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Always online and staying connected - What do you think about the claim that this makes men dumber than women?
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January 27th, 2013
I found this claim in the following book I’m reading right now: ‘Your Brain at Work’ by David Rock and I quote:
“A study done at the University of London found that constant emailing and text-messaging reduces mental capability by an average of 10 points on an IQ test. It was five points for women, and fifteen points for men. This effect is similar to missing a night’s sleep. For men, it’s around three times more than the effect of smoking cannabis. While this fact might make an interesting dinner party topic, it’s really not that amusing that one of the most common productivity tools can make one as dumb as a stoner. This always on, anywhere, anytime, anyplace era has created an artificial sense of constant crisis. What happens to mammals in a state of constant crisis is the adrenalized fight or flight mechanism kicks in. It’s great when tigers are chasing us. How many of those five hundred emails a day is a tiger?”.
Could this be one of the factors explaining why girls outperform boys in school?
“The Daily Mail reported that for the first time in recent history, women are scoring higher on these intelligence tests than men, according to data gathered by James Flynn, an emeritus professor of Political Studies at the University of Otago in New Zealand. Flynn has been studying patterns in IQ test results for years and is a recognized authority on the tests.
In his most recent research, Flynn looked at scores from across Western Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand, Estonia and Argentina. He found that when modern IQ testing began in 1905, women trailed men by up to five points. But over time, that gap has virtually disappeared, and in some countries, women are now scoring better on these tests than men are. Flynn said that the increasingly complicated nature of our society accounts for the changes in these scores, but that more research is needed to make any definitive claims.”
Blame it on computers and smart phones that never get switched off?
Rather smoking a joint than answering emails?
Using Fluther
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