In the 1950s, a group of scientists surveyed a range of the country’s researchers about their work habits. They found, quite paradoxically, that more work didn’t lead to more productivity. The researchers who worked hard twenty hours a week pumped out the most scientific articles. They released double the number of studies than did their counterparts who spent thirty-five hours a week in the lab. But those thirty-five-hour researchers were far better off than the ones who spent sixty hours in the lab. The latter group produced the fewest articles. Follow-up research suggests that working four
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