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Episode details

Radio 3,02 Mar 2018,14 mins

SeriesAre You Paying Attention?

Beyond the Crisis of Attention

The Essay

Available for over a year

In this series of essays, writer and journalist Madeleine Bunting has been exploring some of the pitfalls of the digital revolution: in particular, how it can scatter and manipulate our attention and prevent us from focusing deeply on any one idea. But are the consequences of constant multi-tasking really all negative? Her children, Madeleine admits, would say no - they are capable of doing things on three different screens at once while doing their homework, and they still come away with A*s. Madeleine herself is more dubious about the benefits of scattering her attention too widely - and in this final essay, she also explores whether Mindfulness meditation can be an antidote to the crisis of attention.

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