The Better Show
Controlling screen time, so it doesn’t control you
Episode Summary
How to take control of screen time so it doesn’t control you. We’ll dive into why limiting screen time can help improve your health, sleep, and relationships.
Episode Notes
On this episode, we talk about how to take control of screen time so it doesn’t control you. We’ll dive into why limiting screen time can help improve your health, sleep and relationships.
Show Notes
- 1:42— March shares stats on the proliferation of mobile devices and screens among children
- 2:38— Some of the risks to over-exposure to screens
- 10:59— Ian’s introduction to computers at age 9 and his addition to video game message boards
- 14:52— Ian devises an experiment to observe peoples’ behavior in coffee shops but insists that he is definitely NOT being a creeper.
- 17:41— The effects of social media and screen time on one’s productivity
- 18:37— What do studies say about the average amount of time people spend in front of screens and are those studies reliable?
- 22:18— Screen time as a momentum killer
- 24:32— Ian gets busted for scrolling through Instagram and playing video games in the middle of the episode
- 25:49— How the New York Times crossword puzzle app is a tempting time killer for March
- 27: 36— We discuss the We Croak app
- 28:58— How March was first introduced to computers, or rather, 3 broken computers.
- 30:19— March shares a tip for limiting time with video games
- 34:58— Darren shares his method for breaking up long stretches of screen time at work and also for carving out time to stay in touch with remote family members.
- 38:30— March worries that he’s a terrible son because he does house chores while on the phone with his mom…until discovering that his mom does the same thing.
- 41:16— Darren gets busted for playing with his cell phone in the middle of the episode
- 41:53— Ian shares a trick he uses with friends at dinner to keep everyone more engaged in the meal.
- 46:38— March and Darren share their similar experience growing up where they hacked the cable TV set up in their home to work around limited access to TV.
- 49:29— Tips for limiting screen time for kids using the parental controls in Windows 10, Xbox, and Kindle devices
- 50:17— We discuss the recent open letter to Apple from concerned parents
- 52:47— March shares his method for encouraging mindfulness in his kids as an alternative to setting artificial limits.
- 59:31— March explains the concept of a “drop zone” for phone and Ian notes that The White House uses this
- 1:06:57— Darren reminisces about the BluBlockers commercials from the 1980’s and wonders, “do they really know whether you order in the next 10 minutes?”
- 1:08:35— Ian shares a tip about varying the distance you hold a tablet or phone from your face
- 1:09:49— March cites some new research from the state of California about the health risks of too much RF radiation from mobile devices
- 1:11:28— Darren recalls his experience of using mobile phones from the early 2000’s and some of the strange things he noticed after spending long periods of time using a mobile phone for lengthy conference calls.
- 1:13:18— Ian shares Apple’s official guidance on cell phone radiation ratings for every iPhone
- 1:17:46— March suggests checking out the Hours app to track screen time.
- 1:22:19— Ian suggests doing an episode of The Better Show completely in the dark (no screens)…but maybe just candles.
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