After reading Nicholas Carr's article I realized that many of the things he said happen to us while reading long articles in this age apply to me as well. After about two pages of reading I noticed myself drifting and losing focus. I was able to re-focus and comprehend what I was reading, but I thought it was funny how these things were happening to me. The quote "Now my concentration starts to drift after two or three pages. I get fidgety, lose the thread, begin looking for something else to do." was almost identical to what I was experiencing as well.
This article scared me a bit. It really got me to thinking that websites and search engines like Google could be out to get us, and here to hurt us. After reading I thought the best thing for people to do is stop using the Internet all together, but that is virtually impossible. Carr definitely gave the idea that the Internet is ultimately bad news and that our minds are slowly becoming artificial and need immediacy. The story that really scared me was when Carr talks about his friend Scott Karp admitted to not reading books anymore. "I was a lit major in college, and used to be [a] voracious book reader." Karp said. It seems that the Internet can erase years of education and change people's minds quickly.
The article also explains that the brain is malleable, but I feel that once one reaches adulthood that the brain loses its flexibility. It scares me that if we figure out that the Internet isn't something we should be using, that our brains wont be able to mold to a new system. I wish that my generation had the opportunity to grow up without the use of computers. For most of my life I have had the ability to get any information I need in a matter of seconds. That idea sounds amazing, but after reading this article I can't help but think it's hurting our society. I don't want artificial intelligence.
This article also got me thinking about texting and how it is affecting relationships not necessarily for the better. Constantly texting/talking to someone isn't natural and I think can hurt people's relationships for good. Being able to constantly interact with someone and not hear their voice, or see their face is almost frightening. How can you build a relationship solely on text and not human interaction? Technology is almost scary, and even though I don't like it how are we supposed to untangle ourselves from its web?
Kate-
ReplyDeleteIt's funny how you said you became somewhat distracted while reading this article because so did I. It's summer time and reading a long article about being distracted while reading this article distracted me even more. But just like you I was able to jump back into it and comprehend what I was reading.
I enjoyed the section of your blog where you said the internet is out to get us-I think that too! It's becoming so powerful that pretty soon we won't know what to do with it...just like your comparison with relationships vs. texting. People can't walk up to a person and have a conversation face to face; it has to be a cute text message from across the room...sad to say.
I don't know what the future holds for our generation, but I think if we gain control now and limit our technology we will be better off!
Enjoy the rest of summer!
Eva
Hi Kate,
ReplyDeleteI too experienced the same things that Carr had described about losing focus. In my case, it was already starting to take place after the first couple paragraphs but I guess that's just the way it goes. I found this article to be very interesting because I think anyone in this AP composition class could directly relate, since we all had assigned readings to complete. I don't think it if possible for our generation to just stop using the internet at this point because it has become such a big part of our lives. From Facebook to AP Composition blog posts, it's scary how often we are using the internet. With these bad habits that come from using the internet like we do, the only fix to these bad habits, I believe, is to slow ourselves down and really read and comprehend what information is given to us. I am looking forward to seeing where the internet takes us next--hopefully it's positive!