Wired for Distraction
Wired For Distraction
The use of technology is increasing drastically in today’s teens and young adults, but what exactly is the combination of cell phones, computers, IPads, and video games doing besides distracting kids from real life? In the article “Wired for Distraction” by Dalton Conley, he tells us what technology is doing to our future. He explains what it is doing to our culture and how it is changing it. Also, he explains the different types of memory and which one you use when you are paying attention in school, or when you are distracted. In the article Wired for Distraction, Dalton Conley tells us that kids are always distracted by social media, music, and entertainment from technology. Continuous partial attention is due to that, which is simultaneously paying attention to multiple sources, such as, internet, cell phone, or television. Most kids think that by doing their homework and listening to music they are learning how to multitask. But a 2009 study found that people who used some sort of electronics scored worse than people who didn’t because people who do are more prone to distracting stimuli than light media multitaskers. (Time 56) With multitasking you need to do something that is almost automatic, for example, eating a sandwich. But when you start to do two things that both require cognitive thinking, the quality of your work decreases. For example, walking and talking are both automatic thinking strategies and require little or no thinking. But, when you try doing two things that both require thinking, such as math and English, you cannot do both at the same time. One example of continuous partial attention in my life is when I watch the television instead of listening to my mother when she is talking to me. About a month ago I was watching my favorite show, Ghost Whisperer, when my mom tells me an entire list of chores I need to get done before she gets home, and of course I just nodded my head and agreed. As soon as she walked
The use of technology is increasing drastically in today’s teens and young adults, but what exactly is the combination of cell phones, computers, IPads, and video games doing besides distracting kids from real life? In the article “Wired for Distraction” by Dalton Conley, he tells us what technology is doing to our future. He explains what it is doing to our culture and how it is changing it. Also, he explains the different types of memory and which one you use when you are paying attention in school, or when you are distracted. In the article Wired for Distraction, Dalton Conley tells us that kids are always distracted by social media, music, and entertainment from technology. Continuous partial attention is due to that, which is simultaneously paying attention to multiple sources, such as, internet, cell phone, or television. Most kids think that by doing their homework and listening to music they are learning how to multitask. But a 2009 study found that people who used some sort of electronics scored worse than people who didn’t because people who do are more prone to distracting stimuli than light media multitaskers. (Time 56) With multitasking you need to do something that is almost automatic, for example, eating a sandwich. But when you start to do two things that both require cognitive thinking, the quality of your work decreases. For example, walking and talking are both automatic thinking strategies and require little or no thinking. But, when you try doing two things that both require thinking, such as math and English, you cannot do both at the same time. One example of continuous partial attention in my life is when I watch the television instead of listening to my mother when she is talking to me. About a month ago I was watching my favorite show, Ghost Whisperer, when my mom tells me an entire list of chores I need to get done before she gets home, and of course I just nodded my head and agreed. As soon as she walked