Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
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Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
1–10 of 27 posts
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#2I skim because most non fiction books, especially those published in recent years, simply aren't worth reading word for word. Most books I've found can be condensed to a blog post at most.(Fiction can have similar issues. Epic fantasies are the worst offenders of this which sometimes have entire BOOKS of useless filler)
I also feel an internal pressure to make the absolute most out of my time spent doing activity x. If I'm reading a book then every page, every paragraph and every sentence should contribute something to broadening my understanding of whichever topic I'm reading about.
Perhaps this is all a sign of a fractured attention span, but I've found that since skimming books (as well as being able to simply put down a book that I'm not enjoying and not feeling any guilt about it) that I not only spend more time reading but seem to get more out of it.
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#3Can't skim in german well
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#4Did anyone else find this article quite difficult to read? Perhaps ironically, I gave up by paragraph four.
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#5I absolutely recognize that I could have skimmed most non-fiction books I've read recently and taken away everything valuable all the same (especially since that's all that sticks for me 1, 3 or 5 years after reading it anyway).
I also find myself unable to do so. I feel as though I'm being lazy or dishonest in some way, despite knowing how silly that is.
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#6I absolutely recognize that I could have skimmed most non-fiction books I've read recently and taken away everything valuable all the same (especially since that's all that sticks for me 1, 3 or 5 years after reading it anyway). I also find myself unable to do so. I feel as though I'm being lazy or dishonest in some way, despite knowing how silly that is.
I had to train myself to read way slower to appreciate good books. Then I had to train myself to read fast again to be able to keep reading less-good books.
Seriously.
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#7Did anyone else find this article quite difficult to read? Perhaps ironically, I gave up by paragraph four.
Same here!
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#8Did anyone else find this article quite difficult to read? Perhaps ironically, I gave up by paragraph four.
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Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#9I skim because most non fiction books, especially those published in recent years, simply aren't worth reading word for word. Most books I've found can be condensed to a blog post at most.(Fiction can have similar issues. Epic fantasies are the worst offenders of this which sometimes have entire BOOKS of useless filler) I also feel an internal pressure to make the absolute most out of my time spent doing activity x.…
> Perhaps this is all a sign of a fractured attention span
It is not, I think. It's a sign of the overall bad quality of most books, fiction and non fiction ones alike.
Your ability to skim through the bad ones pays off if you find one book worth reading, and read that one slowly and carefully.
Re: Ode to skimming: On reading and our attention spans
#10I skim because nearly everything is bloated with useless crud and the latest memetic faddery; because tech writers are always on the defensive vs pedants; because people with multiple arts degrees actually seem to get worse at writing, not better; because there are more things to see than ever, and less time available for any one of them.
How else are we supposed to manage the explore/exploit trade-off in the face of this galactic amount of information?