The cognitive cost of distraction

by Ben Reilly Sat May 11, 2013 7:30 pm

Technology has given us many gifts, among them dozens of new ways to grab our attention. It’s hard to talk to a friend without your phone buzzing at least once. Odds are high you will check your Twitter feed or Facebook wall while reading this article. Just try to type a memo at work without having an e-mail pop up that ruins your train of thought.

But what constitutes distraction? Does the mere possibility that a phone call or e-mail will soon arrive drain your brain power? And does distraction matter — do interruptions make us dumber? Quite a bit, according to new research by Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Lab.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/brain--interrupted-173621758.html

by veya_victaous Mon May 13, 2013 3:16 am

these studies are a bit unfair.
Humans were never equal and most people have always been easily startled and distracted.
Thats why there have always been 'leaders amoungst men' that can handle the distractions and stress but studies looking at averages will not reflect the outliers that are the natural leaders.

I'm suggesting that average Joe's may not cope but the Ceaser's and Washington's of this world can.

by DrSchool Thu May 16, 2013 3:48 am

Yeah, I agree, in my experience....wait, what are we talking about?

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