... well known to you and the crowd isn't too large, it is most often a relatively effortless task to pick them out. How do we pick out and concentrate on that one sound source from among all others as we track a conversation? And how do we manage to identify that one object in space from among all the other objects? That is, what mechanisms or processes govern our ability to focus our attention on one source of information and exclude all the other sources? Of course, we do not always have the luxury to pay full attention to a conversation because as often as not we are required do other things at the same time - like drive a motor car, negotiate our way along a crowded pavement or find that friend amidst the crowd. So how do we manage to divide our attention so that we ...

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