Even if you don't have to work, eat or sleep, you won't be able to get through all information on blogs and social networks. The problem we face is that much of this information seems very interesting at first glance. Actually, much of the information is unimportant, disposable and it distracts（分心）us from more meaningful pursuits. Worse still, when we spend lots of time consuming information from our social media streams, we may find it hard to concentrate on what we're doing and we have a tendency to forget what we have consumed anyway.
A new study from Sweden's KTH Royal Institute of Technology has found that too much social media exposure actually reduces your ability to process information and depletes your short-term working memory.
Our working memory plays a critical role in our capacity to filter information and remember what is valuable but it is not a limitless resource. Erik Fransén, a professor in Computer Science at KTH and the leader of this new study on social media overload says this can explain why our capacity for processing information begins to fail when we attempt to stuff more information in the working memory.
In fact, when you try to process the information like speech or video, you are going to need partly the same system of working memory, so you are reducing your own working memory capacity. And when you try to store many things in your working in your working memory, you get less good at processing information.
It is the periods of downtime of your brain—preferably disconnected from the distractions of your computer or smart phone—that are needed for memory consolidation and transferring important information to your exposure to new information. Besides, you can empty your mind of thoughts quickly to relax completely, go for a short walk or spend few minutes listening to music. This will help you improve your capacity to process information and increase your productivity.
