Brain and Interactions

Have you ever been talking with several people in a group and noticed that it seemed as if some of the brains were either “not keeping up” with the conversation or seemed to be missing “sections” of what was being said? Maybe you’ve even sensed that in yourself and wondered if Alzheimer’s was knocking at your door. Turns out that the part of your brain known as the “conscious mind” has a processing capacity. Based on research this capacity has been estimated to be 120 bits of information per second. That represents the amount of information that your mind can pay conscious attention to at any one time. This has a definite impact on your interactions with others—and helps to explain what you take in and what you miss. You really need to pay attention—consciously—for something to register and encode itself in your life experience. More tomorrow.