Bold claim: our brains chase changes so fast that seven to ten attention-shifting cycles every second may be at the core of modern digital distractions—and that insight changes how we think about focus. In other words, brain rhythms help decide when we stick with one thing and when we glance away to something new. This quick, rhythmic switching could have helped our ancestors survive by spotting danger or opportunities in a busy environment. Today, with screens everywhere and constant notifications, the same rhythm can sweep our attention away from tasks we intend to finish.
Ian Fiebelkorn, PhD, assistant professor of Neuroscience at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience (University of Rochester) and senior author of the study in PLOS Biology, explains it this way: rhythmic attentional windows were advantageous for tracking predators and wandering for food. But in our modern world—laptops open, phones buzzing—these same windows can make us more vulnerable to distracting information. In short, the natural rhythm that once helped us adapt can now pull us toward interruptions.
Unseen shifts, measurable with EEG
Attention shifts happen hundreds of thousands of times daily. In the study, Zach Redding, PhD ’24, a postdoctoral fellow in the Fiebelkorn lab and the first author, used electroencephalography (EEG) to watch brain signals as 40 participants completed a simple task. Participants focused on a dim grey square in the center of a screen while colored dots appeared as distractors. The researchers excluded any eye movements to ensure they were measuring internal attention shifts, not just gaze changes.
The EEG data showed rhythmic patterns—attention moved toward distractors in cycles about seven to ten times per second. These cycles aligned with alternating periods when target detection was stronger or weaker. During the weaker-target periods, people were more prone to noticing and following distractors.
Implications for ADHD and beyond
If these findings hold across broader populations, they could illuminate why some people—such as those with ADHD—experience hyperfocus on certain things and susceptibility to others’ distractions. Fiebelkorn notes that the brain appears to alternate between states that either boost processing at the current focus or raise the chance of shifting attention elsewhere. When this alternation is less frequent, cognitive flexibility may suffer, potentially contributing to attention-related challenges.
Research team and funding
The study was conducted with Yun Ding, PhD, a postdoctoral associate in the Fiebelkorn lab. It was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Searle Scholars Program.
A note on interpretation and use
While these results offer a compelling view of how brain rhythms modulate attention, they’re an early step. Understanding whether altering these rhythms could improve focus or reduce distraction will require further study and careful testing across diverse groups. Do these rhythmic windows mean we should redesign alerts, notifications, or workspaces to align with our brain’s natural pace, or would that backfire by creating a new kind of constraint? Share your thoughts below: do you think this perspective supports changing how we manage digital interruptions, or does it suggest we should train ourselves to override natural brain cycles?
