Sunday, July 13, 2008

Changing the way we think

Journal Entry #2
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7459182.stm


I agree that the reaction from visual and screen-based information and entertainment impacts viewers in different ways. I know that I could not possibly read a whole book online, even though it is now available. I would most definitely prefer the original 'old' technological hard copy, where I could make all the notes I wanted. Looking at a computer screen for numerous hours would not be very beneficial for my eyesight. But even though viewers prefer different methods, I do not agree with Professor Susan Greenfield (author of ID: The Quest for Identity in the 21st Century) that it is changing the way our brains work. 

There could be two ways to view how the style of Internet searching has impacted society. First, search engines such as Google and Yahoo, do narrow and limit the information we are looking for, which allows us only to read that information. Because the searches are easy and fast to use, other research forms such as hard copy encyclopedias and books are simply forgotten. These general search engines could result in giving the user complete rubbish by people pretending to know what they are talking about. The Internet can be an extremely good source if you know how to use it, because there is also a lost of nonsense out there to confuse you. On the contrary, the sky is the limit for those Internet surfers who do know how to use the Internet properly and find accurate information. It can be viewed that reading is something we learned how to do, and now that technology ahs advanced there is not reason why new forms of reading can be developed, specifically, on the computer. 

The article also brings up a good point that we are now more easily distracted than ever. With a short attention span brought about by flashy advertising, it becomes even harder to gather information from a simple news article. In addition to showy marketing just from the Internet, there is also the distracting text and instant messaging systems. 

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