Something that struck me instantly when reading The Shallows was Carr's "Digital Adulthood." As soon as I read about his interpretation of this idea I couldn't help but wonder what we will consider our "Digital Adulthood" down the road. Now that we have access to so much information through new and developing technologies I can't help but wonder whats next. If our brains are already changing the way we read and interpret information because of technologies what's going to happen in the future?
I have definitely seen changes in the way that I read and interpret in the past couple of years. Its not that I've become less interested in what I'm reading, I've become more distracted. I can never just sit down and read without interruptions. I am constantly checking my phone to see texts and to update myself on social media. Sometimes I even imagine my phone going off when it doesn't actually ring. I think the distraction factor is what has really hit me the most. Writing this blog, I think I've checked Facebook multiple times. Nothing changed between checking it once then another time moments later, but for some reason I felt the need to check it out. I'm also less inclined to read something if the print is small and its very long. Like we've talked about in class, new technologies, like the Internet have made us less capable of reading long articles when we can get the shortened version of it so easily. I can't help but wonder how my grandchildren will read. If my attention span is so bad already, I can only imagine how bad theirs will be.
It's crazy to think that our brains work are actually changing. Now that information is so accessible we don't need to memorize phone numbers, addresses, and other useful information. There are few phone numbers in my contacts that I have memorized. I don't think its because my brain can't remember the information, I think its because it doesn't have to. Even teachers are embracing how accessible information is today, encouraging their students to think and not memorize. My Econometrics class, my professor doesn't make us memorize formulas because in the real world a computer program can do the work for us or we can look up the information ourselves. In the context of my class I'm happy that I don't have to memorize formulas, but the bigger picture scares me a little bit. If I'm not committing information to memory, what will happen to my ability to remember? At this point in my life I think I have a pretty good memory, but ask me again in 30 years, who knows what I'll say. I might not even be able to remember what I can define as my "Digital Adulthood." That may be a little dramatic, but there's no denying that the way we read, interpret, and remember are all changing.
How do you feel about memorizing formulas and definitions for classes? Do any of you feel similarly about the way you read and remember information as a result of new technologies?
Something that stuck with me was the concept of remembering things like phone numbers. It was actually a topic of conversation the other day. Almost all of my friends could recall their old girlfriends phone numbers and friends home line numbers. Recent girlfriends were a different story. No one could recite their number. Pretty much everyone said, "I don't need to remember it". This makes me think of being a kid and being in any sort of emergency. I could call from any phone, pay phone, etc. I had the number engrained in my brain. Talking of grandchildren, I fear that they will be so reliant on their phone memorizing everything for them that an issue will rise and they will be stuck. Just something to add that I found to be intriguing.
ReplyDeleteThanks for you comment Chris! I completely agree. I can remember my friends home phone numbers but I don't know any of their current cell phone numbers by heart. It scares me how much I rely on my phone for important information. I also wonder how future generations will remember information. I hope that future generations will move away from the trend our generation started, but with new technologies developing every day, I think that dependence on technology for information will only get worse.
ReplyDeleteThere is no doubt that our generation is very different from our parents generation in the things we place value you on and the things we learn to remember. Today, we have smart phones that do almost everything you could want short of cooking you meals. It remembers all names, numbers, photos, etc like you said and creates an easy shortcut for us. My parents both have little address books with all the family's names and numbers in it, but I look at that and think, "I'll probably never have something like that." Technology certain makes things more convenient, but I'm not necessarily sure it's a good thing all the time. Even more, our reliance on technology will continue to grow as technology continues to advance.
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