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Life Interrupted

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the irq7 dept.

sch7572 writes "Seattle Times carried this story which may be of interest to those addicted to checking Slashdot for new stories every minute. Scientists are concerned that the Information Age is nurturing 'cognitive overload,' an umbrella term for the malaise people feel as a result of distraction, stress, multitasking, and data congestion related to increasingly sophisticated technologies. People multitask because it is expected, encouraged, and considered vital, yet cognitive scientist David Meyer reports that truly effective multitasking is beyond people's capabilities."

8 of 406 comments (clear)

  1. Arrrrrgggg! by dreamchaser · · Score: 5, Funny

    Can't...handle...another...story...about how modern society and technology is stressing us out...too much stress...ughhh...must wrap head in duct tape before it explodes...

  2. First Post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm NOT checking every minute, just discovered this site.

    1. Re:First Post by dcrocha · · Score: 5, Funny

      Neither am I. I wrote a program that parses the page and sends the new stories to my mobile phone, where the message is instructed to interrupt anything i'm doing at the moment in the phone, like playing Snake or talking to my mom. This program also prints a copy of the story so I can read it at home in bedtime.

  3. The article... by bje2 · · Score: 5, Funny

    i tried to RTFA, but between my e-mail, the internet radio i'm listening to, ESPN.com, and my actual work, I didn't have enough concentration...

    --

    "Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true." - Homer Simpson
  4. data congestion by SpongeBobLinuxPants · · Score: 5, Funny

    I don't see this as a problem. I can remember all the IP numbers of our servers and almost everyone's password... dammit I forgot to wear pants again to work.

    --
    hack a day
  5. Sure it is, anybody can multitask by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Right now I'm at work, downloading porn through p2p, hiding from my boss, checking slashdot, posting, eating breakfast, and I'm chatting with a buddy on an instant messenger program. And I'm chewing gum!

    But all those moms in SUVs with cell phones glued to their ear while they whack their kids scare me!

  6. Nonsense! by AthenianGadfly · · Score: 4, Funny
    The post implies that I'm splitting my attention between Slashdot and something else. The key here is to concentrate wholeheartedly on the refresh button, thus avoiding stress from multitasking.

    At least, I assume that's what the article says - I would have RTFA, but then I might miss the next comment posted here.

  7. My ADD son told me this joke... by rah1420 · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... which was published in the October Readers' Digest.

    Q: "How many ADD kids does it take to change a lightbulb?"

    A: "Let's go ride bikes."

    --
    Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens.