francene--blog. Year 2013
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February 20th

2/20/2013

 
Do you find it hard to concentrate? Recent research has shown that too much stimulation affects people living in cities. Well, I knew that already, just by observation.

I once heard the theory that men and women developed differently. Man went out to hunt—single focused. Woman stayed in the cave, looked after the children, talked to other women, cooked, washed, cleaned—multi-tasking. Man is said to have tunnel-vision whereas woman is able to attend to many different things at once—react to a child's cry at the same time as cooking and gossiping.

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travelblog.org
The Goldsmiths, University of London study revealed that city dwellers find it difficult to concentrate, whereas their counterparts in urban areas do well at certain tests requiring concentration. Researchers tested people from the Himba tribe in Namibia in south west Africa—and also included a further comparison with young people in London. Tribesmen and women who had stayed in a rural, cattle-herding setting were much better at tests requiring concentration than members of the same tribe who had been urbanized and were living in towns and cities. The results for urbanized Himba were indistinguishable from the results of undergraduates taking the same tests in London. Click here for full BBC news.


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dailymail.co.uk
The research suggests that people in an urban setting have too much stimulation, with an overload of sights and sounds competing for attention. Multi-tasking reduces many caffeine-fuelled office workers' ability to concentrate on a single task. With so many of the world's population living in cities, the consequences have far reaching significance. Many people will be working below their capacity when it comes to needing sustained concentration.

Have you ever opened a cupboard and wondered what you were doing there? I know this has happened to me when I've had too many things demanding attention at the same time.

The solution for many could be to move to the country and chill—maybe work from home. Another answer could be to reduce the number of distractions in our lives, and more particularly, our children's lives.


Anita-Clare Field link
2/19/2013 09:56:51 pm

I find that geographical location has no bearing on my ability to juggle things in my head. I do however concur that working from home has huge benefits and for example today it is doing wonders for my burgeoning stress levels !

Francene Stanley link
2/20/2013 02:14:24 am

I guess it depends on how peaceful your home is. Mine is peaceful too. Outside my study window, horses roam fields as far as the eye can see. However, at the front, there's a constant stream of traffic.

Audrey link
2/20/2013 02:25:35 am

I find at home or anywhere I can have to much stimulation & easliy get distracted! Working from home as advantages but bring different set of distractions.

Francene Stanley link
2/20/2013 05:46:31 pm

I guess there are distractions wherever you are, but maybe you can handle them better without so much noise and activity around you.

Susie Brown link
2/20/2013 04:25:23 am

I believe it! I am so glad I have the opportunity to work from home. I can see where big cities would be a huge distraction and be counter productive to most. Glad to live in suburbia! Thanks for another wonderful post!

Suerae Stein link
2/20/2013 06:44:34 am

I can get distracted by working at home... too many chores right there in the next room, then the kids coming home from school, etc. I do worry about the future of our children. My son can't seem to do his homework unless he's sitting in front of a computer. His Biology class lent all the kids ipads and I can't imagine them not checking FB and email while studying. Too many things competing for attention. And yes, I hate when I go to the cupboard and wonder what I am looking for! Interesting post!

Francene Stanley link
2/20/2013 05:48:39 pm

I think it's all a mother can do when they have to think for their children as well as run their home. I remember the urgency and responsibility well. Yet, somehow, we manage to cope.


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    Author

    Francene Stanley, author of many published novels. If you like my writing, why not consider purchasing one of my books? You'll see them on the sidebar below.
    Born in Australia, I moved to Britain half way through my long life.

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