'Info-mania' dents IQ more than marijuana

The relentless influx of emails, cellphone calls and instant messages received by modern workers can reduce their IQ by more than smoking marijuana, suggests UK research.

Far from boosting productivity, the constant flow of messages and information can seriously reduce a person's ability to focus on tasks, the study of office workers found.

Eighty volunteers were asked to carry out problem solving tasks, firstly in a quiet environment and then while being bombarded with new emails and phone calls. Although they were told not to respond to any messages, researchers found that their attention was significantly disturbed.

Alarmingly, the average IQ was reduced by 10 points - double the amount seen in studies involving cannabis users. But not everyone was affected by to the same extent - men were twice as distracted as women.

"If left unchecked, â??info-maniaâ?? will damage a workerâ??s performance by reducing their mental sharpness," says Glenn Wilson, a psychiatrist at the University of London, UK, who carried out the study, sponsored by Hewlett-Packard. "This is a very real and widespread phenomenon."

Losing sleep

Wilson adds that working amid a barrage of incoming information can reduce a person's ability to focus as much as losing a night's sleep.

The study also polled 1100 workers and found many are becoming addicted to modern modes of communications. One in five workers said they would answer messages during a meal or a social engagement, while two thirds admitted to checking emails outside working hours and even on holiday.

Christopher Kimble, from the University of York, UK, adds that the quality of information contained in communications can also be a major problem for workers.

His own research, carried out within a large multinational company, shows that key employees, such as secretaries and IT support staff, can be particularly affected by misleading or incomplete emails. These increase the time required to complete the task, when a short phone conversation would have been much more efficient.

Excuse me, but what study shows that cannabis causes IQ loss? I don't mean any vague correlations or any of that shit they try to feed you, I want to see a study that conclusively shows a cause-and-effect action between smoking marijuana and losing IQ.

Don't expect to find one. Personally I think IQ is pretty subjective.

These people are more afraid than anything, afraid something is happening without them knowing about it. Unfortunately we usually work for people like this, trying to explain simple concepts they do not understand or them repeating the same thing over and over thinking that everyoneâ??s focus and awareness works at heir speed, even if you yell them you understand it takes them another 3 explanations to get your drift.

I do not give a crap if a meteor is about to hit the earth while I am eating a sandwich, let it hit.

Buddhists teach, be aware and fully inguaged in whatever you are doing, even if it is doing the dishes, I do agree with this. However I also believe that that a flowing consiousness and the abillity ride the waves of thought is also a great thing. Sense I am an artist I need both.

By the way in studies it has been proven that artists stay much more lucide into their old age because their mind works on many levels, and continues to analize things even if they are not aware of it. Also elected most likely to smoke a joint.

Yeah maaaaan, what is intelligence anyways maaaan? They're just trying to keep us down, with their "cell phones", and "information", and "clean clothes", thinking that they're all smarter than pot-heads just because they "know more", and are "educated". Whatever duude.

Actually I got 185 on my test, LA DEE DA I've still just barely passed almost every class I've had until now. Lots and lots of intelligent people end up as homeless people on the street, intelligence is not relative to success (or at least as much as people think it is).

There IQ isnt actually decreasing. It's their potential thats decreasing because of all the distractions.

Doesnt watching TV lower your IQ more than anything else???

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Originally Posted by Stedric

Actually I got 185 on my test, LA DEE DA I've still just barely passed almost every class I've had until now. Lots and lots of intelligent people end up as homeless people on the street, intelligence is not relative to success (or at least as much as people think it is).

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Totally dude- people have the wrong idea about intelligence. Just because someone has a nice house, a well paying job, an education, the ability to learn quickly and apply information in new ways, an understanding of the relationship between motivation, hard work, and success, an aptitude for maintaining positive relationships in life, and the general knack for staying out of jail and off the streets does NOT necessarily make them intelligent.

On the other hand, some are smart enough to leave such luxuries as food, shelter, personal security, and love behind (maslows hierarchy of needs was overrated anyways). Yeah, the real geniuses can be found pilfering parking lots for cigarette butts, urinating in stairways, begging for change, and screaming at stop signs. If you don't believe me, just ask them. Most are proud to disclose their IQ score with minimal prompting (and it's generally off the charts! lol).

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Originally Posted by 2600

Totally dude- people have the wrong idea about intelligence. Just because someone has a nice house, a well paying job, an education, the ability to learn quickly and apply information in new ways, an understanding of the relationship between motivation, hard work, and success, an aptitude for maintaining positive relationships in life, and the general knack for staying out of jail and off the streets does NOT necessarily make them intelligent.

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Theres something called environment and being lucky. Lets not give intelligence too much credit. Ideally, our president should be really intelligent but I doubt he could have become president being born into a family that lived off welfare checks. Bill Frist thinks you can get AIDS from sweat and somehow he made it to Congress. Theres intelligence for you. :)

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Originally Posted by 2600

On the other hand, some are smart enough to leave such luxuries as food, shelter, personal security, and love behind (maslows hierarchy of needs was overrated anyways). Yeah, the real geniuses can be found pilfering parking lots for cigarette butts, urinating in stairways, begging for change, and screaming at stop signs. If you don't believe me, just ask them. Most are proud to disclose their IQ score with minimal prompting (and it's generally off the charts! lol).

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You're not as persuasive when you have to resort to sterotyping to make a point.

Funny, cause I could have sworn racism, class warfare, the hypocrisy of the war on drugs and underfunding to mental institutions had much more to do with homeless people than intelligence. Then again, I'm just a 17 year old stoner. What do I know?

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Originally Posted by Stedric

Then again, I'm just a 17 year old stoner...

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Originally Posted by Stedric

...just barely passed almost every class I've had...

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(another seventeen years)

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First hand understanding of the relationship between reapetedly making poor life choices and homelessness.

Now I could have sworn we were talking intelligence, and not life choices. And there is a correlation between age and wisdom, but think of George W Bush and you'll know its certainly not an absolute.

2600, seriously dude, who got sand in your vagina?

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Originally Posted by Stedric

Now I could have sworn we were talking intelligence, and not life choices. And there is a correlation between age and wisdom, but think of George W Bush and you'll know its certainly not an absolute.

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Yeah, this is the point where we diverge stedric. Intelligence is such a broad capacity (linguistic, emotional, analytical, musical, etc), it has a direct impact on all facets of life, especially choices.

Believe me, I hate the war on drugs as much as you do. Racism sucks, and mental institutions are indeed underfunded. But I take issue with blaming society for peoples' failures instead of holding the individual responsible. We could always do more, but there will always be people who do not take advantage of their opportunities. No matter what you do, there will always be people stupid enough to repeat the same poor life choices over and over again.

All you have to do, all anyone ever has to do, is live until they die. There is only so much society can do to save people from themselves.