A theoretical multi-tasking executive function for the information processing model of the human brain

Research into holistic systems thinking needed an explanation or analogy for how the brain shifted from one task to the next. The cognitive psychology model of the human brain as an information processing system uses an executive function to control the transfer of information between short term and long term memory but seems to have little to say about how the executive function works. On the other hand, the multi-tasking operating system of a digital computer when modified provides such an analogy and is described in this paper. The key concept is that digital computer does not perform multiple tasks simultaneously. It performs one task at a time for very short periods of time, switching tasks under the control of the operating system so that it seems to multi-task. The model also suggests mechanisms for why some people can multi-task, and others focus on a single task to the exclusion of other tasks. The paper summarizes the digital computer multi-tasking operating system and then discuses a conceptual theory for multi-tasking in the human brain based on adapting the digital computer multi-tasking operating system in a parallel processing environment. The paper concludes with some observations which can lead to further research.