Email destroys the mind faster than marijuana - study

By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco

Published Friday 22nd April 2005 09:10 GMT

Modern technology depletes human cognitive abilities more rapidly than drugs, according to a psychiatric study conducted at King's College, London. And the curse of 'messaging' is to blame.

Email users suffered a 10 per cent drop in IQ scores, more than twice the fall recorded by marijuana users, in a clinical trial of over a thousand participants. Doziness, lethargy and an inability to focus are classic characteristics of a spliffhead, but email users exhibited these particular symptoms to a "startling" degree, according to Dr Glenn Wilson.

The deterioration in mental capacity was the direct result of the trialists' addiction to technology, researchers discovered.

Email addicts were bombarded by context switches and developed an inability to distinguish between trivial and significant messages. Incredibly, 20 per cent of trialists jeopardized their immediate social relations by rushing off to "check their messages" in the middle of a conversation.

Wilson's research is no flash in the pan. Computer technology in its modern, "interconnected" form is dumbing down the population more rapidly than television.

A study of 100,000 school children in over 30 countries around the world testified that non-computer using kids performed better in literacy and numeracy schools than PC-using children. Education experts have dubbed it the "problem solving deficit disorder".

Awash with facts, we've forgotten how to think.

King's College's pioneering study focussed solely on messaging - but there are many other emerging technologies that could be dumbing down technologies too, and their consequences haven't been fully explored.

We look forward to studies that examine the IQ lossage involved in the many other unavoidable parts of everyday life. Chores such as editing the Windows Registry (-2) , writing a weblog (-15), or reading the Ask Jack column in The Guardian (-175). ®

source: theregister.co.uk

so what happens if you combine the two ?

since a couple of years my job is to only answer emails

and now I understand what is going on, my wife already told me that I get more and more stupid, now I see she is right.

I now consider to make a lawsuit against Microsoft (I use Outlook Express) because they destroyed brain. As well I want that every email client get warnings with pictures like the cigarettes. Owner of email server should be punished like drug dealer.

But the first step should be that Microsoft gives me some millions ($ not Baht).

Email destroys the mind faster than marijuana - study

By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco

Published Friday 22nd April 2005 09:10 GMT

Modern technology depletes human cognitive abilities more rapidly than drugs, according to a psychiatric study conducted at King's College, London. And the curse of 'messaging' is to blame.

Email users suffered a 10 per cent drop in IQ scores, more than twice the fall recorded by marijuana users, in a clinical trial of over a thousand participants. Doziness, lethargy and an inability to focus are classic characteristics of a spliffhead, but email users exhibited these particular symptoms to a "startling" degree, according to Dr Glenn Wilson.

The deterioration in mental capacity was the direct result of the trialists' addiction to technology, researchers discovered.

Email addicts were bombarded by context switches and developed an inability to distinguish between trivial and significant messages. Incredibly, 20 per cent of trialists jeopardized their immediate social relations by rushing off to "check their messages" in the middle of a conversation.

Wilson's research is no flash in the pan. Computer technology in its modern, "interconnected" form is dumbing down the population more rapidly than television.

A study of 100,000 school children in over 30 countries around the world testified that non-computer using kids performed better in literacy and numeracy schools than PC-using children. Education experts have dubbed it the "problem solving deficit disorder".

Awash with facts, we've forgotten how to think.

King's College's pioneering study focussed solely on messaging - but there are many other emerging technologies that could be dumbing down technologies too, and their consequences haven't been fully explored.

We look forward to studies that examine the IQ lossage involved in the many other unavoidable parts of everyday life. Chores such as editing the Windows Registry (-2) , writing a weblog (-15), or reading the Ask Jack column in The Guardian (-175). ®

source: theregister.co.uk

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I now consider to make a lawsuit against Microsoft (I use Outlook Express) because they destroyed brain. As well I want that every email client get warnings with pictures like the cigarettes. Owner of email server should be punished like drug dealer.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Let's make it class action.

Who wants to join in?

I do agree that getting stoned is more fun than reading junk mail.

I now consider to make a lawsuit against Microsoft (I use Outlook Express) because they destroyed brain. As well I want that every email client get warnings with pictures like the cigarettes. Owner of email server should be punished like drug dealer.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Let's make it class action.

Who wants to join in?

I do agree that getting stoned is more fun than reading junk mail.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The bloody spam does it