Why do some animals spend time doing nothing?

They may not need to work constantly, or they could be reserve members of their colonies.

What are the benefits of boredom according to Dr. Sandi Mann?

Boredom can lead to creativity and invention.

What does 'kicking back' mean?

It means to stop doing things and relax completely.

What is a colony in the context of animals?

A colony is a group of certain animals, such as ants.

What does 'to switch off' mean?

It means to stop worrying or thinking about something and relax.

What is the proverb 'necessity is the mother of invention' about?

It means that if you really need to do something, you will find a way to do it.

The benefits of doing nothing ⏲️ 6 Minute English

00:06:19

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y681hXWwhQY

Résumé

TLDRIn this episode of 6 Minute English, Beth and Neil discuss the surprising amount of time animals spend doing nothing, challenging the notion that all creatures are constantly busy. They explore examples like ants and sloths, highlighting that even industrious animals have periods of inactivity. The conversation touches on the benefits of boredom for humans, suggesting that it can foster creativity and innovation. The episode concludes with a quiz about the slowest animal, revealing the three-toed sloth, and recaps vocabulary related to the topic.

A retenir

🐝 Animals can be surprisingly inactive, like ants and sloths.
😴 The three-toed sloth is the slowest moving animal on Earth.
💡 Boredom can lead to creativity and invention.
🛌 'Kicking back' means to relax completely.
🏢 Ant colonies have many inactive members at any time.
📚 'Industrious' means hard-working.
🔄 'To switch off' means to relax and stop worrying.
🦠 Algae can grow on sloths due to their slow movement.
📖 'Necessity is the mother of invention' highlights the link between need and creativity.
🌍 Nature teaches us the value of relaxation.

Chronologie

00:00:00 - 00:06:19
In this episode of 6 Minute English, Beth and Neil discuss the concept of laziness in animals, highlighting that many creatures, despite their industrious reputation, spend a significant amount of time doing nothing. They explore the reasons behind this behavior, questioning whether it is beneficial for both animals and humans. The discussion includes insights from Professor Dan Charbonneau about ant colonies, revealing that about half of the ants are inactive at any given time, possibly serving as reserve workers. Psychologist Dr. Sandi Mann adds that boredom can lead to creativity and invention, suggesting that embracing boredom might be advantageous. The episode concludes with a quiz about the slowest animal on Earth, which is revealed to be the three-toed sloth, and recaps vocabulary related to the topic.

Carte mentale

Vidéo Q&R

What is the slowest moving animal on Earth?
The three-toed sloth.
Why do some animals spend time doing nothing?
They may not need to work constantly, or they could be reserve members of their colonies.
What are the benefits of boredom according to Dr. Sandi Mann?
Boredom can lead to creativity and invention.
What does 'kicking back' mean?
It means to stop doing things and relax completely.
What is a colony in the context of animals?
A colony is a group of certain animals, such as ants.
What does 'to switch off' mean?
It means to stop worrying or thinking about something and relax.
What does 'industrious' mean?
It means hard-working.
What is the proverb 'necessity is the mother of invention' about?
It means that if you really need to do something, you will find a way to do it.

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Sous-titres

en-GB

Défilement automatique:

00:00:09
Hello. This is 6 Minute English from
00:00:11
BBC Learning English. I’m Beth.
00:00:13
And I’m Neil. Phew! I've spent all day in meetings,
00:00:17
then shopping, then collecting the kids from school - I'm
00:00:21
exhausted, Beth! What have you been doing today?
00:00:23
Oh, not much, just sitting around doing
00:00:26
nothing… relaxing and kicking back! Lucky you! Don’t you have work to do?
00:00:31
It may not look it, Neil, but I’m actually as
00:00:34
busy as a bee! If you’ve seen nature documentaries
00:00:37
about worker bees flying from flower to flower,
00:00:40
you probably think animals are always on the move.
00:00:44
But the surprising truth is, away from the cameras,
00:00:47
most animals spend most of the time doing absolutely nothing at all.
00:00:52
In the natural world where finding food and shelter
00:00:55
is hard work, why have some animals evolved to do nothing?
00:00:59
And if it’s good enough for animals, would being lazy work
00:01:03
for humans too? That’s what we will be discussing in this
00:01:07
programme, and as usual, we’ll be learning some
00:01:10
useful new vocabulary as well. But first, let me work up the energy to ask you
00:01:16
a question, Neil. Of course, some animals have
00:01:19
a reputation for lounging about – lions, for example,
00:01:23
can sleep up to twenty hours a day! But what is the
00:01:27
slowest moving animal on Earth? Is it: a) the giant tortoise
00:01:33
b) the three-toed sloth or c) the koala?
00:01:38
Well, I think it’s the three-toed sloth.
00:01:41
OK, Neil. I’ll reveal the correct answer at the end
00:01:45
of the programme. Now it’s no surprise that lazy lions
00:01:50
love relaxing, but even animals with reputations for
00:01:54
being busy spend time doing nothing. Look carefully
00:01:58
into an ant's nest and you’ll see around half
00:02:01
of them just sitting there motionless.
00:02:04
Here’s Professor Dan Charbonneau, an expert in insect
00:02:07
behaviour, discussing the lazy rock ant with Emily Knight,
00:02:11
presenter of BBC Radio 4 programme, Naturebang.
00:02:18
Dan’s research has focused on ant colonies, a species
00:02:22
called temnothorax rugatulus or the rock ant.
00:02:24
I think ants are a symbol of industriousness, you know,
00:02:27
they have this whole tiny little society going on that's
00:02:30
kind of similar to ours… some idealised version what
00:02:33
humans might be if we could only pull it together and
00:02:35
all work together we could be as industrious as
00:02:37
the ants, but then when you look at it, roughly about
00:02:40
half the colony is inactive at any given time.
00:02:46
We think ants are industrious, or hard-working.
00:02:49
Groups of ants, called colonies, seem tiny,
00:02:52
perfect societies where everyone works
00:02:55
hard for the good of the group. Then why are so many of them inactive?
00:02:59
One possible answer is that they’re reserve ants,
00:03:03
ready to step in if disease or disaster strike.
00:03:07
But could it simply be that they don’t work
00:03:10
because they don’t need to. Would you get out
00:03:13
of bed on Monday morning if you didn’t have to? Maybe the ants can teach us a thing or
00:03:18
two about relaxing. But wouldn't it get
00:03:21
boring just sitting around all day? Not according to psychologist, Dr Sandi Mann.
00:03:26
She thinks being productive – working to produce
00:03:30
a lot for the amount of resources we use,
00:03:32
is overrated. Boredom has its benefits too,
00:03:36
as she explains to BBC Radio 4 programme, Naturebang.
00:03:42
Would humans have invented bread or beer or fire,
00:03:46
you know, if we hadn't been bored and were wondering,
00:03:49
‘what on earth would happen if we mix this with this?’,
00:03:51
you know. Are all these sorts of
00:03:53
inventions the mother of boredom? But in this world of constant stimulation
00:03:58
switching off is harder than it's ever been. That's why we're constantly swiping and scrolling
00:04:04
and looking for the next big thing, and the
00:04:05
new thing and we bored of things very quickly… so
00:04:08
it's a kind of paradox to get rid of this unpleasant
00:04:11
state of boredom is actually to
00:04:12
allow more boredom into your life. Dr Mann doubts humans would have invented
00:04:18
things without the curiosity that comes from being
00:04:21
bored. Boredom is the mother of invention,
00:04:24
an idea based on the famous proverb, necessity is
00:04:28
the mother of invention, an idiom meaning that if
00:04:32
you really need to do something,
00:04:33
you will think of a way of doing it. Instead of fearing boredom we can open up to its
00:04:39
benefits by switching off - stopping worrying or
00:04:43
thinking about something and relaxing. Slowing down
00:04:46
helps too - something we can definitely
00:04:49
learn from our animal cousins. I think now’s a good time to reveal the answer to
00:04:54
my question, since we have nothing else to do.
00:04:56
You asked me to name the world’s slowest animal and
00:04:59
I guessed it was the three-toed sloth. Was I right?
00:05:02
That was the correct answer! With a top speed
00:05:06
of 30 centimetres per minute, three-toed sloths move
00:05:12
so slowly that algae grow on their coats!
00:05:16
OK, let's recap the vocabulary that we've learned
00:05:19
from this programme starting with the
00:05:21
phrase kicking back – stop doing things
00:05:23
and relax completely.
00:05:26
The adjective industrious means hard-working. A colony is the name given to a group of certain
00:05:33
animals including ants and some seabirds. Someone who is productive is able to produce
00:05:39
a lot for the amount of resources they use. The proverb necessity is the mother of invention,
00:05:46
means that if you really need to do something,
00:05:48
you will think of a way of doing it. And finally, to switch off means to stop worrying
00:05:53
or thinking about something and relax. Once again,
00:05:58
our six minutes are up – it must be time to sit down,
00:06:01
close your eyes, and just do nothing! Goodbye for now!
00:06:04
Bye!