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Originally Posted by Steve Jordan
I'll not only second that, I'll point out that it is hard-wired into our species to concentrate on communication (even when it is not directed at us)... and that the spoken word tends to take over conscious concentration, including above the written word, because more of the brain is utilized to speak and understand spoken language than written language.
(You know why most people are annoyed at others' cellphone conversations? Because they cannot hear the other end of the conversation, and their minds become incredibly distracted trying to fill in the blanks on their own. As Benny Hill used to say, "No' a lo' a people know that!")
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A former co worker used to drive me nuts. He'd put all of his conversations on speaker so he could have both hands free, including the personal ones. ("What up, homeboy?") Since I was normally doing something that required some concentration, ignoring the stuff from the next cubicle was a problem.
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I listen to music when I read, but most of it is instrumental jazz. When I hear vocal jazz, or a primarily vocal R&B or rock tune, my reading attention falters, because my mind wants to listen to the lyrics more than it wants to read.
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I can listen to stuff with lyrics if it's familiar, but agreed, instrumental only is preferable. And a lot of pop music makes me wish for karaoke versions with only the instrumental tracks, because the folks making the music can play like anything, but can't write lyrics to save their lives...
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Dennis