Skim reading is the new normal. The effect on society is profound

submitted by Drewski from theguardian.com

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[–]FormosaOolong 5 insightful - 3 fun5 insightful - 2 fun6 insightful - 3 fun -  (3 children)

I really had to resist the urge to skim :/ I've noticed over the years my attention span for reading simply tank. It's unfortunate.

[–]Drewski[S] 6 insightful - 1 fun6 insightful - 0 fun7 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Yeah, I've been reading The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr and it's really hit home for me. I am trying to read more books & long articles and limiting my social media use to increase my attention span.

[–]JasonCarswell 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Worse further, is that it applies to all media. People don't give their 100% attention to movies anymore, where one there was a time.

Granted there's no shortage of reasons why Hollywood isn't producing excellent riveting content, but mass media is now portable and often just on the side while multitasking.

One the plus side, for the most part, the quality content tends to rise and be noticed, though often not as much as it could without distracting competing corporate noise.

[–]Myrkskog 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Do you notice a difference when you're holding a book in front of you compared to reading on a screen? I read (book) every night before bed, but struggle to make it through an article online without bounding through it out of impatience or disinterest.