Not that anyone here at All About Symbian could ever manage this (no, I don’t want this as a challenge!) but Dan Roberts has written about the potential effects that the information overload is placing on people. “Our data suggests that if you are not giving yourself a break, you are hindering your brain's ability to consolidate memories and experiences," said neuroscientist Lila Davachi. More quotes below.

Part of this “speed of life” is down to the modern social web – look at the phenomenal amount of information that flows through the average Twitter or Facebook account. Pair this up with people wanting to not miss anything and you are asking from trouble.

While it is a concern, the article put this into context, "nobody has studied this question directly," says psychiatric professor Dr Gary Small. "Although a causal relationship has not been confirmed, many studies have found an association between more time with technology and a lower attention span."

To be honest I’d recommend a good time management system to these people rather than the “digital detox” that is being suggested by Roberts, but it would be interesting to know if the All About Symbian readers think the connected world is too fast, if it’s more an age thing, or just a handful of people who live on the social media sites that just want to read everything making a big fuss about how hard their lifestyle is(!)

-- Ewan Spence, June 2010.