Shankar Vedantam

When we come back, how to know when you are being patient or being passive.

You're listening to Hidden Brain.

I'm Shankar Vedantam.

This is Hidden Brain.

I'm Shankar Vedantam.

In our hectic world, patience can seem like a rarity.

In certain situations, we might even see someone who's patient as passive or unambitious.

At Baylor University, Sarah Schnitker argues that patience is an underestimated strength in our busy, overscheduled lives.

Sarah, we talked in our initial conversation about Martin Luther King Jr.

and his struggle to find patience in practicing civil disobedience.

We heard from a listener named Simon.

Simon is a bassist.

He's also Asian-American and the founder of an all-Asian-American rock band called The Slants.

A number of years ago, I tried to file a trademark for my band's name.

It was denied.

The USPTO, or US Patent and Trademark Office, said that it was disparaging to persons of Asian descent, members of my community.

This was for an all-Asian band.

I appealed.

I appealed.

I got thousands and thousands of people to weigh in, experts, community leaders, etc.