The effin factor is at the center of learning technology. It builds on our natural curiosity about the world around us, and on the potential of technology to make information easy to obtain. We are rather flighty in our curiosity and our attention keeps shifting as we encounter new and interesting things in our dealings with the world. It is important therefore that the satiation of our appetite for information occur at the time of need, otherwise there is a good chance that interest will be lost. Hence the importance of immediate availability of the needed information.
Any delay increases the mental effort in keeping the interest alive.
If the required effort is great, only topics of very high interest will be pursued. On the other hand, if the required effort is minimal, then many topics become of interest. As web technology reduces the effort to access information, the potential for interest in many diverse topics grows for individuals. Natural curiosity has at last a chance to blossom. The central idea developed here is that information is becoming readily accessible in a variety of compelling forms, and that this information-rich context can dramatically affect how students and people in general go about learning.