wait, wut? wut was this about again? dude, like you just checked out, lol.
Have attention spans been declining?
231–240 of 495 posts
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#232What?
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#233I'm surprised no one here has mentioned mindfulness (is briefly mentioned in the article). It pretty much solves this problem. But I guess that's part of the issue, is that the problem directly obfuscates the solution, so the problem remains prevalent.
I posted this after reading your comment:
Ask HN: Do you meditate? How? Results?
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#234This is entirely anecdotal, and as I have ADHD this may not be the norm; but I have noticed throughout my life so far that my attention span is a product of what I pay attention to.
If I am primarily consuming content to enrich myself or critically analyze something, my attention span tends to be longer for a period of time. Conversely, if I am consuming content to socialize or out of boredom, my attention span shortens significantly.
In both cases, there seems to be a “cooldown period” of at least several days before my attention span reverts to somewhere in the middle. I wonder if others share in this phenomenon and how common it is.
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#235Earlier quoted context omitted.
The Return of the King is particular has a real structure problem. Multiple endings after the actual ending. And then really the final wrapup/epilogue is in the Appendix. The movie tried to clean a lot of this up--most controversially by axing the scouring of the shire--but still didn't wholly succeed.
To be honest, the scouring is one of my favorite bits because it shows how much the main hobbits have grown over the course of their adventure. I think the multiple endings thing worked better in the book for multiple reasons. For one, you could tell at any time that there was still a considerable chunk left to go, so the narrative didn't create any false expectation that it was about to end. But also, unlike in the…
I'm not totally convinced but it's been a long time since I've read the books and at least accept that a book is better able to weave together multiple threads and story arcs than a film easily can.
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#236Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't know that it's much of a positive tho, basically going from active to passive learning. Sitting through videos instead of reading books (much more efficient too IMO) seems like a prime example of attention span erosion to me.
And on top of that they aren't realizing any of the gain of the modern technology here. They buy a $1000 laptop, with $100 a month internet plan, to go watch a 15 minute youtube video with 4 minutes of discrete ads and 4 minutes of sponsor product mentions cut into the actual video, all to gleam a fraction of the understanding that a single page of whatever someone in their position a few decades ago would have check…
> would have checked from the library
Well, local libraries don't really have that much in the way of good academic texts - you have to have access to a university library, or be willing to fork over $60 of your own for a print copy, for that. But I get what you mean.
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#237I feel increasing frustration every time I see a graph with a clear upward trend being waved off as "probably just better awareness". I am even more frustrated when it's a graph tracking some mental health issue. If adult ADHD numbers have doubled, that should mean something .
ADHD numbers have doubled because people like drugs that make them productive, and the victimhood points you get for being "neurodivergent" ... aka, its all fake.
This idea that people are getting drugs to acquire victimhood points is so detached from reality, I am pleading with you, please spend less time on social media. It is not healthy and is changing your entire worldview.
Your first swing at a reason doesn't make any sense either, as ADHD numbers have not solely affected adults. Even if you account for those "just wanting to be productive" by apparently ruining their entire ability to compensate dopamine naturally, the numbers are still increasing.
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#238Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#239I went to a theater to watch Mission: Impossible last night. It has a really long runtime (2h 48m) and, toward the end of the film, I started seeing multiple people pull out their phones for a time check; I had to stop myself from doing the same.
In contrast, I watched Oppenheimer and it felt like the time just flew by.
Re: Have attention spans been declining?
#240I've noticed that I rarely properly read anything online anymore. 90% of the time I'm just scanning or skimming.
I do focus on stuff for extended periods of time like watching a movie, reading a book, working on something, etc.