Column - Laptop note-takers face risky distractions

Not many people can do two things at once, especially not when really having to concentrate.

Everyday in class I'll sit behind someone who uses a laptop. Believe me, people are not only using them to take notes. Students are doing almost anything but studying: playing poker and other games, chatting with friends and browsing through online clothing stores.

This is not working. Laptops are not the solution to our own laziness in the classroom. You know the saying: "The pen is mightier than the sword." The pen is also mightier than the computer.

It might seem like it takes ages to write down notes by hand in a classroom. But because it takes a lot of time, you will prioritize and choose the most important facts. When typing, you can fall into an auto-pilot mode where you just write, write and write without the brain processing the information.

You might also have to print your notes since it's easier to read from a paper than on a computer screen.

In one of my classes, the professor was talking nonstop for almost 90 minutes while a student in front of me took notes on his laptop.

Every now and then when the professor stopped to breathe, the student opened a web page where he looked at what kind of iPod he wanted to buy. Did he learn anything in class that day?

No offense to laptops, of course we really need them. But they can actually be a disadvantage.

?A study in a psychology class at