an extremely short attention span

[I'm a Chubby Baby]

Hello, language gurus. Please let me know which one is correct. Thanks in advance.
I have extremely short attention spans. I keep checking my Instagram feed when I study.
I have an extremely short attention span......

 

[teechar]

Use the second.

 

[I'm a Chubby Baby]

I have an extremely short attention span. I keep checking my Instagram feed when I study.

Does 'keep checking' work? I'm worried it may mean I check it every single second. I want to say something like I study for 5 minutes, and then I check my IG feed. And then I study for 5 minutes, and then I check it again.

 

[Rover_KE]

'I keep checking' is fine. Nobody's going to care how frequently you check it. If you're worried about it, add '... every five minutes or so'.

 

[GoesStation]

Your attention span is an attribute of your personality. You have only one of them.

 

[I'm a Chubby Baby]

Your attention span is an attribute of your personality. You have only one of them.

I'm sorry I actually don't know what 'them' refers to because you sentences don't have a plural noun.

 

[teechar]

It refers to the various attributes of an individual's personality.
In that sentence, "an attribute" means one of several attributes.

 

[GoesStation]

I'm sorry I actually don't know what 'them' refers to because your [STRIKE]sentences don't[/STRIKE] sentence doesn't have a plural noun.

The reader understands that "them" refers to the plural "attention spans". "Only one of it" would be ungrammatical. I don't know how to explain this, but it's how English works.

I could have written "You have only one" and avoided the perceived problem, but my sentence was more conversational and, I felt, clearer as written. It's not a problem for a native speaker.

 

[I'm a Chubby Baby]

It's not a problem for a native speaker.

Thank you, GS.
But if you take a look at #7, it seems that teechar, a native speaker, has a wrong interoperation of what 'them' refers to.

 

[Tarheel]

Thank you, GS.
But if you take a look at #7, it seems that teechar, a native speaker, has a wrong interpretation of what 'them' refers to.

Well, I got it instantly. Maybe teechar is not on his game today.

(You can thank me now.)

 

[GoesStation]

Well, I got it instantly. Maybe teechar is not on his game today.

I agree with Tarheel. I think Teechar got it wrong this time.

 

[Tdol]

Thank you, GS.
But if you take a look at #7, it seems that teechar, a native speaker, has a wrong interoperation of what 'them' refers to.

Hey wow, people have different interpretations. That does not mean they are wrong or that something has been proved. We often use the plural for singular things nowadays, so, while I might be thick and wrong, I can't see what the issue is here.

 

[teechar]

Exactly. Thank you Piscean.