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[Kitschkraft]

can almost guarantee most of the people saying "no" are reading gaf with the TV on in the same room

I can browse gaf and gossip sites and the like with headphones on. But for serious articles and the like, it's pretty much the same as reading a book for me.

Forums/twitter/blogs/etc don't take as much concentration.

 

[Anth0ny]

Yup. I love reading with shit on in the background.

 

[bone_and_sinew]

That's the only way I can read. I need a background noise of some sort. If it's quiet I get bored and my mind starts to wander.

 

[white dynamite]

I tend to lose concentration when reading anything with background noise. On a side note, I have a hard time with subtitles in movies/television. I end up focusing more on the words at the bottom than the actual picture.

 

[Squall5042]

I can read GAF while the TV is on, and I can read books with non-lyrical music.

 

[thesoapster]

I can only read when there is complete silence.

Pretty much this.

 

[VeryGooster]

Television audio is very uneven because of spoken dialogue and such so no. I go to Pandora or Last FM when I read.

 

[Tacitus_]

I'm blown away by people who can read while standing up whilst balancing themselves on a subway, never mind those who can read with a TV on. I don't necessarily need silence but a distracting noise like a TV can throw me off. Background noise in a park or while sitting on a subway doesn't bother me.

I find this incredibly easy to do. But then again, I've always been able to really concentrate on reading that I hardly notice the world around me.

 

[The Technomancer]

I can read while walking, I can read on the bus, I can read with the TV on I can read pretty much anywhere.

 

[S1lent]

I hate trying to read at work when people are jabbering in a nearby cube.

 

[shortyme]

I can't. I need silence.

 

[DanManIt]

I can but I'm either doing one or the other... No way to focus on both

 

[Angry Fork]

It's weird for me. I can read fine on a subway standing up, I can read fine in loud places with lots of people like a party or dinner or something, but I can't read with the TV on or like in a park with little noises here and there. It's easier for me to zone out the large-scale noises happening at a more frequent rate, but when it comes to small noises here and there they bother the shit out of me.

I can't read while watching the TV either because I consider it a small noise. I would actually be able to read better with like 3 TV's on at the same time than with only 1 because my sub conscious won't be trying to understand what the TV's are saying since you can't listen to 3 things at once.

 

[radioheadrule83]

I can't multitask very well. I know people who sit playing a guitar while they play the computer and watch the TV... I *can* do that, but I do not in any way find it relaxing and can't focus on any one thing. Classical music + reading do go quite well together, although I have been known to drift from reading and listen to my favourite bits.

 

[triplestation]

I can only read when there is complete silence.

.

 

[Necromanti]

I can, but it really kills any immersion, making it a lot less enjoyable. I prefer complete silence.
What I absolutely hate, though, is when people see that you are reading a book but talk to you as if you're not doing anything, completely IGNORING the obvious fact that I'm reading a fucking book and glaring angrily at you. Or people who talk when I have my earbuds in. Fuck.

 

[Melchiah]

I can read anything but Lovecraft while the TV is on. When I read his novels everything needs to be dead quiet. That's why I usually read his books at nights, when there are no distracting sounds spoiling the mood.

 

[danwarb]

Yes. Not too loud though. Loud voices will distract.

 

[hsin]

I can read either silently, with white noise or with one track of music on repeat.

Any spoken word will throw me off.

 

[Unknown One]

No, I can't multi task to save my life.

 

[Apple Sauce]

It depends, I can with most contemporary prose.
However, I find it quite hard to focus on things like poetry or pre Victorian literature without relative silence.
People distract me more than anything. People watching me read or asking stupid questions annoy me. People that grab the book, as I'm reading, to look at the cover need to be punched.

 

[Smithy C]

Nope. Hearing words and reading different words kind of messes with my head and I end up not focusing on either of them. I listen to instrumental music while reading sometimes if other people have the TV on loud in the house, but that's about it.

 

[sixghost]

Depends if I'm interested in the material. When it comes to textbooks, I can really only read in complete silence, or if I'm listening to a loop of some white noise.

 

[woolley]

Yes. I find silence to be really distracting. I need background noise.

 

[DoomGyver]

Depends on what I'm reading. If it's GAF or a silly article, sure I can read and watch tv at the same time. But if it's an awesome book or an in-depth article it's hard for me to keep myself focused on the topic, or details.

 

[Ark]

I tend to read best with a reasonable amount of background noise. When it's totally silent I end up getting distracted by the smallest of sounds, I blame paranoia.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Why would I want to try? Silence pls.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Yes.

 

[besada]

I can read with bombs going off around me, if need be. I frequently read with C-Span running in the background.

 

[GDGF]

Yeah, I can read anytime.

 

[Mistake]

I can read on a bus, subway, whatever just fine. If there is a lot of noise, I find it easier to concentrate than having a single source of noise, like a TV. Actually, I just think being in a vehicle helps me concentrate. Dead silence can put me to sleep after an hour and a half of reading. But I do have my reading spree's.

 

[Carl]

I have to have complete silence to read, else nothing sinks in. I read the words but they just go straight through without being taken in.

It's incredibly annoying, really. I'm generally shit at doing anything when there is noise.

 

[params7]

I get distracted a lot. Like borderline ADHD. Normally I need pin drop silence. But if the book is good it has the ability to pull me in even if I'm in the middle of a parade.

 

[HeadlessRoland]

I find it extremely difficult to focus on anything other than what is being said on television if the set is turned on. I see people reading with a lot of distractions around them.

I cannot; can you, GAFFERs?

I read and listen to audio books at the same time. As long as the audio book is fairly light material I have no problem with retention.

 

[baekshi]

Well, yes and no.

 

[Pollux]

if its something i'm not really interested in then yes, but if i'm even remotely interested in then i find it early impossible.

 

[Jerk]

Yes.

I actually have a hard time enjoying a novel if I am not engaging in another activity:

-Defecating
-Listening to Music
-Eating
-'Watching' tv
-'Working'
-Masturbating

..etc...

 

[GhaleonQ]

Literature, poetry, serious nonfiction? No way. I don't think I ever read easy-to-somewhat-difficult things in print or on the Internet without music, podcasts/radio, or television going, though. So, yes.

 

[cacophony]

yeah I probably read better with background noise.

How do you guys who need silence survive in college with everybody talking during lectures

 

[Ferga]

yup but the book that i'm reading has to interest me. If it's a book i have to read for my studies then i'll probably end up focusing on the tv but if it's a book that i personally want to read then i will read it while also paying some attention to what is on the tv

 

[Pikelet]

I always read whilst listening to music, and i always play guitar if i am watching TV. I find it difficult to do just one thing at a time.