Someone who is preoccupied may have little time for the people around and may appear to be bad-tempered and irritable when this is not the case at all. Trying to focus on some difficult matter can make someone very impatient with distractions. People may seem to be ignored and dismissed, but only because they interfere with the thinking process. So code 10/12 has a high value in giving the correct interpretation of apparent bad behaviour. If a person has signalled code 10/12, it is also a request to be undisturbed and to be left in peace (to do the thinking).