Not only does Carr believe this but states others, including friends and colleagues are also experiencing this affect. Carr’s goal is to push readers to think more critically about the negative impact internet usage can have on one’s ability to read and articulate articles. Although Carr provides some anecdotal evidence it is not sufficient evidence to prove that Google is making us stupid. In completing a critical analysis of Carr’s essay I will examine both the weaknesses and strengths of his argument and provide research and literature to support my belief that Google is not in fact making us stupid. Carr begins his essay by saying “I’ve had the uncomfortable feeling that over the past few years someone, or something has been tinkering with [his] brain”(91).
Is Google Making Us Stupid? 9/30/2012 ENG140 Introduction to Writing Kanesha Howard In Nicholas Carr’s story “Is Google Making Us Stupid” his main point is the question, is quick access to the internet making humans more impatient to read and want to skim through stuff more. This story is a very well informative story. Carr uses google as a metaphor for the wider internet. When Carr asks the question is google making us stupid, he may have set an alarm for many.
David Crystal indicates, “This is a form of language play... [the desire to] outdo what has been done before.” This type of minor changes of words are a prime example of the effects of text messaging media on the English language. Media with character restrictions have a large impact on the environment of the English language. They have changed the meaning of simple acronyms such as LOL, which the ordinary population employs in day-to-day communication without lending a thought as to where the phrase comes from or what its original meaning is. The effects of text messaging and other media with character restrictions on the English language illustrate change in many areas of verbal communication and literature, and even contribute towards a transformation in a general public attitude. Certain elements, such as acronyms, initialisms, incomplete sentence structure, or the omission of vowels, included in abbreviated messaging technologies (sometimes referred to as “textese”), have contributed to the English language, reflected in the literature and writing skills of the people who use these media.
If humans do give up power to machines they may be capable of making all of our decisions for us. The world may become so dependent on machines, that if the machines were to stop working or we turn them off, it may lead to suicide because of dependency. We can personally have control over our cars and computers, but if there is a large computer system that takes over it could be harder to take them back over. There are many ups and downs to having technology running the world. As humans we should be cautious to what we create and what should control us.
In my opinion, soon this would result in the complete disappearance of the traditional skill of letter writing. Modern communication tools indeed have a negative influence on traditional means of communication such as letter writing. For example, some people prefer to make phone calls to others to get an instant response from that specific person rather than wait a long time for their letters
The consequences of Technology Clive Thompson’s “The New Literacy” argues against those that affirm that technology makes students become illiterate; he instead states technology in reality promotes students to write more. Although Gelernter agrees with Thompson in that technology has some benefits that can further expand students knowledge, he disagrees that technology promotes students to write more. Gelernter believes technology negatively affect students’ basic and critical thinking skills. Gelernter essay “Computers Cannot Teach Children Basic Skills” succeeds at being more persuasive in convincing its audience; the author achieves this by incorporating profound examples and facts in his essay to further emphasize the negative effect of technology. Gelernter and Thompson used techniques in their essays to try and persuade their audience to agree with them, yet both authors used different approaches to accomplish this.
Turkle began to study not only what the computer does for us, but what was doing to us. Issues with advancing technology began when the change from slide rules to calculators happened. The effect of the calculator changed the way that students learned; their reliance on calculators instead of the mind to solve the material presented created errors in their work. Mistakes were made more frequently with the use of a calculator, and students failed to learn and understand the actual material. A sense of privacy had been an afterthought once technology advanced with the use of blogging, instant messaging, chat rooms, and the internet.
Refusal to accept this fact will not stop this change, rather it will leave an individual frustrated and unable to keep up with the rest of the computerized world. In this fast paced world, adapting to new technology is essential, new and faster ways of human contact have changed the way we relate to one another and refusal to adapt will only leave one behind. The early 2000s introduced us to social media with the now almost defunct Myspace website. It was the first opportunity we had to create our own image in cyberspace, by allowing us to customize our own page
Another article titled “How Has Google Affected the Way Students Learn?” by Zhai Yun Tan references an article titled “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” by Nicholas Carr who argues that “what the [internet] seems to be doing is chipping away my capacity for concentration and contemplation.” The quotation shows how other authors are making this connection that humans’ access to the internet makes it substantially harder to retain information when the goal of the internet is to help people remember. In addition, the use of technology affects the way people learn material. Tan also states in her article, “How Has Google Affected the Way Students Learn?”, “[the students] tend to have a better memory of how and where to find the information -- instead of recalling the information itself.” The results portray the notion that the use of technology changes how humans retain information. The change is that before the internet, people remembered the facts rather
Nicholas Carr and Clay Sharkey debate whether or not the internet is actually making us smarter or dumber. “Never has a communications system played so many roles in our lives- or exerted such broad influences over our thoughts, as the internet does today. “that is one of Carr’s viewpoints. Shirkey believes that “every increase in paperback book to you tube, alarms people accustomed to the restrictions of the old system, convincing them that the new media will make young people stupid. This fear dates back to at least the invention of movable type.” I tend to agree more with Sharkey because there are a lot of learning toold we can gain from the web.