What The Internet is Doing to Our Brains?

So after reading the article by Nicholas Carr, I would like to say that I disagree with most of the things he said. The only thing that I found I agree with is this statement made by Carr, “The Internet is a machine designed for the efficient and automated collection, transmission, and manipulation of information, and its legions of programmers are intent on finding the “one best method”—the perfect algorithm…” I don’t think that the internet is doing anything bad to our brains or hurting it in any way. Instead, I think the internet is actually helping us. When we look up something, I think it is giving us the most efficient answer that in the end will benefit us. The internet is giving us the “one best method” or answer to each of our questions. I know that some may argue that sometimes the internet just leads us in the wrong direction by giving. Yet, in return I think that out of all the possible answer in the world, the internet is narrowing it down for us.

In addition, I believe that without the internet, life would be hard to get through for most of us. I’m not saying that without it the human race is stupid and useless, its just that the internet allows us to use our time wisely and most efficiently. Imagine looking up information for a research project. It would be so much easier using the internet then going to the library alone. By using the internet the researcher is able to find several sources for the information he is looking for, but say if he was to go to a library he may only be able to find one book on his subject.

Overall, I guess I’m trying to say that even though Nicholas Carr wrote an amazing article; in my personal opinion I fully disagree with what he have to say about what the internet or technology is doing to our brains.

Video and Postmodernism

So after seeing this video it made me really think of the little details that goes on in the world daily. It gives examples of so many things that happen daily around the world that the average person would never really think about. For instance, who knew that “the top ten in-demand jobs in 2010 didn’t exist in 2004.” Still, I wasn’t very surprised by the statistics I saw. I know our world today is growing and developing so fast by the second. I was just shocked that someone or a group of someone actually got their hands on some statistics at all.

Anyway, after watching the video and reading part of Alan Kirby’s article I think that in a way we are heading into a period of postmodernism. How is it possible that in only a number years there can be a computer that smarter than any human being? It is a scary thought to think that someday technology may just overtake us and there would be no more need for humans. From what I’m seeing in the video, there are so many things that make me think back to Brave New World.

In Brave New World the people are practically created and taught to act and feel a certain way towards every aspect of life. From the job they have to the person they have a relationship with they are expected to accept and like whatever situation they’re put it. This in a way relates to us today ‘cause I kind of see this in the video and other similar videos. In the videos, it makes it seen as though our technology advancement is so quick and effective that in no time at all it will overtake society replacing most people’s job.

I know that some people may argue that the technology advancement we see are just there and they don’t really have anything to do with us going into a postmodern era. They may even say that we’re NOT even going into a period of postmodern and it’s just people over thinking the situation. All I have to say is that, this is just my personal opinion and who knows what is going to happen in the next decade or so.

Cat's Cradle

Okay, so first of all I would like to say that out of the few books we have read so far for AP. Literature this is my favorite. I really like how the chapters are so short so it keeps me interested and not bored wanting the chapter to be over.

Anyway, as far the book presenting postmodern themes, from what I’ve read in chapters 1-7 I’m not really seeing much until after these chapters. One of the first things I noticed as I was reading chapters 1-7 was the little comment Newt Hoenikker made in chapter 7. “There is love enough in this world for everybody, if people will just look. I am proof of that” (pg 18). This little comment already shows that this book is not like the previous one we read at all. It shows that the people in this novel actually have emotion and their emotions do affect them. They are nothing like the people of Brave New World.

However, out of the characters I’ve read about so far, not all of them show this kind of emotion. So far, it seems like Felix Hoenikker is the one showing the most postmodern behaviors. He is portrayed as someone who doesn’t really interact much with others or so much interest in many things except his work. Also, even though Felix had kids, it was apparent that he didn’t really spend much time with them or even care about what they were doing most of the time. “He all of a sudden came out of his study and did something he’d never done before. He tried to play with me. Not only had le never played with me before; he had hardly ever even spoken to me” (pg 11-12). “Father stuck his head out the window, and he looked at Angela and me rolling on the ground, bawling, and Frank standing over us, laughing. The old man pulled his head indoors again, and never even asked later what all the fuss was about. People wasn’t his specialty” (pg 17). How is it a possible for a father to not even interact with their kids or even care about their kids safety? For Felix, it seems like to him the only thing that mattered was new knowledge and how to obtain it. He is the perfect depiction of postmodernism so far in the novel.

So I guess I’m about done now. I don’t really have much else to say about chapter 1-7 and since this blog is a Cat Cradle’s Chapters 1-7 Response, I’m all out of blogging ideas unless we talk about chapters 1-27. =]