Two years ago, Manoush Zomorodi and her team at the WNYC podcast Note to Self recruited thousands of listeners to join their "Bored and Brilliant" challenge. It was an attempt to get listeners to unplug from their devices and channel their inner creativity by learning to zone out. In her book, Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self, Zomorodi dives even deeper into that work, and looks at the many ways boredom can act as a crucial tool for making us happier, more productive and more creative. 

Manoush Zomorodi will appear at the Strand Bookstore (828 Broadway & 12th St.) for a conversation with Brooke Gladstone on Sept. 8 at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Note: DW Gibson guest-hosted this segment of "The Leonard Lopate Show."