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Internitwit MAG

March 25, 2009
By missmollyk BRONZE, Hull, Massachusetts
missmollyk BRONZE, Hull, Massachusetts
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

I recently read “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” – an article in The Atlantic about how the Internet has changed the way we think. This got me wondering: is our increasing dependence on the Internet substantially affecting the way our brains work? The answer is yes.

In his article, writer Nicholas Carr cites research that shows an alarming trend: the more we use the Internet, the less apt we are to concentrate and absorb large amounts of information. The human brain is able to adapt to circumstances, as is the case here. Because the Internet provides us with the information we are looking for so quickly, our brains have learned to expect to get what we’re looking for through skimming or a minimal amount of ­actual reading. We are slowly losing the capacity to read, let alone absorb, lengthy pieces of writing.

But I believe that the Internet is also affecting our brains in other ways. The way we write online, the slang we use, is becoming more and more a part of our offline lives. Have you noticed yourself making more grammatical errors, or having the urge to abbreviate words? You can thank the Internet for that. Because of the pervasiveness of slang in IM and texting, our brains now expect it.

The Internet really is changing the way we process information. Is it making us stupid? Not necessarily, but I don’t like it all the same.



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This article has 24 comments.


on May. 3 2009 at 12:12 pm
I love this article! I don't like using slang and now I have a bigger reason not to. Did you know that at the rate we're going technoligically, humans will soon invent a computer that is smarter and stronger than the human. I think our computer now is smarter than a human, so imagine that one! I think humans see it as a way to make money and chat with friends. I see it as a way to destroy our society.

lopo123 said...
on Apr. 27 2009 at 11:34 pm
this is soooo true once i was in school i was writing a report and used the word cool and once i was finished and reread it i spelled cool like k0ol becuz thats the way i spell it online

on Apr. 23 2009 at 8:56 pm
ultrabookworm BRONZE, Equestria, Kentucky
2 articles 0 photos 65 comments
Although this really is a well thought out article, as BookWorm579 pointed out, I must say that your article about the Internet changing the way our brains work and everything- I have not done all the painstaking research like you have, but this very article is posted on the Internet! Like I say, your information is probably viable, but its being on the Internet may make all the difference in how people receive it.

on Apr. 21 2009 at 4:02 am
BookWorm579 PLATINUM, Elk Grove, California
26 articles 0 photos 33 comments

Favorite Quote:
"à cœur vaillant rien d’impossible [nothing is impossible to a willing heart]" -French Proverb

I think that this is a really well thought out article. However, I think that as long as people place intelligence over convenience, like in this essay, the internet can be a viable way to increase overall knowledge.