Hundreds of friends online, dozens of birthday messages, and still no one you'd call at two in the morning. This week, we look at how many real relationships a human brain can actually hold, and why a bigger crowd can leave the center of your life emptier than ever.

Sources: Dunbar, R. I. M. (1992). Neocortex size as a constraint on group size in primates. Journal of Human Evolution, 22(6), 469–493. Dunbar, R. I. M. (2016). Do online social media cut through the constraints that limit the size of offline social networks? Royal Society Open Science, 3, 150292.

Narrated with an AI-generated voice.

Researched, written and produced by Twenty Seconds Audio.

Business inquiries: 20secondsaudio@gmail.com

Why We Live Like This is written and produced by Twenty Seconds Audio.

New episodes every week. Follow the show so you don't miss the next one.

Business inquiries: 20secondsaudio@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You barely moved all day, you slept eight hours, and you still wake up exhausted. This week, we look at a kind of tiredness that has nothing to do with your body, and at why the way most of us try to rest might be keeping it going.

Sources: Kaplan, S. (1995). The restorative benefits of nature: Toward an integrative framework. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 15(3), 169–182. Kaplan, R., & Kaplan, S. (1989). The Experience of Nature: A Psychological Perspective. Cambridge University Press.

Narrated with an AI-generated voice.

Researched, written and produced by Twenty Seconds Audio.

Business inquiries: 20secondsaudio@gmail.com

Why We Live Like This is written and produced by Twenty Seconds Audio.

New episodes every week. Follow the show so you don't miss the next one.

Business inquiries: 20secondsaudio@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why can't you sit in a waiting room anymore without reaching for your phone? This week, we look at what really happens in those few seconds of nothing, and at a strange experiment where people chose an electric shock over being alone with their thoughts.

Sources: Wilson, T. D., Reinhard, D. A., Westgate, E. C., Gilbert, D. T., Ellerbeck, N., Hahn, C., Brown, C. L., & Shaked, A. (2014). Just think: The challenges of the disengaged mind. Science, 345(6192), 75–77.

Narrated with an AI-generated voice.

Researched, written and produced by Twenty Seconds Audio.

Business inquiries: 20secondsaudio@gmail.com

Why We Live Like This is written and produced by Twenty Seconds Audio.

New episodes every week. Follow the show so you don't miss the next one.

Business inquiries: 20secondsaudio@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.