These days, it is not easy for modern people to even zone out unless they decide to do it on purpose because they have to process the vast amount of information in ppali ppali culture. So recently, taking time to zone out intentionally has become a unique social culture. The method of zoning out is divided in various ways like looking at fire, cat, stone and water. Even more surprisingly, there is an international zoning out competition every year. Last May, the Han River zoning out contest was also held in Korea, which was quite popular.
(Source:https://www.yna.co.kr/view/PYH20170430786300013)
Why zoning out become a certain event for people?
Considering this question, the fact that we live in an overworked society cannot be understated. The keyword associated with zoning out is “Burnout Syndrome”. Along with ‘Burnout’ came a wave of newly-coined words regarding efficiency, like ‘N-Jobler(N잡러)’ ‘God-Saeng(갓생)’, and ‘Si-Sung-Bi(시성비)’.
These imply that our society is pursuing extreme efficiency and getting tired simultaneously. In a trend that increasingly takes ‘time’ into account in ‘economic’ evaluations, people want to use 24 hours more efficiently than ever.
To save time, we may have taken online lectures at double the speed or watched movies or dramas only as a summary. But are we actually saving time? Would we rather waste our time, watching the 20 second short forms for two hours, in the flood of stimulating information? Sociologists say that in the flood of information, ‘zoning out’ began to grab the attention of the people who want to give their brain a break, longing for a very ‘useless’ time that is okay by itself without linking to productivity.
In fact,our perception of zoning out has not been great so far. It has been taken somewhat negatively because of the view that it is unproductive and a waste of time. Zoning out, though, benefits us by providing rest for the brain.
Zoning out - the process of preparing the brain to show creativity afterward (or subsequent) by brain rest
Historically, creative ideas that changed the world tend to come from zoning out. Archimedes, an ancient Greek mathematician, was asked by King Heron to investigate whether his crown was really made of pure gold, and he was troubled. Then he discovered the principle of buoyancy in the public bath where he entered to cool down his head, and was so pleased that he ran home shouting “Eureka” without wearing any clothes on.
On the one hand, Newton discovered the law of universal gravitation when he saw a falling apple while spacing out under the apple tree. Einstein also enjoyed relaxing by playing the violin and boating. And Immanuel Kant, the founder of critical philosophy, is famous for the regularity of his walks. Jack Welch, called the best legendary businessman of the century, also spent an hour staring out of the window every day when he was GE(General Electric) chairman.
Ordinary people often come up with brilliant ideas when they are zoning out on the subway rather than squeezing their heads in front of their desks. According to a survey conducted by an invention-related research institute in the United States, about 20% of U.S. adults come up with the most creative ideas in cars. Newsweek also cited ‘stay blank’ as one of the 31 tips for increasing IQ in daily life.
Then, is it scientifically grounded that many people find the answer to the problem when they don't think about anything like zoning out? U.S. brain scientist Dr. Marcus Rikle published a paper in 2001 after discovering a specific area of the brain that is activated when a person does not perform any cognitive activity through brain imaging equipment. In that particular area, the brain’s activity was even reduced if the brain was preoccupied with thoughts. That specific area comprises the inner frontal lobe, outer temporal lobe, and parietal lobe of the brain.
Dr. Rikle named this area that works when the brain is inactive as a ‘Default Mode Network (DMN)’. This means the brain's DMN is activated when you take a break without thinking, as if resetting the computer returns to the default setting. DMN is active during the day when you enjoy daydreaming or even sleeping. That is when there is no external stimulus. The discovery of this area also explained why the brain still accounts for 20% of the body's total oxygen consumption just by lying still with our eyes closed.
In addition, a series of studies have been published that activation of DMN develops creativity and improves certain performance skills. A research team at Tohoku University in Japan used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to measure blood flow in the brain when not thinking. As a result, it was found that the white material activity, which is a collection of axons connected to neurons in a cerebro-cortex and consists of insulating materials that speed up the transportation of information, increases. Participants in the experiment increased white matter activity by resting their brains, and blood flow became active. So they even scored high in the following task of quickly coming up with new ideas.
However, modern people are gradually losing even a moment to zone out. When we take the subway, we work hard on something with our smartphone rather than staying still. Even during a short break, we usually enjoy games in the name of rest. In other words, zoning out is urgent for modern people who are busy doing something using their brains all day long. It not only gives the brain a break but also provides an opportunity to care for oneself and gives unexpected inspiration or problem-solving skills.
Zoning out culture in the new spotlight: Fire, ASMR, Tingle
Zoning out, which has a lot of advantages, has become more intensified recently. Among the numerous ways to zone out, ‘Bulmung(불멍) (watching a video of fire burning)’ is by far the most popular. If you search for ‘Bulmung’ on YouTube right now, you can find hundreds of millions of bonfire videos. Netflix also posted a video of a fireplace with music for the Christmas holiday, according to the trend. Why is the public so enthusiastic about Bulmung? Here's an interesting paper.
‘An Analytical Study on Public Psychology that Prefers Bonfire Video’ by Kim Ki-hong of Hansung Univ.
1) Bulmung, who first started making it?
The beginning of the Bulmung was a video of a carefully selected Christmas-burning log called the YULE LOG. First aired on December 24, 1966, as a Christmas special in New York City, YULE LOG gained popularity with more than expected ratings. It was just a three-hour series of 17-second wood fire video.
2) Unexpected effects of Bulmung
The author of the paper explored the universal meaning of Bulmung to humans by borrowing the opinion of philosopher Gaston Bachelard. Gaston Bachelard said, “When you stare at the fire and zone out, you fall into the stage of daydreaming. You can acquire energy to engage in very creative activities somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness. All the imagination and dreams come from the four elements(earth, water, air, fire) or their combinations.”, praising the reverie that humans fall into when they stare at the flame. According to Gaston Bachelard’s philosophy of imagination, the human mind consists of reason and imagination, and it is argued that the imagination between the waking and dreaming states of consciousness makes the human mind healthy and, by extension, can be a cornerstone of all creative endeavors.
Like this bonfire video, ASMR is one method of zoning out that has moved from ‘seeing’ to ‘listening.’ ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response. Through the whispering and rustling sounds, people feel the pleasant goosebumps called Tingle and get a feeling of pleasure and relaxation of the body. Usually, people find ASMR videos when they want to rest or have insomnia. Studies have shown that you absorb slow delta waves when you sleep deeply, but when you listen to ASMR, you get even more delta waves. In addition, when you concentrate and do purposeful actions, your brain releases beta waves due to anxiety and stress. On the contrary, when you relax, your brain waves alpha. By the research, it is confirmed that ASMR lowers beta waves(anxiety and stress) and increases alpha waves(relaxed).
Meanwhile, many people are exposed to the ‘popcorn brain’ phenomenon from childhood. The popcorn brain refers to a phenomenon in which brains are so accustomed to the constant stimulation of electronic multitasking. People who have a popcorn brain are difficult to adjust to offline life, where things pop much slower.
Unlike strong stimuli, ASMR whispered, and the video itself acted slowly. It can be assumed that people are into this because they are tired of many stimuli these days and want healing even through ASMR.
DON’T think that zoning out itself creates sparkling ideas
However, you should not think that the state of zoning out itself creates sparkling ideas. This is because such sweet results can be achieved only when you have background knowledge of the problem and continuous deep thought to solve it. Archimedes also had his background knowledge and urgency to solve problems, so he could shout “Eureka!” when he saw the bath overflowing. Newton, who discovered the law of universal gravitation under the apple tree, was also the case.
That is, creative ideas are where preparation meets zoning out.