The article "Is Google Making Us Stupid?" posed some very interesting points. However, the author, Nicholas Carr, seemed to me to be complaining more about the use of technology now a days than accepting it. I understand his concerns, "Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski." But I also think he failed to acknowledge how great the internet can be. Sure it may seem overwhelming and maybe even scary to some people just how much knowledge the internet shows but we can also adapt to it just like we did to the clock, printing press, calculator, etc.
In this decade technology has been more present in our lives than it ever has. For those who have a smart phone, the internet is right in your pocket. And for those who don't have a smart phone, the internet is just a couple key strokes away. In my opinion that scares a lot of the elders in our lives and that's why that people are so worried about what it is doing to our brains. "When we read online, she says, we tend to become 'mere decoders of information.' Our ability to interpret text, to make the rich mental connections that form when we read deeply and without distraction, remains largely disengaged." I respect Carr's thoughts but to me I really don't understand this point. We don't read differently whether online or in a book. Reading is reading and if our goal is to read deeply while on the internet then we are capable of doing so. However, there are some things that I agree on with Carr.
On page 5 of this article the two founders of Google, Sergey Brin and Larry Page brought up the idea of artificial intelligence or an artificial brain. Brin said in a 2004 interview that "Certainly if you had all the world's information directly attached to your brain, or an artificial brain that was smarter than your brain, you'd be better off." This idea of having an artificial brain instead of your own attached to you haunts me. If we knew all the information the internet knows all the time I would go crazy. That idea is completely unsettling.
Even though there are many pros and cons to the internet, I think it is best if we learn to adapt to it just like we did with the clock, printing press, calculator, etc. Overall we won't know the affects of wide-spread internet use for a couple more decades since these past generations are the ones that are growing up with it.
Hi Maria! Nice work keeping up with your summer blogging. You make some interesting observations-- and challenges-- of Carr's argument. I don't totally agree with your argument that on-line reading and book reading are the same, but I wonder if that's because, unlike you, I didn't come of age in the internet era. Anyway, keep up the good work, and I'll see you next month!
ReplyDeleteHey Maria! A point that you brought up in your blog was, "We don't read differently whether online or in a book." This never came to my mind, but I am glad that you mentioned it. Like you said, reading is reading. I agree with you. Sometimes I think that the reason why it seems so different is that we get so attached to electronics and it kills our brain when we are trying to read out of an actual book. Good job, Maria!
ReplyDeleteMaria, one point that you made that I completely agree with is how scary artificial intelligence is. If we could just download information to our brain or get a brain with all the worlds information on it then would life basically become pointless? To me this would turn us into something other than humans and make us more like robots. Great blog and have a nice last week of summer!
ReplyDeleteMaria, I definitely agree with you that the author seemed to complaining, or even paranoid, about the internet. Some of his points made little to no sense. I also believe that reading is the same on the internet vs. a book. Like you said, reading is reading. Your point about an artificial brain scares me too. Having that much information would be frightening and drive anyone crazy.
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