Interesting article in the Atlantic: The Autumn of the Multitaskers

Having just switched jobs to allow me to focus on learning and producing something meaningful from that learning, I must admit that I'm finding a new appreciation for being able to focus on one thing at a time. I honestly feel I've accomplished more writing in the last week than I've been able to do all last Fall, simply because I've been able to close a door and focus on one thing at a time.

On the other hand, the idea that multitasking has never worked, or that it never can (and therefore must be some passing fad we have some affinity for?) seems a bit ... naive. Yes, the information age and the changes it has wrought in our lives through technology has fragmented our attention in ways that were not possible before.

But tell a mother of two (or heck, just one!) that multitasking can drive you crazy or impair your thinking, and she'd probably look at you with a, "No shit, Sherlock" look and say, "And your point is?" There are things in our lives that require, no, DEMAND, such multi-focused attention. The article focuses exclusively on the sort of multitasking brought about by an immersion in technology, and makes no mention of the other kinds of multitasking we've always done, out of necessity.

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