Reading Response 4 :)

Nick Carr Reading Response

I think one of the strongest claims in Nick Carr’s article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” is when he says, “The human brain is almost infinitely malleable.” He was referring to his earlier example of writing with a type writer compared to hand written and how he thought differently. His main point in the article seems to be our concentration and attention span. He gives the example of him not being about to read large sums at once. He starts to basically blame this on technology. The internet makes everything easier to get to faster. It seems as though he believes that this fast based technology is changing the way we think altogether. With every new technology comes new ways of thinking and Carr gives examples from the clock to the internet. I think this is an important claim because it seems to link all of his examples together.
Another strong claim in Carr’s article would have to be when he says, “Wolf worries that the style of reading promoted by the Net, a style that puts “efficiency” and “immediacy” above all else, may be weakening our capacity for the kind of deep reading that emerged when an earlier technology, the printing press, made long and complex works of prose commonplace. When we read online, she says, we tend to become “mere decoders of information.” Our ability to interpret text, to make the rich mental connections that form when we read deeply and without distraction, remains largely disengaged.” This again goes back to the other quote I used earlier but strengthens it. It goes back to the main concept that the internet is changing our minds, and the way we think. I think this was a claim but it was also part of the evidence for the first quote that I used. It explains how are brains are malleable and supports the claim with authority.
Although I agree with Carr up to a point, I cannot accept his overall conclusion that the internet is to blame completely. I think there are many other contributing factors besides internet. It seems to me that everything nowadays is fast paced not just the computer. Driving now is scary. Going the speed limit is “slow driving”. Everything has to be done quickly and nobody stops moving. It is more than just the concentrating on reading. Can we blame this fast-paced lifestyle solely on the internet?