&gt; Something that disrupts your focus and is forced on you as part of the environment rather than asked for.<p>By that definition, anything outside of one&#x27;s immediate focus and interests is &quot;cognitive pollution.&quot; If that&#x27;s the standard, then it&#x27;s so vague and subjective as to be nearly useless. As forms of advertising go, I can&#x27;t think of many which are <i>less</i> disruptive, or easier to simply ignore, than billboards.