nickernst comments on Working Mantras - Less Wrong

32 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 24 August 2009 10:08PM

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Comment author: gwern 25 August 2009 06:05:00AM 6 points [-]

I don't listen to music while working, because of studies showing that, e.g., programmers listening to music are equally competent at implementing a given algorithm, but much less likely to notice that the algorithm's output is always equal to its input.

This is absolutely true. I'm a little shocked at how many programmers and other 'mind-workers' (students are especially bad at this) think that putting on some music is helpful, or neutral. It's neither; even classical music or chants hurt.

(I have no studies handy for this, but I've tried music with Mnemosyne, Gbrainy, and Dual N-back, and in all 3 and all the sessions, my statistical performance was hurt to a greater or less extent.)

Comment author: [deleted] 25 August 2009 04:46:47PM 0 points [-]

I often need to start some work with music, because I constantly have an internal jukebox running. A lot of people listen to music to fuel that narrative illusion, which gives them motivation, and some do so to block out more distracting noise, as conchis mentioned. Mine is a variant on the latter, so I just get something with low information content stuck in my head before sitting down for serious work.

(I make an exception in certain stages of writing fiction, since I often soundtrack scenes as I create them, or even create scenes that fit the melody.)

Comment author: David_Gerard 06 June 2011 03:36:39PM -1 points [-]

I often need to start some work with music, because I constantly have an internal jukebox running.

Yep. Sometimes very distracting, as I do remixes in my head ... might try pink noise and see how that goes :-D