Why BrainRot

In the second segment of this Neverpo.st episode researcher Emily Owens discusses “BrainRot” as a rare method of decompression for today’s teenagers:

There are loads of things you could do to decompress. Sometimes it is use your phone, but oftentimes it’s go for a walk, like go for a swim, take your bicycle out, paint a painting, write a little story. And we’re, I think, systematically discouraged from doing those things because those things don’t make anybody any money. And that’s my beef with BrainRot. It’s not that it exists or that young people are doing it. I think that’s fine. We should let kids do what they want. If they’re enjoying it, who cares? It’s more that there’s this bigger systematic problem that all of our time is being capitalized on.

Emphasis added, and felt in my bones.

This whole episode is recommended.