has the internet made us smarter or stupider?

[Analog]

I vote for stupider.

Where is the Pohl?

 

[SaDiZTiKStyLeZ]

Judging by quality of posts on this forum, it has clearly made all of you stupid. However, I have gotten smarter.

 

[shortylickens]

One could argue that it, because of laziness like you mentioned (or addiction), it definitely has contributed negatively toward our civilization; that is not, however, to say it has not contributed positively in such a way as to outweigh any detrimental effects. It's simply one of those things that brings about both some good and some bad.




That's one truth. I hate people now. Thanks, Internet!



Agreed. There has been quite a bit of research documenting a change in our thought-patterns, in the way we catalog information in our brain, and how much detail we remember.
We still retain the genetic/neural ability to grasp a large amount of detail surrounding any single subject/object/idea/concept; that is, however, something we have also let the internet do for us, and we instead just create "placeholders" in our brain. Suffice it to say, that is what various research has shown to be happening. Instead of remembering a great amount of detail that we can relate to others as we converse with them, we use placeholders that essentially act as keywords with which we locate the data on the internet whenever necessary.



That is one concept that I haven't really thought about in detail: how we shift our thought-patterns and sensory perception when in our more feral/natural state.

Do you think that the internet may play a role in a regression toward a more feral state of mind?
Our tribal tendencies have never disappeared, in fact, we may encourage them to blossom in some ways. I'd be curious to see how scholars debate the topic of other intrinsic patterns of thought, and how they have determined [or how they have been impacted by] the course of our technological advancements.

YOU seem like the kind of guy who would wanna read the book.

http://www.amazon.com/Shallows-What-Internet-Doing-Brains/dp/0393072223

 

[0roo0roo]

makes us less bullshittable....

before the internet you had to look something up...how many would actually traipse to the library and look up the book or the record...there was a lot of fuck if i know or taking someones word for it.

 

[coloumb]

Internet allows us to "fire and forget" - not having to retain ideas, concepts, etc. An excellent example is "Kaido's" post - why remember anything when you can google it to resolve your problem [and thus make you appear to be smarter]? I do it all the time whenever I need to provide tech support for my parents and my in-laws... or when someone asks me a technical question that I don't know - pop up google and I can quickly find out an answer.

In the olden golden days before the internet - you had to retain ideas, concepts, etc or have access to a large collection of knowledge [books, magazines, etc] at your disposal.

I'd say from my own perspective -the Internet has made me less tolerable to deal with anything that requires a significant amount of consumption of time that I use to find mentally stimulating.

 

[dmcowen674]

makes us less bullshittable....

before the internet you had to look something up...how many would actually traipse to the library and look up the book or the record...there was a lot of fuck if i know or taking someones word for it.

Oddly enough that doesn't stop the rabids over in P&N.

Their ability to spin the truth to untruth is amazing.

 

[brianmanahan]

I vote for stupider.

Where is the Pohl?

pohl added!

 

[destrekor]

makes us less bullshittable....

before the internet you had to look something up...how many would actually traipse to the library and look up the book or the record...there was a lot of fuck if i know or taking someones word for it.

This has [possibly] caused some issues even in my own life.

I have had numerous debates with people over various topics, most commonly involving alcohol, and in my head I am basically laughing at the arguments they use (and the false information that present that they readily believe to be true).

I usually try to be polite about presenting to them the fact that they are misinformed, but... it's not always easy (especially if that is a fundamental basis for the argument itself).
And of course, I can basically guarantee they won't be bothered to verify anything I have presented (likely because it goes against what they "know" and are adamant they are the ones in the right). Which is annoying, because I am really not much of a bullshitter. I do somewhat struggle to "bullshit"/"shoot the shit" with people I am not very close with, because often I can tell I don't know/follow much of what these various people would prefer to pass time talking about... and the things I know are too detailed for them, or of topics they would rather not think much about. So I usually feel a little awkward in such situations. However, I do try and pay attention for whenever a topic I can discuss (without detail) presents itself, so that I can then actively engage those/someone around me (as I do feel that is better than sitting idle around a lot of people - a lot view that as awkward and I don't want to appear awkward. Eccentric [in my interests]? Can't help that, but I can try and prevent being labeled "socially awkward").

On the other hand, if I am conversing some general tidbits like that, and feel perhaps my memory failed me and I presented what is ultimately false information, I try to research it at some point later and earnestly make an effort to correct myself whenever I get into conversation with that person again. Continuing the spread of all this false information is something I do not want to engage in, as that is something that goes against my main beliefs/efforts in life (trying to do something to help the species for the future).

 

[destrekor]

YOU seem like the kind of guy who would wanna read the book.

http://www.amazon.com/Shallows-What-Internet-Doing-Brains/dp/0393072223

Was this before or after the article about Google and our intelligence?
Hell, not even sure if I got around to reading the full text of that article, but I do know the research involved in that article (and probably the book) is basically what I was referencing.

I'll probably get around to reading that book, but who knows when. There are so many non-fiction books I have yet to read that I really ought to (with quite a few self-development books in order before anything else )... if only I wouldn't spend so much time wasted on ATOT (and researching trivial things), I could have more time where I would WANT to read just to avoid insanity/boredom.

 

[dud]

OP, fix your poll. Asking "Has the Internet made us smarter or stupider?" with a yes/no answer is, in and of itself pretty short-sighted. How do I answer this? If I answer "yes" ... to what? Smarter or stupider?


The Internet is obviously making many people more stupid ... or it is allow the stupidity to be drawn out of them. I grew up before the advent of the Internet and can attest to the fact that ther IS life outside of it. We survived without computers, cell phones, the internet , Netflix, etc ... and loved it.

 

[brianmanahan]

OP, fix your poll. Asking "Has the Internet made us smarter or stupider?" with a yes/no answer is, in and of itself pretty short-sighted. How do I answer this? If I answer "yes" ... to what? Smarter or stupider?


The Internet is obviously making many people more stupid ... or it is allow the stupidity to be drawn out of them. I grew up before the advent of the Internet and can attest to the fact that ther IS life outside of it. We survived without computers, cell phones, the internet , Netflix, etc ... and loved it.

GAH im soo sry atot, i meant yes (smarter) or no (stupider). how can i fix my poll, is there any way to edit?

 

[Gintaras]

Before was:

Now:

 

[0roo0roo]

Oddly enough that doesn't stop the rabids over in P&N.

Their ability to spin the truth to untruth is amazing.

just imagine a time when it was even worse....

:awe:

 

[Dude111]

I do believe the PROPER term for what the net has done for us is: INFORMED!!

We are MUCH MORE informed than we would be if we only had MSM sources for info.... (MSM - GARBAGE MEANT TO KEEP PEOPLE UNINFORMED!!)

 

[BurnItDwn]

I'm going to say no, the internet has not made us smarter or stupider.
The smart are just as smart, the stupid are just as stupid.

 

[Blain]

Smarter, but at the cost of a shorter attention span.

 

[Griffinhart]

Neither smarter or dumber. It just has given us a more effective and global method to demonstrate it.

 

[ksheets]

How the hell are we supposed to answer the question with a yes or no?