I was recently having a conversation about multitasking with a professor colleague of mine. He was saying that he talks on his phone constantly when he’s in the car — using a hands-free device.* Then he went on to say that he continues to talk on the phone as he parks his car and walks to his office. Finally, he allowed as how at the end of the day, he has no recollection of where he parked! A good example of the difficulties of multitasking and the fact that you can’t focus your attention on two things at once.
*By the way, the research on using your cell phone while driving says that hands-free phoning is not much better than holding the phone to your ear. It’s the attention to the conversation that slows down your ability to respond to what happens on the road.
