Attention and the Brain (Talk with Tracey)

1. There is no such thing as multitasking

1.1. Our brains only have a certain amount of productivity and attention that they can give to one task

1.2. Research shows that multitasking is not effective or efficient

1.3. Humans can only focus on one heavy cognitive load at a time

2. All learning occurs through your senses

2.1. Humans learn through their vision, touch, smell, taste, and hearing

2.2. Sight and hearing are the major senses for learning because they help us perceive the world around us

3. Attention continuum: bored to high alert to high stress

3.1. Individuals have varying levels of attention, starting with bored and going up to high stress

3.2. Productivity is found in the middle of these two ranges (which is the peak stress level). Once this level is reached, you will see diminishing returns in productivity

3.3. Everyone has a different peak point of stress

4. Selective Attention: "bottleneck"

4.1. Whatever you are trying to find will stand out more

4.2. Humans will focus all their attention on one particular input, rather than focus on everything around them

5. Attention Networks

5.1. "Attention network may refer to: Dorsal attention network, a network of brain regions involved in control of attention. Ventral attention network, a network of brain regions involved in detection of stimuli. Artificial neural networks used for attention (machine learning)" - wiki

5.2. Unfortunately, we did not get to extensively discuss attention networks in our group discussion

6. There is no learning without both attention and memory

6.1. If you are reading and you are not paying attention, you will not learn new words when you encounter them

6.2. If a reader is paying attention and sees a new word or concept, but does not keep it in their memory, then that individual is not learning

7. Mind wandering is not a waste of time

7.1. Mind wandering can lead to more creativity, also known as incubation (when ideas are developed)

7.2. Mind wandering allows our minds to unwind and destress

7.3. If we do not mind wander, we can become less self-aware and adhere to conformity

8. Attention blindness

8.1. This is a real phenomenon that allows our brains to miss an unexpected stimulus in plain sight

8.1.1. Example: Did you see the gorilla?

9. Attention Spans

9.1. Attention spans can change in length by varying the person, place, or topic

10. Attention Biases

10.1. The way that messages are conveyed can play a significant impact on the amount of attention an individual gives it

10.2. If a message is conveyed with fear, a human is much more likely to pay close attention to what is being asked or said