Distraction/Attention worksheet
| I would say my ability to pay attention when it comes to schoolwork is equivalent to how well I can discipline myself. Typically if I have a big assignment such as a paper, I turn my phone off and throw it away. But even then I just get up and walk around the house because I have trouble focusing. I would say my level of addiction to my phone is at about a 7. |
| I would say my ability to pay attention when it comes to school work is equivalent to how well I can discipline myself. Typically if I have a big assignment such as a paper, I turn my phone off and throw it away. But even then I just get up and walk around the house because I have trouble focusing. I would say my level of addiction to my phone is at about a 7. |
| While reading “My Distraction Sickness” please note how long it takes you to get through the piece (Google says it’s a 45 min read); also, count the number of times you get distracted (for whatever reason) and tally them at the end. |
| The tone of “My Distraction Sickness” was much more casual to me at least because there were many personal anecdotes that built a sense of relativism between me and the author. In “Defense of Distraction”, the article also mentions personal anecdotes, however, it seems much more formal as it references specific examples such as another author. The tone of “The Distracted Student Mind” is very formal as it takes a statistical approach to analyzing how students get distracted by citing specific data and reference points |
| Describe the tone of all three articles, how do they differ? (<100 words) |
| Please annotate “My Distraction Sickness” – highlight at least three instances for each of the following rhetoric concepts:● Invention – mentioning the printing press, figures of how many people own phones, anecdote of meditation facility● Style – ?● Memory – meditation facility anecdote, mentioning his mother with BPD and family issues, mention of declining religious practice● Pathos – mentioning his familial issues, how we become just “contacts” in a person’s phone, his meditation pracitice in relation to his boredom.● Ethos – mentioning how he felt isolated with his phone in a room with people showing how he has experienced it, how he studied the Buddhists, philosopher Charles Taylor |
| What are Sam Anderson’s primary arguments in defense of distraction? (see part III of In Defense of Distraction) Do you find them convincing? Why or why not (<150 words) |
| One of the main parts of his argument is questioning if the time we waste is actually wasted. I’ve been having a similar way of thinking as of late as sometimes the times when I enjoy my time the most is when I’m wasting it. There are always better alternatives to what you can do with your time, but to me, some of the best moments of life are when you are simply “wasting your time” aimlessly with friends as its not the action that matters but just the company of them. How can time be wasted, if the activity you’re doing that would be considered wasteful is giving you enjoyment? A distraction can be seen as simply another aspect of your brain’s attention. However, it is important to note that there are always better ways to prioritize your attention. |
| After reading all three articles, what are your thoughts on this “epidemic of distraction”? (<50 words) |
| I think our generation specifically definitely has an attention span issue. As time goes by, there are always more avenues to direct your attention, and even if we are aware of our attention issues, not much is done to prevent us from staying focused on what is more important |
| Please annotate “My Distraction Sickness” – highlight at least three instances for each of the following rhetoric concepts:● Invention – mentioning the printing press, figures of how many people own phones, anecdote of meditation facility● Style – ?● Memory – meditation facility anecdote, mentioning his mother with BPD and family issues, mention of declining religious practice● Pathos – mentioning his familial issues, how we become just “contacts” in a person’s phone, his meditation pracitice concerning his boredom.● Ethos – mentioning how he felt isolated with his phone in a room with people showing how he has experienced it, how he studied the Buddhists, philosopher Charles Taylor |