On the reg Is boredom your academic superpower?
Nov 30, 2025
The hosts dive into the concept of boredom at work, exploring how PhDs might train tolerance for it. They reflect on personal triggers of boredom and the societal impacts of diminished attention spans. There's an interesting discussion on 'bore out'—a new term for exhaustion from boredom—in contrast to burnout. They also examine the role of technology in exacerbating or alleviating boredom and whether AI might alleviate tedious tasks. Inger recommends some light reads, including a romance set in academia.
AI Snips
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Episode notes
Turn Code Into Shareable Reports
- Use R Markdown to knit code and narrative into shareable HTML with tables and figures embedded.
- Employ packages like DT, Stargazer, and grateful to export tables and bibliographies into word-ready formats.
Listen To Text Documents Hands-Free
- Use reader tools like Readwise to email or bookmark articles and listen hands-free to PDFs or webpages.
- Leverage text-to-speech to consume research while away from screens and speed through paywalled ads cautiously.
Use Proven Tools And Read Widely
- Read the Thesis Whisperer blog to learn practical PhD strategies and avoid re-learning basics.
- Use Trello and time-blocking in Outlook for workflow and calendar-based task management.
