Wednesday 3 June 2009

24-hour news streams and constant Twitter updates causing brain overload


Very interesting article in The Telegraph this morning exploring whether exposure to constant information is damadging our intelligent emotional responses, which are linked to a slower moving part of the brain. Do we still have time to consider while processing so much information or does the amount of information we receive help us to perceive more?

Ironically, this got me thinking. Personally I find Twitter and Facebook a very useful way of handling and receiving a lot of information. It would be hard to have a response to something you didn't even know about. On the flipside, the internet allows people to become far more selective over the type of information they choose to receive. This allows us to mine to a deeper level on subjects of interest that may otherwise not be covered in a short news bulletin. It also means, however, that if we like, we can chose not to read about things which upset us.

All the same even when you read a paper or walk down the street you are selecting what you choose to see, hear and read. At least the internet, and blogs in particular, provides us with the space to actively analyse and comment about what we notice. It's worth taking the time to think about though!

1 comment:

London Web Design said...

Excellent post. From my point of view twitter and facebook a very useful way of handling and receiving a lot of information. Twitter makes me up to date about news and other informations. Thanks for sharing such a great and informative post with us. Keep blogging.