Sketching and Listening

We have a full-day symposium in our college today, consisting of several alumni giving talks about career, community, and identity.  The information is geared primarily toward current students, rather than  faculty like me ... and the quality of the presentations is quite varied, of course.  Some have been really excellent  (particularly the talk by illustrator Noah Kroese), while others gave me more of a chance to sketch. But this isn't at all the same thing as "not paying attention," because sketching doesn't prevent one from listening, even from listening very intently.

Sketching while listening is one of the few instances I'm aware of that can truly be called "multi-tasking."  Most often, what people call multi-tasking is actually just shifting from one task to another in quick succession.  Sketching and listening, however, can comfortably be done simultaneously. It's  as easy as walking and chewing gum at the same time ... and more worthwhile to boot, because you come out of the experience with a visual record, a touchstone that can tie you back to a particular place at a particular point in time.