Article Response #1: Is Google Making Us Stupid?

"Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski."

Can I just start out with saying how much I love this quote. It is the perfect metaphorical description of how I feel. Learning styles have changed over the decades as the younger we are, the more dependent of technology we are. Most young adults today could not understand how one could function in this society without a cellphone. Literally everything one could possibly would want to know is within our fingertips and the answer can be found in under a minute. People take this for granted.

The more dependent we are on technology, the less we use our common knowledge. If you had a calculator in your hand and were asked what 7 + 14 was, you'd most likely enter it into that tiny mathematical device without thinking about it. But this problem can be answered just as easily if we remembered we could use our brain. I agree with what the author of the article was mentioning on how the more he was using the internet, the less intrigued and focused he was in reading a book. Society today is based on a short summary instead of full-length details. Instead of reading the full chapter in the textbook, we look at the headlines and words in bold. I do not blame society for being like this because life is getting more busier and the faster we can learn whatever it is we need to know, the quicker life moves on.

I am a slow reader because I have to take the time to reread each sentence 3-5 times so I can comprehend and remember what I have just read. The more I use the internet to get quick summaries or a different wording of what I have read, the less time I use to actually pick up the book. I cannot say whether I like this or not. I would love to be able to use my brain and knowledge to help guide me to the answers instead of relying on an amoral being (computers, phones, internet, etc.). But, I am still thankful that I have the access to these amazing technologies to help get my life in order.

Always remember that you cannot trust everything on the internet, it is always best to go with your brain's instinct.