Because talking is the fastest way to express ideas for a person, but watching video is the fastest way to consume ideas.
Here’s a concise table benchmarking human information intake and output across different modalities, roughly quantifying bandwidth in terms of bits per second (bps) or words/ideas per minute (wpm/ipm) where applicable. These are estimates grounded in cognitive psychology and neuroscience research.
Modality
Type
Bandwidth Estimate
Notes
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Listening
Input
~60 bps / ~150 wpm
Conversational speech; limited by working memory.
Talking
Output
~60 bps / ~120–150 wpm
Slower for complex concepts; real-time feedback modulates clarity.
Reading (text)
Input
~300 bps / ~250–300 wpm
Faster than listening; denser information per unit time.
Writing (text)
Output
~20–40 bps / ~20–40 wpm
Very low throughput, but high precision and permanence.
Images (viewing)
Input
~10,000 bps (estimated)
High parallelism; extremely rich but hard to quantify precisely in wpm.
Video (watching)
Input
~20,000–40,000 bps
Combines audio and visual streams; good for narrative and emotion.
Gestures/Body Language
Input/Output
~10–50 bps (wildly context-dependent)
Subtle, low-precision, high-contextual load; rapid emotional signaling.
Touch
Input
~1,000 bps (Braille: ~30–50 wpm)
High fidelity for texture, pain, pressure; rarely used for abstract info.
Smell
Input
~1 bps (symbolically negligible)
Powerful memory triggers, poor for abstract communication.
Taste
Input
<1 bps
Like smell, limited symbolic bandwidth.
Facial Expressions
Output
~10–100 bps
Rapid and universal emotional cues; not good for detailed data.