The Importance Of Multitasking

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In today’s technologically inundated era, the question of whether the human brain is capable of multitasking efficiently is becoming more and more important. We, as a species, are surrounded by distractions far more than we have ever seen before, with social media, videos, and music at the touch of our fingertips at potentially all times. This new emphasis on our ability to handle multiple tasks at the same time or in a close timeline offers researchers a new challenge while studying the human mind. How does our mind handle multitasking? And how can we learn to do so in the most beneficial manner.?
The first thing we must do before delving deeper into the topic of multitasking is defining the two main tasks we perform. The first is “Controlled …show more content…

It is possible that youths that have grown up alongside our current technological boom may be adapting their brains to handle multitasking. Ulla Foehr, a Ph.D. graduate of Stanford University, compiled data on a sample group of American teenagers about their media usage and how that affected tasks in their regular life. After reviewing her results, she theorized that the frequent use of the prefrontal cortex while multitasking could lead to a change via natural selection over the course of our own lifetime (Foehr 24). Every year, we see younger people adapting to technology and the onslaught of information, especially compared to the child’s own parents. However, this adaptation is not solely possible in younger people. It has been seen that older adult’s brains can learn to adjust in a similar …show more content…

While we may not be able to perform multiple activities in a similar timeframe in a satisfactory manner yet, it’s entirely possible we could see a change in that in a few generations. As we grow alongside technology, it is only reasonable that we undergo our own mental evolution to handle this new world.

Works Cited

Nijboer, Menno, et al. “Driving and Multitasking: The Good, the Bad, and the Dangerous.” Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers Media S.A., 2016, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5100650/. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.
Foehr, Ulla G. “Media Multitasking among American Youth: Prevalence, Predictors and Pairings.” Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 2400 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025. Tel: 650-854-9400; Fax: 650-854-4800; Web site: http://Www.kff.org/Entmedia/, 30 Nov. 2006, eric.ed.gov/?id=ED527858. Accessed 8 Sept. 2017. Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
Anguera, J.A., et al. “Video game training enhances cognitive control in older adults.” Nature, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 5 Sept. 2013, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3983066/. Accessed 23 Sept.

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