Technologies

Study Reveals Doomscrolling While Using the Bathroom Has a Hidden Risk

We are all guilty of taking our phones to the bathroom but it can be more harmful than you realize.

We use our smartphones just about everywhere, even in the bathroom, although we may not want to talk about that. A recent study of colonoscopy patients revealed that most used their phones on the toilet at least once a week — and that those phone-on-the-toilet users showed a 46% increased risk for hemorrhoids.

The cause and effect are clear. Caught up in news, games or social media, bathroom users stay seated on the throne longer, with research showing phone users tend to spend more than 5 minutes doing their business. The study says that hemorrhoids are associated with prolonged sitting on the toilet, as well as constipation and increased straining.

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What the study reveals

The 125 colonoscopy patients at Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Study who participated in the study answered questions about their bathroom phone habits, and endoscopists evaluated their hemorrhoids (just in case you think you have a bad job). Of all the respondents, 66% used smartphones while sitting on the toilet, and those participants tended to be younger than those who didn’t. More than a third (37.3%) of smartphone users spent more than 5 minutes sitting on the toilet per visit, while only 7.1% of those without smartphones spent that long seated.

When the numbers were adjusted for age, sex, BMI, exercise activity and «straining and fiber intake,» results showed a 46% increased risk for hemorrhoids. Men were more likely than women to spend 6 minutes or more on the toilet, in case you wondered.

Those who used smartphones while on the toilet also admitted to getting less exercise than those who didn’t, which the researchers said «could signify a higher level of engagement with technology and a more sedentary lifestyle outside of the toileting environment.» (Yes, «toileting environment.» Otherwise known as just «the toilet.»)

The most common toilet phone activity was reading news, with 54.3% admitting to doing so, and 44.4% saying they were participating in social media while on the toilet.

The study didn’t directly connect constipation with time spent on the toilet, but Dr. Eamonn Quigley, chairman of gastroenterology at Houston Methodist, told The New York Times that it’s likely those who sit hunched over their phones while on the toilet might be more likely to experience constipation.

What all this means for you

If you’re grossed out by the idea of your phone being in close connection with toilet time, you’re not alone. Doctors told the NYT the obvious: Fecal material can get on your hands while you’re wiping and be transferred to your phone, and flushing with the toilet lid open can also spray fecal matter onto your phone. Sure, you wash your hands, but now the stuff is on your phone, so it jumps right back on your hands after you dry them and start scrolling again.

In short, you’re probably going to scroll your phone while occupied in the bathroom. But this study notes that you should be aware that the phone’s fun distractions might make you sit there longer than you planned and that could have painful consequences.

Technologies

Harvard Business Review Study Finds ‘AI Brain Fry’ Is Leaving Workers Mentally Fatigued

Study participants reported increased mental fatigue while using AI tools, but less burnout overall.

Workers who excessively use AI agents and tools at work are at increased risk of mental fatigue, according to a recent Harvard Business Review study. In certain industries, more than 25% of hired professionals report increased mental strain due to their role in AI oversight — though these professionals also generally experienced less burnout than peers who aren’t using AI.

This phenomenon — which the researchers refer to as «AI brain fry» — is described as a «‘buzzing’ feeling or a mental fog» that caused study participants to develop headaches and difficulty focusing and making decisions. Individuals pointed to being overwhelmed by large amounts of information and to frequent task switching as the reasons for these feelings.

Studied individuals experienced more brain fry when they utilized AI agents to manage a workload beyond their own cognitive capacity. When participants used AI to replace mundane, repetitive tasks, managing the growing number of tools led to increased mental fatigue.

Crucially, the study found that fewer individuals who used these AI agents reported workplace burnout.

The researchers predict that this is because burnout testing assesses emotional and physical distress. In contrast, they report, acute mental fatigue «is caused by marshalling attention, working memory and executive control beyond the limited capacity of these systems.»

These are the processes that are taxed when study participants use multiple AI tools in their workflow, according to the researchers.

The Harvard study identifies several business costs incurred by workers suffering from AI brain fry. The foremost consequence is that these individuals may end up making lower-quality decisions. «Workers in [the] study who endorsed AI brain fry experience 33% more decision fatigue than those who did not,» the study reports. Workers who report AI brain fry were also more likely to self-report making both minor and major errors at their jobs.

Another recent Harvard Business Review study similarly found that employees who use AI tools «worked at a faster pace, took on a broader scope of tasks and extended work into more hours of the day,» but warned that «workload creep can in turn lead to cognitive fatigue, burnout and weakened decision-making.»

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for March 11, #1004

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for March 11, No. 1,004.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Once I spotted «ice cream» and «traffic» in today’s NYT Connections puzzle, I had the blue category all but filled in. But that purple category was even more bizarre than usual. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Bring that back!

Green group hint: Fancy ____.

Blue group hint: Think of a certain shape.

Purple group hint: Sounds like…

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Steal.

Green group: Make nicer, with «up.»

Blue group: Kinds of cones.

Purple group: Pronoun homophones.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is steal. The four answers are lift, palm, pinch and pocket.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is make nicer, with «up.» The four answers are dress, jazz, spiff and spruce.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is kinds of cones. The four answers are ice cream, pine, snow and traffic.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is pronoun homophones. The four answers are hee, mi, oui and yew.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for March 11, #534

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle No. 534 for Wednesday, March 11.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition features a real mix of categories, but the yellow one came easily to this Seahawks fan. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Super Bowl champs’ division.

Green group hint: Baseball stats.

Blue group hint: Stars on ice.

Purple group hint: You wear it around your waist.