Curiosity Killed the Adage

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Dec 20, 2024

Sindhu Gnanasambandan, a Radiolab producer, dives into the intriguing world of adages like "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." She explores how mind-wandering can spark creativity and improve memory. The discussion highlights that unproductive thoughts can actually lead to personal growth. By examining psychological insights and fascinating studies, Sindhu reveals how these common sayings often hold deeper, more complex truths than we realize, challenging us to rethink the wisdom we take for granted.

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ANECDOTE

Alex's Track Workout

Alex Neeson, a runner, struggled during a group track workout and questioned the adage "misery loves company".
She felt her performance was worsened by others' presence, contrary to her expectations.

INSIGHT

Misery and Company Study

A study by Kate Hassett suggests people believe misery loves company, but it doesn't hold true in practice.
Happiness, conversely, might "hate company", as individuals prefer unique positive experiences.

INSIGHT

Types of Misery

Sports psychologist Svenja Wolf says misery's impact on company depends on the emotion.
Shame isolates, while fear and sadness seek connection, potentially improving performance and well-being.

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The early bird gets the worm. What goes around, comes around. It’s always darkest just before dawn. We carry these little nuggets of wisdom—these adages—with us, deep in our psyche. But recently we started wondering: are they true? Like, objectively, scientifically, provably true?

So we picked a few and set out to fact check them. We talked to psychologists, neuroscientists, runners, a real estate agent, skateboarders, an ornithologist, a sociologist and an astrophysicist, among others, and we learned that these seemingly simple, clear-cut statements about us and our world, contain whole universes of beautiful, vexing complexity and deeper, stranger bits of wisdom than we ever imagined.

Special thanks to Pamela D’Arc, Daniela Murcillo, Amanda Breen, Akmal Tajihan, Patrick Keene, Stephanie Leschek and Alexandria Iona from the Upright Citizens Brigade, We Run Uptown, Coaches Reph and Patty from Circa ‘95, Julia Lucas and Coffey from the Noname marathon training program.

We have some exciting news! In the “Zoozve” episode, Radiolab named its first-ever quasi-moon, and now it's your turn! Radiolab has teamed up with The International Astronomical Union to launch a global naming contest for one of Earth’s quasi-moons. This is your chance to make your mark on the heavens. Submit your name ideas now through September, or vote on your favorites here: https://radiolab.org/moon

EPISODE CREDITS:
Reported by - Alex Neason, Simon Adler, Sindhu Gnanasambandan, Annie McEwen, Maria Paz Gutierrez, and W. Harry Fortuna
Produced by - Simon Adler, Matt Kielty, Annie McEwen, Maria Paz Gutierrez, and Sindhu Gnanasambandan
Original music and sound design contributed by - Jeremy Bloom
Fact-checking by - Emily Krieger and Diane A. Kelly
and Edited by - Pat Walters and Alex Neason

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Leadership support for Radiolab’s science programming is provided by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Science Sandbox, a Simons Foundation Initiative, and the John Templeton Foundation. Foundational support for Radiolab was provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.