“Is Google Making Us Stupid” by Nicolas Carr, argues that using the internet to read is less thought inciting then reading books. Carr has focused on the various claims that support the argument above. The writer claims that the Internet causes lack of concentration as it is full of ads, hyperlinks, and other media which is meant to distract us. This he gives the example of someone reading the latest headlines in a newspaper site when suddenly a new e-mail messages announces its arrival with a tone of some sort. He says that the “The result is to scatter our attention and diffuse our concentration.” The next claim he makes is that the way we read on the Internet is changing how we use our brains to think; therefore making us less contemplative. Carr mentions Maryanne Wolf who works as a developmental psychologist at Tufts University. Wolf believes that when we read online we become “mere decoders of information”. I believe that Carr uses this example to give the illusion that when we read online we don’t truly gain knowledge but instead we just gather more information.
Summary: “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” In the essay “Is Google Making Us Stupid”, Nicholas Carr expresses his beliefs and personal experiences on how the internet has altered our brains and how we think. He addresses the fact that, although our brains’ abilities to deep read and concentrate are suffering, the internet is extremely beneficial and convenient. Because of the easy accessibility, it takes little to no effort to find information, and therefore, a minimal amount of thinking is required. Carr highlights that people are more impatient because of the internet and that our minds are becoming more erratic. The author used research, conducted by a U.K. educational consortium, to show that a new form of reading is developing over time; rather than reading every word on a page, it has turned to more of a skimming method. Nicholas Carr realizes that we may be doing more reading than ever due to the internet, but it is different in the way that people have to interpret the text. Reading, unlike talking, is not a natural ability. One must learn to deep read, make connections, and translate the underlying meaning. Overall, Carr believes it is a mistake to rely fully on computers because in the end, it will just be our own intelligence that morphs into artificial intelligence.
“Is Google Making Us Stupid?” effectively adapts to its audience by creating a worrisome and disturbing tone. The tone helps this article, as it satisfies a worrisome attitude because it forces its readers to feel scared that the internet is hurting them. Furthermore, the author uses examples within his article that are meant only for those who use the internet and are-- rather, were-- avid readers. Specifically, he uses a testimony within his writing to express the disturbing fact that people are finding it harder to read, “Scott Karp, who writes a blog about online media, recently confessed that he has stopped reading books altogether” (Carr 2). This sets the audience to be people like Karp: smart, once were dedicated readers and internet users. This is effective because reading is essential for day-to-day life and no one wants to lose this skill. This is a prime example of Carr using fear to appeal to his audience.
With the rise of technology and the staggering availability of information, the digital age has come about in full force, and will only grow from here. Any individual with an internet connection has a vast amount of knowledge at his fingertips. As long as one is online, he is mere clicks away from Wikipedia or Google, which allows him to find what he needs to know. Despite this, Nicholas Carr questions whether Google has a positive impact on the way people take in information. In his article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” Carr explores the internet’s impact on the way people read. He argues that the availability of so much information has diminished the ability to concentrate on reading, referencing stories of literary types who no longer
The Negative Impact of Internet on Critical Thinking and Reading Skills The Internet is considered to be a most important source of the knowledge, and it has played a bigger role in our lives. Everyone use the Internet on daily basis in offices, schools, libraries, and
Consistently there is some new innovative progression advancing into the world trying to make life simpler for individuals. In the article, "Is Google Making Us Stupid?", writer Nicholas Carr clarifies his contemplations on how he trusts the web is risking making individuals loaded with simulated information. Carr starts by clarifying
The article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid,” by Nicholas Carr provides the argument that the internet has turned traditional reading into passive reading that prevents deep-thoughts and intellectual growth. Carr believes that being able to sift through extensive amounts of research and noteworthy articles online in a couple of minutes
In “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” Nicholas Carr argues that easy access to information on the internet causes a shorter attention span, and makes people incapable to solve problems unassisted. According to Carr, typical readers have become lazy because of being spoiled by the access of thousands of sources of information that can be found on the internet. Rather than reading a book, or doing thorough research on a subject, the reader will commonly answer a question by searching for it on the internet. This method not only diminishes the attention span, but also comes off as lazy due to the fact that the reader won’t put in the time and effort it takes to actually learn a subject.
From beginning to ending, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” written by Nicholas Carr implements a scene from A Space Odyssey, where Bowman disconnects HAL’s circuits as it repeats, “I can feel it. I can feel it” to underscore the notion of humans becoming more robotic than a robot itself as we continue to rely on technology. Carr portrays this notion through several examples when he, his colleagues, and an individual like Friedman experience a shift in their style in writing or reading as they use certain technological tools. These resourceful technologies force individuals to make adaptations to “patterns” that ultimately influence their lifestyles. Carr consistently provides significant amounts of evidence for his argument and in depth information
Is Google Making Us Stupid? Summary Writing The essay Is Google Making Us Stupid by the author Nicholas Carr, was originally a cover article of The Atlantic in 2008. The purpose of his work is to warn the technology users of the negative effects that these devices have in humans.
In the article “Is Google making us stupid?” Nicholas Carr is arguing that the internet and the computer are making our reading abilities less and our attention span lower. In the article, he is saying that people are immersing themselves in the computer screens and t.v. shows which are making their minds “less efficient.” Furthermore, he examined that every new technology such as the typewriter and the printing press has put persons less capable of understanding and comprehending than before. First, he gave us the example of the Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, where the computer is taking over the human. Nest, the examples is off ,Friedrich Nietzsche, a writer failing to express himself to his friend in a personal letter after he
Nicholas Carr’s article was directed to an audience that needs to realize how Google and technology is instead of helping society progress in a positive direction, it’s actually hindering us. He claims that reading online is less thought provoking than reading an actual book and he believes that the Internet was created to make us distracted and therefore changing the way we think. Carr claims that the value of reading online is associated with efficiency and information gathering rather than knowledge and understanding. To support his claim he uses Scott Karp, who admits to have stopped reading books all together. Karp says that his reason for reading online is “I’m just seeking convenience.” Carr argues that we read online because we feel
Nicholas Carr, a technology, culture and economics writer, examines the impact technological innervation has on the way people act and think on a daily basis. His recent difficulties concentrating while reading books and lengthy articles has led him to believe that his time spent online may be contributing to his lacking concentration and contemplation skills. By prefacing his argument with anecdotes from his friends and acquaintances, he is convinced that a new type of reading and interpreting is emerging. Unlike the instinctive skill of speech, reading and writing are learned characteristics that Carr believes are being taught in a new way thanks to the amount of time people spend on the Internet. He believes that the neural circuitry of the brain is beginning to be shaped by the Internet, rather than by the books people read, the way it was shaped in the past. This provides the reasoning as to why Carr thinks that Internet may be making the population stupid.
An NEA survey shows a historical decline in voluntary reading rates among teenagers and young adults, worsening the reading skills among older teens and declining proficiency in adult readers. In the article “Dawn of the Digital Natives” by Steven Johnson, he explains how we have been hearing that the digital era has affected us in regards to our reading habits. However, Johnson writes that the study was biased against computer reading because almost every study screen-based reading was excluded from the data. He believes that reading from a screen is just as much about literacy as consuming novels (Johnson 24). However, books and texts are really important. It improves our critical thinking skills and makes us more knowledgeable. Moreover Johnson has no statistical data to prove that technology is just as or even more beneficial than reading from the books.
In an essay by Nicholas Carr, he examines the con’s of what the internet has become. He talks about how this generation has a steep decline in deep reading. They no longer have the attention span to read a long book, or an in depth article. He uses an example to further prove his point,