Does googling make you more stupid? Googling meaning online search on the world
By carpediem17
@carpediem17 (1315)
Singapore
August 23, 2010 11:01pm CST
wide web. Someone has complained that googling on the web has made him unable to read works like "War and Peace" and lengthier works. The brain has been trained to pick up, focus or scan the main points of a text off the internet.
Do you feel that you have become more stupid in that sense? Or have instead turned smarter? Your thoughts please.
1 person likes this
4 responses
@bluemoonpavilion (4658)
• Singapore
24 Aug 10
I would have said yes, but that'd be admitting my stupidity to the whole world 
I think it has definitely affected our ability to take in information. When we find out things in the conventional way, we tend to remember it but now since googling is so convenient, I find myself not bothering to remember anything, since information is easily available with just some tapping with the fingers.
I think it has definitely affected our ability to take in information. When we find out things in the conventional way, we tend to remember it but now since googling is so convenient, I find myself not bothering to remember anything, since information is easily available with just some tapping with the fingers.
@bluemoonpavilion (4658)
• Singapore
24 Aug 10
carp! Trust you to catch me like that, you are one point ahead, but I will soon catch up!
What you said is so true, it's very hard to verify the credibility of the information available, whereas information from books are probably more reliable.
What you said is so true, it's very hard to verify the credibility of the information available, whereas information from books are probably more reliable.@carpediem17 (1315)
• Singapore
25 Aug 10
hi bmp, if the information is repeated often enough, it manifests itself as a Truth in due course.
@carpediem17 (1315)
• Singapore
24 Aug 10
hi bmp, not to the whole world but to about 200,000+ odd mylotters! Gotcha.
Yep, I do agree with you. Also, unless the site is a reputable source of information, the credibility of the information is moot and therefore not worth remembering.
@scheng1 (24650)
• Singapore
24 Aug 10
I dont think most people reach online throughout the day.
Most of us use the Internet to search for information, and we still read paperback for relaxation.
War and Peace is a very lengthy book. I have completed it once, and not likely to read it again. I have to admit that the book really makes a person think about life and its purpose.
Judging from the patrons to the library, I dont think reading paperback is an activity that Internet can phase out.
@carpediem17 (1315)
• Singapore
24 Aug 10
hi scheng1, thanks for your thoughts on this. Maybe we should monitor our own attention or focus span as a test of excessive internet use over time.
@america220 (67)
• United States
24 Aug 10
i don't think searching on the internet affects your intelligence at all. It doesn't make you dumber. IF you know what you're reading, you know what you're reading. You don't forget how to read by reading all the time.
@carpediem17 (1315)
• Singapore
24 Aug 10
thanks america220 for your sharing. Perhaps there is a more profound effect on those who do deeper or lengthier reading as apparently there seems to be some effect.
