There is a trendy sentiment coming out of the internet revolution: the internet is making us more stupid.
People touting this idea claim that because information is so readily available, we (especially young people who were raised using the internet) are damaging our ability to read "deeply," think, and comprehend. Instead, we are becoming slaves to skimming, largely because there is such a vast amount of information at our finger tips.
Personally, I find this concept not only offensive (after all, it is directed at people under the age of 30), but logically flawed.
First, I don't understand why there is an assumption that we can no longer read and contemplate books or anything of length. Having a great deal of information readily available to us via the internet actually gives us more time to read and comprehend the things that are most important to us. I can quickly find and skim information I need about an ancillary topic. But if I am reading something of interest, I have more time and attention to give to that topic. This is called efficiency.
Second, let's look at this from the writer's perspective. The wealth of information on the internet causes us as writers to be more captivating and to-the-point. It is up to the writer to keep the readers' attention. Since when is that a bad thing? Most writers aspire to be this way. The internet weeds out the writers who fall short.
Third, what is wrong with skimming anyway? Living here in DC, I know many very good lawyers who have piles of boxes of documents, all of which they need to read and be familiar with in order to serve their clients. If those lawyers didn't know how to skim, they would be dead in the water. Sure, lawyers have a bad wrap in this country, and most people don't aspire to be like them. But you can't deny the ability of a good lawyer to internalize huge amounts of information and process it in a way that paints a picture of their case and helps their client in the end. I WISH I was that good at skimming.
So for all of you people out there who think the internet is making us stupid, try being a little more open minded... it's a sign of intelligence, you know.
To read more, visit this site (with SEO in mind, I choose not to put the direct links of my blog). You will be linked to articles that tell you how dumb you are. Feel free to skim.
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14 years ago
Strong title, so how do you really feel? :o)
ReplyDeleteLiving in the DC area the first thing that comes to mind is the massive amount of legislation, bailouts, etc.. that passes through Senate and Congress. I doubt they read every word of these documents before voting. Does this make them dumb for skimming? I doubt there are many under the age of 30.
You're right to point out that the internet is changing the way we write. All communications technology does. I think it's a fair bet that early telegraph messages were terse compared to letters written in the same period.
ReplyDeleteI agree that, skimming can not be looked at as bad. If anything when you skim a document you almost have to pay more attention because you need to remember and be able to recall the main points.
ReplyDeleteAlso, by skimming we are able to get through more information. And if something sparks your interest then you can always go back and read more.
I completely agree with your post.
ReplyDeleteHowever, do you think we are bias because we are well educated, MBA candidates? I'm not sure we are the best representation.
Do you think there is a portion of the country, or demographic, where the internet, social networking, IM, texting is making people dumber?