The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain

by Annie Murphy Paul

First: humans are especially attuned to the presence of novelty, to whatever appears new and different. The pull of the novel on our attention is an efficient evolved strategy; it would be a waste of our time and energy to keep noticing the many things around us that don’t change from day to day. But our selective attraction to the fresh and new becomes a problem when we operate in environments that are hubs of constant activity and change. Psychologist Fabrice Parmentier, who researches the effects of acoustic distraction, reports that unexpected sounds “ineluctably break through attentional filters,” and end up distracting those who hear them—“regardless of the sound’s informational value.” Our attention, he notes, is subject to “involuntary capture” by any sudden or surprising noise.