Journal 9

After reading "Is google making us stupid" I think that our knowledge has changed by not just by increasing use of internet but by technology in general. I think that society's obsession to move faster and get things done quicker has forced our minds to keep up with the times. We want to scan articles (i will admit i did not read Carr's article thoroughly) and find what we need as fast as we can, and obtain the basic information level, rather than digging deep and completely understanding what the author is really trying to get at us, nor do we remember or take the time to learn small details. I think if anything technology has made us more distracted rather than making us stupid. I think that overall technology helps us be better communicators, but maybe not help us in developing a deeper desire for knowledge.

ENG 111-BM: Journal 9

ENG 111-BM: Journal 9: "Read and respond to 'Is Google Making Us Stupid?'

If we consider stupid as "slow in mind" then I would have to somewhat agree with the article that Google is making us stupid. The reason why I'm saying this is because without exercising our brains with activities such as reading, mental math, writing etc the mind tends to become slow-the more we exercise our brains the more we get out of it. Like the article said Google has become some type of an artificial brain with a bigger processor-that is we do not have to think as much for answers, we can get them with a click of a button. In the past when doing a research, for example, we had to go to the library and read different books to get what we are looking for-you might not know but this helps us think. With Google you don't have to do a lot of thinking, you can type in a research question and get a ton of answers and with those answers you don't even have to read them all, you can easily skim through them. Google has a lot of advantages with information on our finger tips, with more information about our world etc. My point is technology is the not bad, the way we make use of it can either be bad or good. Its in our best interest to deviate from the Internet sometimes and grab a book, or play some math games etc to engage our minds in deep thinking-that way our minds won't be slow.

I think that Google and new technologies are having an impact on the way that we think, learn, and live. I thought the point that was made about how its harder for people to really get deep into reading and that now people just skim for the main points is very true. Huge amounts of information are only a few clicks and seconds away and that is a very powerful tool. I do not, however, think that it is hurting the way we communicate. Technology makes communication between people much more accessible. The idea of everyone totally losing all their people skills is ridiculous. Another interesting topic that the article brought up was that our brains have become rewired in order to absorb these mass amounts of information. I think this is also a valid point. The general knowledge that most people have today is far greater than the knowledge that people had 100 or even 50 years ago.

Journal 9

Several ways that writing and knowledge change as we move online are that you don't have to read a book now a day, because there is always a short summary online that takes 10 minutes to get the entire plot, where as reading the book would take days. Also no one really needs newspaper anymore because you can find breaking news online easily and it comes out more frequently than a once a day newspaper. I think is technology we have no lets us better communicate because we can talk to friends immediately instead of having to send a postcard back in the day. The internet lets people stay current with popular events and emergencies. However, I do believe that we don't really explain ourselves as well over the internet as in person you is a draw back because everyone uses abbreviations now. The only burden I see with the Internet is that it keeps us only thinking about the present and its hard to think ahead or for the future because we get what we want instantly instead of working for it. So in some ways it is making us stupid but in other ways it is very helpful and convenient.

Journal 9

I do not think that Google is making us stupid, rather it is making us lazy. Google provides us with a wealth of knowledge right at our fingertips. However, because we are able to look up anything in a matter of seconds, we often fail to choose quality information. Especially when it comes to educational uses, Google has negative effects on the work ethic of today's students. Students used to have to do all work in books and I feel that learning out of a book is more effective than learning online. In this aspect, I guess Google is making us stupid.

journal 9

I do not agree completely with the idea that Google is making us stupid. Everything that is used now, during the age of technology, is created for the sole purpose of making our lives easier. People are so busy that people want to get things done quicker which is why people don’t want to take the time to read an entire book, they would much rather read a shorter version of the same article. So one could argue that Google is not making us more stupid, but it is making us lazier because we become accustomed to reading shorter articles. If we become used to reading these shorter articles, then we will not be able to read entire books or even lengthy articles. Google is part of the “problem,” but also sites like sparknotes.com and even news sites. For me, I don’t want to take the time to read 5 or 6 chapters of a book that I don’t even care about. I would much rather read 5 or 6 pages that include all the main events so I don’t have to waste my time on the minor details that are not important anyway. So it is not necessarily true that Google is making us stupid, it is just making us lazier. This will continue to get increasingly worse until we do not want to read anything at all, no matter what the length may be.

Journal Nine

In the article, Is Google Making Us Stupid, Carr suggests that Google is changing the way we read and the way we absorb information that we see. I agree with him; I think that reading via the internet is dangerous to our way of thinking and interpreting the information we read. I think that the internet can be used positively as a medium to transfer information to multiple groups of people. But I think that there are so many distractions and a feeling of "don't read this" with all of the ads surrounding an article or passage from a book, etc. that reading is impossible to do over the internet. Carr says that skimming and reading quickly are the most common ways of reading on the internet and that is changing the way we think. I think he's right and I feel that the internet is changing the way we think things through, and not in a good way.