The sphere of attention

its theme, context, and margin

Sven Arvidson

pp. 1-20

in: Sven Arvidson, The sphere of attention, Berlin, Springer, 2006

Abstract

First thing in the morning, I shuffle downstairs to greet the dog and let him outside. He spins a couple times while I unlock the door, then he bounds into the garden. I sit on the stoop to keep an eye on him. What have I attended to in these 30 seconds? How many items have captured my attention, and is there anything invariant in the way this information has been processed?