Is Google Making Us Stupid? (1 Viewer)

[Bladez]

I'm not sure if this was posted already.

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google

The argument is that although the internet has provided us with a means of accessing lots of information very quickly, the medium has shaped the way we think for the worse. Its something I've been feeling for quite a while now. My attention span has gone to shit the last few years.

 

[GO]

Whats this thread about again?

 

[Bladez]

Whats this thread about again?

LOL

 

[dleacht]

its probably true

 

[Denny Oubidoux]

i skipped through the first half of that. i'd agree with it but its a bit unfair to single out google (unless the rest of the article explained why...). i sometimes wonder if its the internets fault that my concentration is shot or if its just a gradual effect of aging that im blaming on the internet. i dont have internet at home these days which is kinda nice.

 

[Bladez]

i skipped through the first half of that. i'd agree with it but its a bit unfair to single out google (unless the rest of the article explained why...). i sometimes wonder if its the internets fault that my concentration is shot or if its just a gradual effect of aging that im blaming on the internet. i dont have internet at home these days which is kinda nice.

The charge is against the internet as a whole. I think Google just made for a catchier title.

For me, I don't think its just aging. 8 hours a day sitting in front of a computer, most of that time using a web browser, coupled with some time browsing in the evening : Thats almost half my waking time using the internet. It must have an effect.

 

[Vinnie]

I have absolutely no idea how I used to find things out before the internet was always to hand. My brain is turning into a mush of unrelated trivia built on a foundation of unread books. Look at those bastard books over there on the shelf, taunting me, mocking the complete breakdown of my attention span. Still though, I keep buying books so my intentions are still good, right? Right?

 

[Denny Oubidoux]

im 4 hours into my working day and have spent it all browsing. im finding it very hard to apply my mind to work.

 

[Denny Oubidoux]

I have absolutely no idea how I used to find things out before the internet was always to hand. My brain is turning into a mush of unrelated trivia built on a foundation of unread books. Look at those bastard books over there on the shelf, taunting me, mocking the complete breakdown of my attention span. Still though, I keep buying books so my intentions are still good, right? Right?

are you familiar with the term Ebrary? i first encountered it about 40 seconds ago on the website of a university in oman.

 

[Dktr. Faustus]

duh!

 

[dleacht]

duh!

Nice video... or whatever it was

 

[plug]

it's javascript innit.

 

[snakybus]

That article's pretty interesting but he makes some sweeping statements that border on the histrionic.

I don't think it's the Internet's fault. I think it's the corporate world that is making us stupid. Your job probably only requires you to use a tiny portion of all the wisdom and learning you've accumulated through years of education and experience. Yet your job provides your means for survival. Is it any wonder your brain is atrophying?

At worst, the Internet facilitates this. At best, it provides a distraction from it. But its real value and effect is probably somewhere in the middle of this.

Kids use the Internet. Are they stupid? No. Okay, they're made get outside and exercise and stuff. But also it's because they don't work in stupid jobs.

However, I like his point about leisurely reading of long tracts of prose being more often a thing of the past. Like when reading Jane's posts, one's mind begins to wander (inevitably accompanied by beating your head off the desk etc). And I like how he says computers are making us think like computers. Information is key now, not wisdom. Ambiguity is viewed as a "bad thing", as opposed to an opportunity for exploration. I think that's pretty much spot-on.

 

[Bladez]

Yep. It was the point on deep reading that resonated with me too. I find myself less likely to sit back and reflect on the information that I take in, assimilate it, see parallels/contradictions/tie-ins with other knowledge. Instead I just move onto something else. And this results in a superficial knowledge of a wide range of things.

 

[nEiLo]

the chemtrails are making us stupid

http://educate-yourself.org/ct/#intro

obviously

 

[Jerry Twig]

I'm not sure if this was posted already.

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google

The argument is that although the internet has provided us with a means of accessing lots of information very quickly, the medium has shaped the way we think for the worse. Its something I've been feeling for quite a while now. My attention span has gone to shit the last few years.

Get to the point, that article's too long

 

[Lili Marlene]

as long as wikipedia is never allowed to be a valid source things should be ok

 

[7 - No tomorrow]

I thought TV had already made us stupid. Wasn't that the last cultural spectre of dumbing down?

Anyway, if it's affecting everyone, the internet won't make us stupid, relatively speaking, as everyone will be as power-browsingly thick as the next person.

The simple answer is to browse less and read more if you're all that concerned.

I do miss the type of pub argument or debate about movies or bands that are now ended when some fucker checks a fact on his iPhone.

 

[Scientician 0.8]

I've cancelled internet access at home although I might be getting it back soon. Results: I've started going to bed at normal hours, eating better, and I've read several of the previously unread books on my bookshelf. I'm really tempted to get rid of tinterweb or I might just go back to dialup for when i desperately need net access. Sitting at the computer, grazing, looking up shite, posting stupid pics on here and listening to dubstep is rotting my brain and body and stopping me getting my life goals accomplificated.

 

[7 - No tomorrow]

I've cancelled internet access at home although I might be getting it back soon. Results: I've started going to bed at normal hours, eating better, and I've read several of the previously unread books on my bookshelf. I'm really tempted to get rid of tinterweb or I might just go back to dialup for when i desperately need net access. Sitting at the computer, grazing, looking up shite, posting stupid pics on here and listening to dubstep is rotting my brain and body and stopping me getting my life goals accomplificated.

Have you no telly?