Journal Entry 3

Britney Fuqua

28 August 2012

Journal entry 3

Is Google Making Us Stupid?

            In the article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” by Nicholas Carr the article asserts that the way we read is different than the way we used to read years ago.  Carr explains that with the internet and technology such as texting that we have programmed our brain to scan when we read.  That our brain in now programmed to bounce around when we read, switching from article to article and that we never actually sit down and read the full text.  The brain is constantly creating new path ways to receive information which makes it nearly impossible to sit down and read a book or a lengthy article and absorb the information (Carr 3). Carr states “The more they use the web, the more they have to fight to stay focused on long pieces of writing” Google and other internet sites have made their websites easy to find information, so that anytime we need to find a fact it’s at the tip of our fingers.  It is no longer necessary to spend a day at the library to find information that we need.  Also, when one used to sit down and read a book we could immerse ourselves in the book without any distraction and now when we are on the internet our attention is never fully on the text, we are constantly distracted by noise, pop ups, and other articles.  The internet seems to be acting as our new brain. “The human brain is just an outdated computer that needs a faster processor and a bigger hard drive” Carr explains. In conclusion, the more we use the internet, the less we are actually using our brain. So in moderation the internet is great but every now and then it is best to sit down and read a book.