The Brain at Rest

Why doing nothing can change your life

When was the last time you let yourself do nothing - not scrolling while eating a sandwich, but nothing at all?

We are constantly told to make the most of our time. Stop procrastinating. Don't sleep more than 7.5 hours a night. Optimise. To be happy, healthy, creative and successful requires discipline and focus. The most important thing is to be efficient with every precious hour.

But when we let our minds wander, something magical happens: blood flow to the brain increases by 90 per cent, and suddenly we are able to think in completely new ways.

Dr Joseph Jebelli reveals how neuroscience is solving the mystery of the brain at rest, with profound implications for intelligence, creativity and even life expectancy. If we dare to break the taboo surrounding rest, we will find that long baths, walks in nature, meditation and simple daydreaming are the key to a happier, healthier - and ironically, more productive - life.

The Brain at Rest is a tonic for the frazzled mind. Joseph Jebelli makes a powerful argument for the importance of the brain’s downtime in living a happy, healthy and meaningful life. By doing less, we can achieve so much more – and this inspiring book shows us how.

David Robson, author of The Expectation Effect, The Intelligence Trap, and The Laws of Connection

About Joseph Jebelli

Dr Joseph Jebelli received a PhD in neuroscience from University College London, then worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Washington. He has written two books, How the Mind Changed and In Pursuit of Memory, which was shortlisted for the Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize and longlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize. He lives in London.
Details
All editions