I listened to an interview on my local NPR station with Terry Gross interviewing Mr. Richtel, a technology reporter with the New York Times.  As someone who works in the technology field and a self professed technology junkie, I often feel like my mind is on information overload.  So I use even more electronic gadgets to organize my mind and my workload.  I was intrigued by this interview because this reporter was talking about the digital overload and its impact on our brains. 

It’s a great interview about his research into how the brain processes information streams.  I most loved the part of the interview where he says “some technology is like Twinkies…”  Here is what Mr. Richtel said during his interview:

“So just as food nourishes us and we need it for life, so too in the 21st century, in the modern age, we need technology. You cannot survive without the communications tools. The productivity tools are essential. And yet, food has pros and cons to it. We know that some food is Twinkies and some is Brussels sprouts. And we know that if we overeat, it causes problems.

Similarly, after, say, 20 years of glorifying all technology as if all computers were good and all use of it was good, I think science is beginning to embrace the idea that some technology is Twinkies, and some technology is Brussels sprouts.

And if we consume too much technology, just like if we consume too much food, it can have ill effects. And that is the moment in time we find ourselves in with this series and with the way we are digesting, if you will, technology all over the place, everywhere today.” 

To read the full transcripts of the article, visit – http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=129384107

I am looking forward to his future research to be delivered in December delving further into how different parts of the brain are impacted.