Dr. Terry Sejnowski

No, it's funny you mentioned that because I get my best ideas, not sprinting on the beach, but just either walking or jogging. And it's wonderful. I don't know. I think serotonin goes up. It's another neuromodulator. I think that that stimulates ideas and thoughts. And so inevitably, I come back to my office And I can't remember any of those great ideas.

Well, now I take notes.

Well, now I take notes.

Well, now I take notes.

Yeah. And some of them pan out. You know, there's no doubt about it.

Yeah. And some of them pan out. You know, there's no doubt about it.

Yeah. And some of them pan out. You know, there's no doubt about it.

You're put into a situation. It is a form of meditation. You know, if you're running in a steady pace, nothing distracting about, you know, the beach.

You're put into a situation. It is a form of meditation. You know, if you're running in a steady pace, nothing distracting about, you know, the beach.

You're put into a situation. It is a form of meditation. You know, if you're running in a steady pace, nothing distracting about, you know, the beach.

It's been studied. Psychologists call it mind-wandering.

It's been studied. Psychologists call it mind-wandering.

It's been studied. Psychologists call it mind-wandering.

Yeah. It is a significant literature. And it's often when you have an aha moment, right? Mm-hmm. Your mind is wandering and it's thinking non-linearly in the sense of not following a sequence that is logical, hopping from thing to thing. Often that's when you get a great idea with just letting your mind wander. Yeah, and that happens to me.

Yeah. It is a significant literature. And it's often when you have an aha moment, right? Mm-hmm. Your mind is wandering and it's thinking non-linearly in the sense of not following a sequence that is logical, hopping from thing to thing. Often that's when you get a great idea with just letting your mind wander. Yeah, and that happens to me.

Yeah. It is a significant literature. And it's often when you have an aha moment, right? Mm-hmm. Your mind is wandering and it's thinking non-linearly in the sense of not following a sequence that is logical, hopping from thing to thing. Often that's when you get a great idea with just letting your mind wander. Yeah, and that happens to me.

Okay, so we have a whole session, you know, a clip in learning how to learn about exactly this phenomenon. Here's what we tell our students, right? is that if you're having trouble with some concept or you don't understand something, you're beating your head against the wall, don't, stop, stop. Just go off and do something. Go off and clean the dishes. Go off and walk around the block.

Okay, so we have a whole session, you know, a clip in learning how to learn about exactly this phenomenon. Here's what we tell our students, right? is that if you're having trouble with some concept or you don't understand something, you're beating your head against the wall, don't, stop, stop. Just go off and do something. Go off and clean the dishes. Go off and walk around the block.

Okay, so we have a whole session, you know, a clip in learning how to learn about exactly this phenomenon. Here's what we tell our students, right? is that if you're having trouble with some concept or you don't understand something, you're beating your head against the wall, don't, stop, stop. Just go off and do something. Go off and clean the dishes. Go off and walk around the block.

And inevitably what happens is when you come back, your, your mind is clear and you figure out what to do. And, and that's one of the best pieces of advice that anybody could get because, you know, we don't, nobody has told us how the brain works, right?