Either ambient instrumental music (lots of Brian Eno) or any music that I know all the words to (so that my brain doesn’t have to actively process the lyrics).

“Maximum Overdrive” for me.

Also, great call on Megaforce.

The gate crew often gets graded on how quickly they complete boarding, so don’t be surprised when your plane’s “full” overhead compartments are half empty. Stupid job metrics strike again.

The Forever War - Joe Haldeman A fantastic novel on the pointlessness of war, told through the lens of space opera / sci-fi

This reminds me a little of “A Tale in the Desert”.

Oh that’s definitely true. I was just surprised to see something similar (especially the avoiding eye contact) in the animal kingdom.

“Contact” for a similar reason. It’s a mix of all motivations, along with people’s general mistrust of each other.