I have been meaning to write another post about a law department where the lawyers have double monitors (See my post of Jan. 18, 2008: multiple monitors.). As I spent time in a second law department so handsomely outfitted, I envied the double, large, flat screens everyone has. No more switching between email and the document you are working on! No more calling up the calculator in a cramped area or sizing windows to meet your needs!
But having just written a blog post on energy-saving suggestions (See my post of Nov. 9, 2008: three more pro-environment ideas.), I realized that the monitors consume twice as much energy. Hmmm, where are our priorities? Second, I recalled that people cannot efficiently multi-task, so perhaps the productivity gains from two screens are illusory.