus of his attention. But the network of the passive mode of the brain, on the contrary, operates at the subconscious level, so that in moments of inactivity, the brain detects connections between concepts, without even informing us about it openly. Sometimes, for reasons that we do not yet fully understand, these thoughts are realized. During rest, the network of the passive mode of the brain can create connections between areas of the brain, who are often too busy trying to fit in with our active lives to communicate with each other. It was then that Newton's anterior cingulate cortex, usually preoccupied with recognizing errors and tracking the results of behavior, was able to allow itself to explore the strange and weak relationships between numbers, forces, objects, and space. who are often too busy trying to fit in with our active lives to communicate with each other. It was then that Newton's anterior cingulate cortex, usually preoccupied with recognizing errors and tracking the results of behavior, was able to allow itself to explore the strange and weak relationships between numbers, forces, objects, and space. who are often too busy trying to fit in with our active lives to communicate with each other. It was then that Newton's anterior cingulate cortex, usually preoccupied with recognizing errors and tracking the results of behavior, was able to allow itself to explore the strange and weak relationships between numbers, forces, objects, and space.
In a relaxed state, Newton barely noticed an apple falling from a tree. However, his brain tracked this event. And something as mundane as the fall of the apple set off a cascade of neural activity that allowed the concepts Newton was thinking to fuse into an entirely new idea. Everything came together because there was no hindrance to this. In fact, modern engineering still relies on Newtonian mechanics. Bridges, buildings, airplanes and cars are still created according to the laws they discovered.
"Newton" is a unit of measurement that shows how much force must be applied to move a body weighing one kilogram at a speed of one meter per second in one second (1 N = 1 kg · 1 m / s ^ 2).
In today's school or workplace, sitting brooding is considered unacceptable. We can only guess how many young Isaac Newtons we suppress while trying to control the children at school and at home. To what extent is the need for considerate and organized children rooted in our obsessively organized adult lives?
And why does our adult life have to order with such an obsession? We call adults who are lost in thought, eccentrics, dreamers and lazy people. But in order for our own brain to perform at its best, we need idleness. If we want to generate great ideas or just get to know ourselves better, we need to stop managing our time. At the very least, modern neuroscience is accumulating more and more evidence that resting the brain is vital to health.
Everyone knows the story about Newton's apple. In the theory of gravity, a law is formulated, which to this day is the basis of physical science. However, in Newton's time, the very idea of gravity as a fundamental force in the universe seemed extremely pretentious. In fact, people then believed that invisible forces acting at a distance could be either devilish or divine. It was not easy for Newton himself to accept the fact of "action at a distance." He even discouraged people from finding out the true cause of gravity, and instead advised them to focus on successful calculations and experiments.
From the point of view of the modern culture of time management, sitting in the garden "in a pensive mood" is a waste of pure time. This activity (or rather a lack of activity) would tell the recruiter that Newton was an unreliable candidate. Should Newton add to his to-do list: "5 pm: sit in the garden, think about falling objects"? How many sane people would think of Sir Isaac Newton making a to-do list?
In fact, Newton was known for his passion for a rigorous work ethic. But he could afford to sit in the garden and laze around, because it never occurred to him that this to a waste of time. Popular magazines today advise readers to plan "downtime" because the demands of corporate schedules are inhuman. Of course, people are not told the essence of the problem, they are only advised to "fit" their free time into their routine, if it does not contradict their responsibilities. Downtime is meant to optimize our productivity. Newton was literally his own boss. He worked when he wanted and sat in the garden when he pleased. Of course, you will notice that this is impractical and even unattainable in the current state of affairs. But I will answer that then we deserve that scarcity of thought,
The natural sciences before Newton were in transition. From the end of the 15th to the 18th century, the greatest scientific revolution in human history took place in the world. Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Brahe and Newton - all of them made an enormous contribution to the development of sciences. The 17th century was particularly marked by an intellectual upsurge that suddenly and powerfully expanded our understanding of the universe. Our knowledge of the natural world began to accumulate in an increasing progression, which has not been interrupted to this day. Our understanding of nature has been transformed from popular beliefs into real science. It was during this revolution that a scientific community emerged, which began to publish magazines and arrange meetings like modern conferences. Centuries after Newton, natural science has made remarkable advances. And usually the fact that Newton drew attention to the falling apple seems to us to be a happy accident. This story is retold in different ways, but, be that as it may, the apple fell under Newton, he understood it and wrote the greatest monograph, Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica ("Mathematical principles of natural philosophy"), which sets out the formal theory of gravity.
Newton did not bury himself in papers and tore his hair out in fear of the impending deadline for the project, trying to understand why objects fall to the earth, and the planets revolve around the sun. And the productivity specialist didn't look over Newton's shoulder to see if he was performing effectively. But we can imagine him relaxing on a warm summer evening in the garden: birds chirped quietly, foliage rustled in the wind, he closed his eyes or absent-mindedly looked around the yard. He probably felt peace and tranquility. He plunged into pleasant thought. His network of passive brain mode began to increase activity. The blood flow in the pre-wedge, in the lateral zones of the parietal cortex, in the median prefrontal cortex, and in the anterior cingulate cortex increased as these areas began to enthusiastically consume oxygen and glucose. The network of the passive mode of the brain was warming up. The neurons in her zones were firing more often. The anterior cingulate cortex informed the parasympathetic nervous system that everything was going well, and Newton's blood pressure dropped. The pulse slowed down, the heart rate became slightly more variable. This physiological response was reported to the brain and the relaxation process continued. In this state of inaction, in the absence of an external task, Newton's brain got down to business. His thoughts began to wander, turn to himself, become reflective. in the absence of an external task, Newton's brain got down to business. His thoughts began to wander, turn to himself, become reflective. in the absence of an external task, Newton's brain got down to business. His thoughts began to wander, turn to himself, become reflective.
So, the nodes of the network of the passive mode of operation of the brain tuned in to communication. Millions of neurons in its regions synchronized vibrational electrical activity at different frequencies and their messages began to travel through the brain. Since its nodes are large centers, they could receive information from almost any part of the brain. Memories and associations, mathematical and spatial concepts that were stored in the zones of the parietal cortex, also became available to the networks of the passive mode of the brain. These concepts began to seethe in Newton's mind, while the middle prefrontal cortex communicated to the rest of the network about what was happening at the back of his unconscious. That is, Newton's broad knowledge of physics, which was stored in his long-term memory and was not fully realized in everyday life, now became available for thought: after all, the brain did not need to spend money on conversations, scheduling meetings and schedules for the day, as well as trying to catch all this. The movement of planets, the law of inverse squares, attraction, mass and acceleration - all those concepts that Newton studied, appeared in the field of his consciousness. Earlier that very day, before coming to the garden, Newton did not form a holistic image of them, because in an ordinary situation they could not immediately fall into the focus of his attention. But the network of the passive mode of the brain, on the contrary, operates at the subconscious level, so that in moments of inactivity, the brain detects connections between concepts, without even informing us about it openly. Sometimes, for reasons that we do not yet fully understand, these thoughts are realized. During rest, the network of the passive mode of the brain can create connections between areas of the brain, who are often too busy trying to fit in with our active lives to communicate with each other. It was then that Newton's anterior cingulate cortex, usually preoccupied with recognizing errors and tracking the results of behavior, was able to allow itself to explore the strange and weak relationships between numbers, forces, objects, and space. who are often too busy trying to fit in with our active lives to communicate with each other. It was then that Newton's anterior cingulate cortex, usually preoccupied with recognizing errors and tracking the results of behavior, was able to allow itself to explore the strange and weak relationships between numbers, forces, objects, and space. who are often too busy trying to fit in with our active lives to communicate with each other. It was then that Newton's anterior cingulate cortex, usually preoccupied with recognizing errors and tracking the results of behavior, was able to allow itself to explore the strange and weak relationships between numbers, forces, objects, and space.
In a relaxed state, Newton barely noticed an apple falling from a tree. However, his brain tracked this event. And something as mundane as the fall of the apple set off a cascade of neural activity that allowed the concepts Newton was thinking to fuse into an entirely new idea. Everything came together because there was no hindrance to this. In fact, modern engineering still relies on Newtonian mechanics. Bridges, buildings, airplanes and cars are still created according to the laws they discovered.
"Newton" is a unit of measurement that shows how much force must be applied to move a body weighing one kilogram at a speed of one meter per second in one second (1 N = 1 kg · 1 m / s ^ 2).
In today's school or workplace, sitting brooding is considered unacceptable. We can only guess how many young Isaac Newtons we suppress while trying to control the children at school and at home. To what extent is the need for considerate and organized children rooted in our obsessively organized adult lives?
And why does our adult life have to order with such an obsession? We call adults who are lost in thought, eccentrics, dreamers and lazy people. But in order for our own brain to perform at its best, we need idleness. If we want to generate great ideas or just get to know ourselves better, we need to stop managing our time. At the very least, modern neuroscience is accumulating more and more evidence that resting the brain is vital to health.
