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Such is the end of the tragedy we are now witness to: Literacy, the most empowering achievement of our civilization, is to be replaced by a vague and ill-defined screen savvy. The paper book, the tool that built modernity, is to be phased out in favor of fractured, unfixed information. All in the name of progress.
People of the Screen
thenewatlantis.com
The cost of not structuring our attention is higher stress, lower productivity, and impaired performance on the most important tasks. In a harrowing example, a study of nearly 1 million surgeries found that if a procedure was performed on the surgeon’s birthday, patients were more likely to die soon thereafter, apparently because the surgeon faced more distractions.
The Secret to Success Is ‘Monotasking’
theatlantic.com
The logic behind these results is that when dealing with a complicated problem, even the smartest person can get stuck. Adding a new perspective or a new set of skills can unstick us, even if the perspective is off-the-wall or the skills are mediocre. The fresh input works much like the Oblique Strategies employed by Brian Eno or the random leaps used by silicon chip algorithms. It’s the difference itself that helps.
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