Words, words, words

Blame it on the heat - I'll come right to the point. What effect does the format of information have on the manner in which it is absorbed? Certainly high school kids understand the different impact of breaking up with someone in person, over the phone, via a Dear John letter, or, as a last resort, an email message. Even when the words are exactly the same the person on the receiving end perceives them differently.

What is the difference then if we read a book, listen to an audio version of it, or watch the film version? Do we pay better attention to one format than to another? I've been listening to Wikinomics as I drive back and forth between Evanston and Indianapolis. I knew that I didn't like the narrator but I had no idea how much until I found that after touching my iPod in an unmentionable way I repeated almost an hour of the book. Every once in a while certain sections would strike me as familiar. After a few minutes I would think that I finally had made it to new material only to hear something old again. I know I am inattentive when watching television (maybe that is why I don't do it more often) but it got me to wondering about comprehension and multitasking and lack of focus... Here I sit having a conversation with my daughter while I type (please don't tell her she doesn't have my undivided attention). Guess I better sign off before I'm revealed. Maybe I'll go read a book.