Synopsis

In this book Clay uses comparison frequently to compare the content that we view in whatever medium to the food that we consume.  Content is what is equivalent to calories in terms of food.  When we consume an excess amount of calories it harms us and our bodies.  When we consume too much content it is too much for us to sift through and for our minds to process.  In turn this is also harmful to us in another way.  From another perspective, along the lines of this same comparison, the quality of the content or food that we consume also makes a difference.

Although it may be delicious sometimes, there is a reason we all do not eat at McDonalds on a daily basis.  Simply, it is unhealthy food.  If we were to eat unhealthy food consistently we would find that we would become obese and very unhealthy.  Content in any medium is the same way.  If we search Facebook all day it probably won't do much for our minds from an educational perspective.  In another sense, when we are surfing the web for educational purposes it most likely wouldn't be wise to use "unhealthy" sites such a Pinterest or other social sites to do our research.  We obviously wouldn't use these sites to do professional work, but it demonstrates the point that it is important to learn how to filter our content and where to look for it.

Clay's primary focus in the work for information is how we manage and use it.  Content, especially in today's era, is floating around everywhere we turn.  This means that it is even more difficult to manage it, let alone find sources that will benefit us.  How we manage our content is specific to us, but there are often times strategies that are later presented in his novel.

More on the novel: http://www.informationdiet.com