> Another example of what I mean is all the articles that pop up on HN about how the modern internet is destroying attention spans. How do we address that best?

> Another example of what I mean is all the articles that pop up on HN about how the modern internet is destroying attention spans. How do we address that best? I realised this was a serious problem about 3 years ago, after reading The Shallows. (I knew I'd had the problem before, but didn't realise how serious it was). I feel I've pretty much solved it now and I'll happily spend my free time slowly reading 1000-page ancient tomes. The only thing to do, really, is to try and maintain awareness of why you're reading any particular thing and what you hope to get out of it. E.g. - say you have many tabs open on a topic. You remind yourself that you initially had one simple question to answer, and decide - do you still just want to get a quick answer, or do you now want to research this topic in depth? If you just want a quick answer, close all but the 1 or 2 most reliable looking sources. Otherwise, make a note to schedule time to research the topic properly. For me this means creating a note in Evernote, jotting down what I think about the topic beforehand and my key questions, finding the best sources for answers to those questions, and possibly saving documents to read offline if they look like they merit careful study. This is actually more enjoyable, which is important - you need to train your subconscious to associate slow reading with pleasure, and skimming with anxiety and frustration. For certain hot-button topics (like politics), I often do my own research, decide what I think, and then note how most discussion (even intelligent-sounding discussion) seems ignorant and shallow. I can also now see the huge value in well-edited writing - with the best writing, you can tell the author has chosen each word carefully, and simply by asking why they used a particular word over a near-synonym can reveal insights. I could say more, but that's the basic idea. You really need to take responsibility for your own reading habits.