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Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

bostonglobe.com

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Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#61

Post by Xcelerate »

I think the article makes a mistake in assuming that everything painful is unpleasant. Why do people eat spicy foods then?

I find that as I get older, my tolerance for boredom has become lower and lower. When I was younger, I used to be able to just sit and think. Now I dread long drives because the sheer boredom of it drives me crazy. And it gets even weirder, because although I don't like social interaction that much, I find myself craving "going out and doing something" every night because the thought of just sitting inside watching a movie is painful.

I blame the internet. My attention span and focus are noticeably worse than they used to be, and I feel like I need constant stimulation all the time now.

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#62

Post by eloff »

userbinator wrote: post #4

This is sad and a bit disturbing because it suggests that average people seem to dislike thinking . I'm quite the opposite, and 15 minutes of pure thinking for me would pass by quite easily - I feel like I can't get enough time to think more carefully about all the ideas that I have for the things I do, or want to. Then again, I'm introverted and definitely not representative of the average population. (Of course, I'…

I find it quite pleasant to be alone with my thoughts. I've always liked taking long showers and walks for exactly this reason. Sometimes, when I'm working on an interesting problem, I can pass entire days mostly just thinking and pacing.

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#63

Post by StavrosK »

Xcelerate wrote: post #61

I think the article makes a mistake in assuming that everything painful is unpleasant. Why do people eat spicy foods then? I find that as I get older, my tolerance for boredom has become lower and lower. When I was younger, I used to be able to just sit and think. Now I dread long drives because the sheer boredom of it drives me crazy. And it gets even weirder, because although I don't like social interaction that mu…

Audiobooks + driving = bliss.

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#64

Post by greggman »

StavrosK wrote: post #63
Xcelerate wrote: post #61

I think the article makes a mistake in assuming that everything painful is unpleasant. Why do people eat spicy foods then? I find that as I get older, my tolerance for boredom has become lower and lower. When I was younger, I used to be able to just sit and think. Now I dread long drives because the sheer boredom of it drives me crazy. And it gets even weirder, because although I don't like social interaction that mu…

Audiobooks + driving = bliss.

Audiobooks are awesome for long drives. Podcasts too. For me especially Radiolab, This American Life, The Moth, Escape Pod, and The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#67

Post by dbbolton »

>“It seems that the average person doesn’t seem to be capable of generating a sufficiently interesting train of thought to prevent them from being miserable with themselves.”

Aside from being unnecessarily harsh and condescending, I think this comment is off-base and makes unwarranted assumptions about the nature of boredom.

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#68

Post by cdcarter »

noir_lord wrote: post #24
nwh wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've shocked myself badly a few times and to me at least, I'd much rather wallow in self pity for a while than do it again. Probably the worst was one I didn't expect, I slipped when opening a plastic case and caught my fingers over a fully charged high capacity 350v capacitor. The initial hit makes every muscle in your body hurt, then a wave of panic when you realize you could have died from the moment of stupidity.

Putting your hand across phases on a 415V industrial supply will do that as well (which should never have happened but that is why we have training to show people how not to make other peoples fuckups) fortunately I was wearing heavy rubber boots and the contact was momentary. Lesson of the day when your co-worker/trainee/friend says the supply is isolated...check anyway.

Always follow lockout tagout procedures! Always!

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#69

Post by metacorrector »

molbioguy wrote: post #60
metacorrector wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the study hinges on whether the researchers who worked on it, designing it and completing many trials over time, writing it up and getting it published, on whether they thought of something that you just thought of? that the unpleasant shock had to be unpleasant? REALLY? you really think they missed that?

Just because it's published is no reason not to question the validity of the study. I've been in science long enough to know that flawed work can into important journals. The Globe article's title and the original title of the HN post focused on the electrical shocks, implying that people would prefer doing something very painful rather than think silently. I can't read the article itself, but the Science Editor's su…

they are talking about people who would pay money to avoid the very same shocks. So, let's extend your thought, doesn't sound terribly unpleasant? nor does being alone with your thoughts sound terribly unpleasant. But they measured the two and discovered that being alone with your thoughts is MORE unpleasant.

your insight that various aspects of the experiment make a difference can be a valuable tool in order to go look deeper into the experiment, but you didn't do that. I'm saying apply a little of the rigor you are demanding to your own argument.

Re: Study participants typically did not enjoy spending 15 minutes by themselves

#70

Post by dwaltrip »

userbinator wrote: post #4

This is sad and a bit disturbing because it suggests that average people seem to dislike thinking . I'm quite the opposite, and 15 minutes of pure thinking for me would pass by quite easily - I feel like I can't get enough time to think more carefully about all the ideas that I have for the things I do, or want to. Then again, I'm introverted and definitely not representative of the average population. (Of course, I'…

You should try it, might not be as easy as you thought!
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