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The general causes of information overload include: A rapidly increasing rate of new information being produced The ease of duplication and transmission of data across the Internet An increase in the available channels of incoming information (e.g. telephone, e-mail, instant messaging, rss) Large amounts of historical information to dig through Contradictions and inaccuracies in available information A low signal-to-noise ratio A lack of a method for comparing and processing different kinds of information

1) The History of Information Overload One thing I discovered was that our current situation may not be that unique. Some interesting research (see the bibliography at the end of this post for the articles in the Journal of the History of Ideas) points out that since the 1200’s – but more particularly after the implementation of Gutenberg’s printing press – people have been complaining about information overload.

One thing I discovered was that our current situation may not be that unique. Some interesting research (see the bibliography at the end of this post for the articles in the Journal of the History of Ideas) points out that since the 1200’s – but more particularly after the implementation of Gutenberg’s printing press – people have been complaining about information overload.

2) The Negative Impact of Information Overload They are numerous studies to suggest that information overload makes us dumber: Persons exposed to excessive amounts of information are less productive, prone to make bad decisions, and risk suffering serious stress-related diseases.