As a young student attending junior college, I worked two part time jobs. A couple nights a week I would spend a few hours cleaning a veterinary clinic. Since the clinic was closed, and I was the only person in the building at the time, I would strap a tape recorder around my neck and talk while mopping the floors and cleaning the tables and instruments.
I used the time to play back the material I had learned that day in class, imagine ways in which I could use that material in my future career and life, and give lectures and speeches to the animals boarding for the night. Sometimes, I would pass the hours thinking about an important decision. I would weigh the options, review the evidence, and search for the best alternative.
As I went back and reviewed the tapes I remember noticing a pattern. I would speak for a few minutes about a topic and then when my thoughts would come to a close there would be a pause. The pause usually lasted longer than I thought it had, and all I would hear was the sound of mopping or animals rustling in their pens. Then, at the end of these periods, I would have moments of insight where new ideas or new connections with information was being made in my mind.
New research being conducted at Carnegie Mellon University is shedding light on just what may have been happening to me many years ago in the quiet veterinary clinic. Brain imaging scans indicate that brain continues to unconsciously process information during moments of distraction and that this processing often leads to improved decision making.
”We all face difficult problems we need to solve on a regular basis,” Creswell said. “Whether it’s buying a new car, finding a new apartment to rent, or seeking out a new dating partner on social networking sites. This study provides some of the first clues for how our brains process this information for effective problem-solving and decision-making.”
While we may think that our brains need a little rest to “clear our heads”, it may actually be that our brain needs us to be distracted for a while, so it can go to work.
https://exploringyourmind.com/sigmund-freud-theory-of-the-unconscious/
source https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2013/february/feb13_unconsciousthought.html