We're trusting tech with more tasks than ever — including the ones our brains once did.We're Googling things we used to know, taking screenshots of things we'll instantly forget, and hoarding all kinds of data we'll never check again.On this episode of Brain Rot: is tech giving your brain a holiday, or putting it out of a job?You'll also meet a guy who's turned the tables, by using AI to help recover his lost memories.This episode originally aired on Brain Rot, a series of the ABC podcast Science Friction. Sana will be back with all-new episodes of All in the Mind in mid-October.Guests:Dr Julia SoaresAssistant Professor, Mississipi State UniversityMorris VillaroelAcademic, Spain; LifeloggerMaxCredits:Presenter: Ange LavoipierreProducer: Fiona PepperSenior Producer: James BullenSound Engineer: Tim SymondsThis story was made on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar peoples.More Information:Memory in the Digital Age — Oxford Handbook of Human Memory, 2024.Lifelog Retrieval from Daily Digital Data: Narrative Review — JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 2022.People mistake the internet's knowledge for their own — PNAS, 2021.Data Selves: More-Than-Human Perspectives — Deborah Lupton, 2019.One man's 10-year experiment to record every moment — BBC, 2019.The case for using your brain — even if AI can think for you — Vox, 2025.You can catch up on more episodes of the All in the Mind podcast with journalist and presenter Sana Qadar, exploring the psychology of topics like stress, memory, communication and relationships on the ABC Listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.If you'd like to access the transcript for this episode, head to its original webpage.
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Brain Rot: Will AI turn us off human relationships?
Whether it’s social media, the omnipresent smartphone or AI companions, in recent decades the way we relate to each other has been completely up-ended.In episode two of Brain Rot, we explore the potential implications that tech poses to human relationships.Worldwide estimates suggest there are around one billion users of AI companions — people using software or applications designed to simulate human-like interactions through text and voice.So if the uptake of these AI companions is as rapid as is being reported, what are the ramifications? And could AI companions be both a cause and cure for loneliness? This episode originally aired on Brain Rot, a series of the ABC podcast Science Friction. Sana will be back with all-new episodes of All in the Mind in mid-October.Guests:KellyIn a relationship with an AI companion, ChristianBethanie Drake-MaplesDoctoral Candidate, Research Fellow, Stanford Institute for Human-Centred Artificial IntelligenceNicholas EpleyProfessor of Behavioural Science, University of Chicago Booth School of BusinessNicholas CarrAuthor and journalistCredits:Presenter: Ange LavoipierreProducer: Fiona PepperSenior Producer: James BullenSound Engineer: Tim SymondsThis story was made on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar peoples.More Information:Loneliness and suicide mitigation for students using GPT3-enabled chatbots — npj Mental Health Research, 2024.Hello, stranger? Pleasant conversations are preceded by concerns about starting one — Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2022.Talking with strangers is surprisingly informative — PNAS, 2022.Superbloom: How Technologies of Connection Tear Us Apart — Nicholas Carr, 2025.You can catch up on more episodes of the All in the Mind podcast with journalist and presenter Sana Qadar, exploring the psychology of topics like stress, memory, communication and relationships on the ABC Listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.If you'd like to access the transcript for this episode, head to its original webpage.
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Brain Rot: Is your phone destroying your attention span?
Everyone seems to have a hunch that their phone is destroying their attention span, but is there any science to back it up?In episode one of Brain Rot, we’re doing our best to focus on the topic of attention for a full 25 minutes — and find out what's actually happening in your brain every time your phone buzzes or dings.Is brain rot a real thing? Or just another moral panic?And how do you know when your own screen use has gone too far?This episode originally aired on Brain Rot, a series of the ABC podcast Science Friction. Sana will be back with all-new episodes of All in the Mind in mid-October.Guests:Anna SeirianCEO, Internet PeopleDr Mark WilliamsProfessor, Macquarie University; Cognitive neuroscientistMichoel MoshelClinical Neuropsychologist Registrar; Phd Candidate, Macquarie UniversityProfessor Marion ThainProfessor of Culture and Technology, University of Edinburgh; Director, Edinburgh Futures InstituteCredits:Presenter: Ange LavoipierreProducer: Fiona PepperSenior Producer: James BullenSound Engineer: Brendan O'NeillMore information:Neuropsychological Deficits in Disordered Screen Use Behaviours: A Systematic Review and Meta‑Analysis - Neuropsychology Review, 2024.Do we have your attention? How people focus and live in the modern information environment - King's College London, 2022.Internet addiction-induced brain structure and function alterations: a systematic review and meta-analysis of voxel-based morphometry and resting-state functional connectivity studies - Brain Imaging and Behavior, 2023.You can catch up on more episodes of the All in the Mind podcast with journalist and presenter Sana Qadar, exploring the psychology of topics like stress, memory, communication and relationships on the ABC Listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.If you'd like to access the transcript for this episode, head to its original webpage.
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Why revenge feels good — and what it costs
Revenge feels sweet... At least for a moment. James Kimmel Jr knows that better than most.As a lawyer, he made a career out of helping clients get payback. But the drive for revenge started to eat away at him, threatening to destroy his work life and relationships.Coming back from the brink, he started to wonder — why are we drawn to payback? What impacts does it have on the brain? And can revenge ever be addictive?In this episode, we explore some of the neuroscience of revenge: what's going on in the brain when we seek it out, the rewards we get from it, the damage it causes and how to stop it. Plus, are we hardwired for forgiveness?Just a heads up, there is a brief mention of animal cruelty in the intro of this episode, so please take care while listening.You can catch up on more episodes of the All in the Mind podcast with journalist and presenter Sana Qadar, exploring the psychology of topics like stress, memory, communication and relationships on the ABC Listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.Guest:James Kimmel, Jr., JDAssistant Clinical Professor, PsychiatryYale School of MedicineAuthor, The Science of RevengeCredits:Presenter/producer: Sana QadarSenior producer: James BullenProducer: Rose KerrSound engineer: Simon BranthwaiteThanks to freesound.org users craigsmith, Scott_Snailham and EwanPenman11. More information:The neural basis of altruistic punishmentThe sunny side of fairness: preference for fairness activates reward circuitry (and disregarding unfairness activates self-control circuitry)The neural basis of economic decision-making in the Ultimatum Game"An eye for an eye"? Neural correlates of retribution and forgiveness
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Task paralysis and procrastination - why it's so hard to get sh*t done
Five years of unpaid taxes. Homework handed in on the last day of an extension. Some people are champion procrastinators.Why? And what does task paralysis (sometimes called ADHD paralysis) have to do with it?Today: the personality traits that make you more prone to procrastination, the types of tasks we're most likely to put off, and what to do if your to-do list sends you into fight-or-flight mode.You can catch up on more episodes of the All in the Mind podcast with journalist and presenter Sana Qadar, exploring the psychology of topics like stress, memory, communication and relationships on the ABC Listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts.Guests:EvaHigh school studentDr Catherine HoulihanClinical psychologistSenior lecturer in clinical psychologyDirector of the UniSC Psychology ClinicUniversity of the Sunshine CoastCredits:Presenter/producer: Sana QadarProducer: Rose KerrSenior producer: James BullenSound engineer: Simon BranthwaiteMore information:The skills supercommunicators use, which you can learn tooOutwardly impressive, losing it on the inside? The cognitive distortions of a high achieverWhy do I procrastinate? And can I do anything about it?Fighting for focus in the age of distraction
All In The Mind is ABC RN's weekly podcast looking into the mental universe, the mind, brain and behaviour — everything from addiction to artificial intelligence.
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