BRAIN WAVES
Good god. We know young people are leaving religion at higher rates than ever, but why? It’s easy to chalk it up to the age of science, but researchers find that people still seem to care about spirituality, yet religion is becoming less of an outlet for it. In a new study, researchers find that a main reason for the decline to be a growing disconnect between their own personal values and the teachings of religious organizations, particularly when it came to issues related to gender and sexuality. “People aren’t just becoming secular due to reason or rationality,” said study author Landon Schnabel. “They’re becoming fed up with religious organizations based on faith traditions that taught them to love others, care about more than money, and be moral and ethical people of integrity. But then sometimes they don’t see the organizations living up to those values.”
Bot boredom. We know that AI can do everything from diagnosing health conditions to making feature-length movies, but what are the psychological effects of humans using it? In a new study, researchers looked at more than 3,5000 workers to see how their productivity was influenced after using a chatbot to help with their daily tasks. Across their studies, they found that intrinsic motivation dropped by an average of 11 percent and boredom increased by an average of 20 percent. The researchers concluded, “Despite the performance benefits, participants who collaborated with GenAI on one task and then transitioned to a different, unaided task consistently reported a decline in intrinsic motivation and an increase in boredom.” No AI was harmed in the writing of this newsletter.
Payback. Revenge often feels sweet, but what price do we pay for seeking it out? Listen to learn more.
ON THE HIDDEN BRAIN PODCAST
Doing it the Hard Way: Learning to play a musical instrument is hard. So is trying to run a marathon, writing a term paper, and caring for a sick child. These things involve frustration, pain, and disappointment — yet we do them anyway. This week, in part two of our look at the allure of suffering, psychologist Michael Inzlicht explains what we get from doing things that are difficult, and why the things we think will make us happy often do not.
ON THE MY UNSUNG HERO PODCAST
Eric Johnson’s Story: Eric and his husband, Dennis Hopkins, lived a life full of music, gardening, and dance. But in 2022, Dennis was diagnosed with lung cancer. A few days before he died, they met a nurse named Sherry, who offered a compassionate roadmap of what was to come.
Don’t forget to send us the story of your unsung hero! Record a voice memo on your phone and email it to myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org.
HIDDEN BRAIN ON TOUR
Have you heard? Hidden Brain is on a nationwide tour that starts this week! Host and creator Shankar Vedantam brings seven key insights from the first decade of Hidden Brain to the stage. Come share your own thoughts and ideas with Shankar and other fans of the show!
MIND GAMES
A tree doubled in height each year until it reached its maximum height over the course of ten years. How many years did it take for the tree to reach half its maximum height?
LAST WEEK’S PUZZLE
First, I threw away the outside and cooked the inside. Then I ate the outside and threw away the inside. What did I eat?
The answer: Corn on the cob
A MOMENT OF JOY
Meet the man who’s been walking around the world for the past 27 years.
Have an idea for Hidden Brain? A story you want to share with us? Send an email to ideas@hiddenbrain.org. Listen to us on Spotify, Apple, Amazon Music or your favorite podcast platform.