The Case for Boredom
This episode kicks off the biggest project New Tech City has ever done: Bored and Brilliant. Our goal is to get you rethinking your relationship with technology. Sign-up for the NTC newsletter to get...
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What 95 Minutes of Phone Time a Day Does to Us
Drumroll, please: It's time to release some baseline Bored and Brilliant data. (If you missed our kickoff episode, listen to The Case for Boredom here).To contextualize our numbers on this week's...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant Challenge 1: In Your Pocket
Your instructions: As you move from place to place, keep your phone in your pocket, out of your direct line of sight. Better yet, keep it in your bag.While you're boarding the train, walking down the...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant Challenge 2: Photo Free Day
Hello! Welcome to day two of our Bored and Brilliant challenge! If you're here for the first time, you'll want to catch up on The Case for Boredom and then challenge number one: Keep your phone in your...
View ArticleSnowflakes Are Brilliant!
Did you notice the large, beautiful snowflakes yesterday afternoon? I did. As I was walking down the street toward the subway, I looked up and saw gigantic, perfectly shaped snowflakes falling from...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant Challenge 3: Delete That App
Hello! Welcome to day three of our Bored and Brilliant challenge! If you're here for the first time, you'll want to catch up on The Case for Boredom, Challenge Number 1: Keep your phone in your pocket,...
View ArticleEight Classical Pieces To Help You Zone Out
Our colleagues at WNYC's New Tech City are in the midst of "Bored and Brilliant," a week-long challenge to listeners to disconnect from their smart phones. Boredom, the theory goes, may not be such a...
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Bored and Brilliant Challenge 4: Take a Fauxcation
Hello! Welcome to day three of our Bored and Brilliant challenge! If you're here for the first time, you'll want to catch up on The Case for Boredom, Challenge 1, Challenge 2, and Challenge 3. Today,...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant Challenge 5: One Small Observation
Welcome to day five of our Bored and Brilliant challenge! If you're here for the first time, you'll want to catch up on The Case for Boredom, Challenge 1, Challenge 2, Challenge 3, and Challenge 4....
View ArticleBored and Brilliant Challenge 6: Dream House
Welcome to the sixth and final day of our Bored and Brilliant challenge! If you're here for the first time, you'll want to catch up on The Case for Boredom, Challenge 1, Challenge 2, Challenge 3,...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant: We Got Bored
We made it through a week of Bored and Brilliant challenges. We've struggled through withdrawal and reveled in release. We've learned about ourselves and our reflexes. And here, we crunch some numbers...
View ArticleAsk Manoush: What 'Counts' as Phone Time?
Originally published February 2, 2015.[Each day New Tech City host Manoush Zomorodi will discuss your questions and concerns about the Bored and Brilliant challenge of the day. Get in touch through...
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Ask Manoush: I Already Took a Picture... Did I Fail Challenge 2?
Originally published February 3, 2015.[Each day New Tech City host Manoush Zomorodi will discuss your questions and concerns about the Bored and Brilliant challenge of the day. Get in touch through...
View ArticleAsk Manoush: (Warning! This Post Requires Willpower)
Originally published February 4, 2015.As you probably heard this morning, deleting the game Two Dots was an emotional experience for me. To put it mildly.A report: OK, so I'm still in mourning.But I'm...
View ArticleVideo: What Happened When 130 People Got Really, Really Bored
Originally published January 29, 2015In our podcast "The Case For Boredom," we introduced researcher Sandi Mann's hypothesis that boredom leads to creativity. She put it to the test with phone books...
View ArticleBored, Brilliant and... Counterintuitively Interesting: A Reading List
Originally published January 30, 2015Hello!One of the most exciting developments in our Bored and Brilliant project so far has been the influx of thoughtful suggested reads from listeners.We figured...
View Article18 Places Where You Can Survive Without Your Phone
Originally published January 23, 2015.You've been signing up for Bored and Brilliant because you say your phone follows you... everywhere. Endlessly. Mindlessly. In every single crack and crevice of...
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What Your Phone Stats Say About You
Originally published February 5, 2015.Your participation in Bored and Brilliant has made it possible to do some really interesting — though admittedly unscientific — research.Last week, we asked you to...
View Article5 Reasons You Want to be Bored (and Brilliant)
We've been asking people why they're signing up for New Tech City's "Bored and Brilliant" project. Over 300 people have responded, and we've read every single word.So far, 4 of you have told us you...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant Apple Users, Don’t Be Smug
Originally published February 2, 2015Part of the Bored and Brilliant project is to put some hard numbers to what is normally just a vague impression we scrutinize too closely: our phone habits....
View ArticleCounting Your Phone Time Isn't Easy
Originally published on February 6, 2015Kevin Holesh, the developer behind the Apple app Moment, and Mrigaen Kapadia, the developer of the Android app BreakFree, have been helping us keep track of our...
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Bored and Brilliant: The Winning Dream Houses
We're pretty sure Bored and Brilliant week culminated in... brilliance.To recap: Because research shows getting bored and daydreaming can boost creative thinking, we gave you an assignment. Artist Nina...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant: The Personal Stories
Last week, we gave you some numbers. But numbers don't tell the whole story — or, in fact, any of your 19,100 stories.By asking you to put some thought into the ways you use your phones, we stumbled...
View ArticleBored and Brilliant: BOOT CAMP
Want to help shape Note to Self's next big project? We need to know what's driving you absolutely nuts right now. Take our short survey here.We're going to get right to the point: No more sacrificing...
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