Excerpt from: Motorcycle Addict
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| June 11, 2009 | | Pay Attention, and Don't Stray | I just finished reading some incredibly interesting material about perception and reaction time, and some of the many factors that can affect them.
One of the factors that have a big effect on your ability to react, and on any driver's ability to react, is the extent to which they are paying attention, and where the attention is focused.
The example of this phenomenon is a cocktail party or other conversation, when suddenly you hear your name mentioned in another conversation in which you are not involved. Suddenly, your attention is drawn away. Even though the person you are speaking to has maintained the same sound level and speaking pattern, you are no longer able to absorb anything that is being said.
When you return your attention, you can again absorb what is being said, but you can't go back in your mind and reconstruct what you missed.
In my opinion, this is the greatest risk to motorcycle rider safety. Drivers of cars have ipods connected to their stereos, they are having conversations with their passengers, they are thinking about where they are going, and where they have been. They simply are not applying the amount of attention necessary to absorb the fact that if they pull into an intersection (for example), they will hit a motorcyclist.
The result: ever increasing numbers of motorcycle deaths as riders have exponentially more things requiring their attention, other than the task of safe driving.
The tests that have been done to demonstrate this phenomenon are amazing, including distraction by having a girl walk through a video carrying an umbrella, and even a gorilla. Believe me, when someone walks through a room in a gorilla suit, your ability to observe what else is happening drops dramatically.
Same thing in a car.
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