The Effects of the Internet on the Brain
The selected piece of writing is “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” written by Nicholas Carr between July and August in 2008 and published by the Atlantic. The report analyzes the effects of the internet on our brains. Carr indicates that he feels his mind is going, which he has experienced over the past few years. Carr suggests that it is like someone else or something has been tinkering with his brain, it is as if reprogramming is being conducted. Through the mind is not going, Carr indicates that he can feel the changes taking place. It has affected the way of thinking and Carr says that he feels it most when reading. In the past, Carr could quickly read a book or a lengthy article without any problems, where his mind would even argue some points as he read. The concentration has changed, and after reading about three pages, Carr always finds himself looking for something else. Natural reading is now a struggle (Carr).
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet Usage
The changes in the brain can be explained due to the time Carr has been spending online, surfing and searching for information from the Internet databases. Despite the negative effects of lacking concentration in reading books, Carr indicated that Web has been very helpful to him as a writer. In the past, research would take days as one had to go through a pile of periodicals in the libraries to get the information they required but now it can be done in minutes. Carr indicates that with a few Google searches, he is able to get the information he is looking for.
The Internet as a Medium and its Effects
Carr considers the Net as a universal medium which assists in the flow of information through the eyes and ears into the mind. The flow through the eyes, is reading while the ears is through listening and watching the videos. The internet is also advantageous due to the large chunks of data which helps one when looking for certain information (Carr). Carr says that Marshall McLuhan, in 1960 indicated that media could not only be considered as positive information channels since they also shape the process of thinking. Lack of concentration is one of the negative effects since the mind becomes designed in a way that it will be taking in information depending on the distribution approach by the Net, which is swiftly moving the stream of particles. These effects of the internet affect all the active users of websites, the more they use the internet, the harder it gets to stay focused on long articles when looking for information.
The Changing Reading Habits
Carr states that the Internet has altered the mental habits of long users as indicated by Bruce Friedman, who writes about “using computers in medicine.” Skimming has become the order of reading long articles, just to get the idea of what is entailed. Reading is now compared to the power of browsing where one is able to get the article which provides the information they are interested in (Carr).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the article has clearly stated the negative and positive effects of using Google. The active users are most affected since their brain is changed and are programmed to operate differently. However, research has become easier since there are lots of articles and information one can go through in a matter of minutes unlike the studies in the library which took several days.
Work Cited
Carr, Nicholas. Is Google Making Us Stupid? July/August 2008. 2 February 2018 .
