Car vs Cascio+Shirky

Kevin Wong

Persuasive Writing

7-28-2011

Internet Restores Reading and Writing

“Does the Internet Make You Smarter or Dumber” by Wall Street Journal’s Clay Shirky states that technologies actually increase the intellectual range and output of society. He also states that instead of removing reading and writing, it’s actually restoring it as “central activities in our culture.” These statements compliments Cascio’s essay in “Get Smarter”. Cascio states that humans are becoming so smart that they will no longer need to “rely on natural evolution to make us smart enough to survive. We can do it ourselves…” Cascio agrees that technology increases the intellectual range by having examples of several “primitive” drugs that increase awareness and thinking with “considerably more clarity and focus than usual.”

Nicholas Carr’s essay on “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” argues that technology is actually causing humans to become less intelligent, or to lose focus more quickly; specifically the internet. He uses several examples of other famous internet bloggers who have the same problem as he; unable to focus and to read long passages or paragraphs anymore. He also says that the rich mental connections that form when we read deeply and without distraction, remains largely disengaged; meaning that our inability to read deeply and without distraction will be out downfall.

If Cascio and Shirky is right that technology will actually increase the human brain’s capacity of knowledge, as I think they are, then we need to reassess the popular assumption that technology will cause humans to be unable to think deeply into a problem. In Cascio’s essay, he states that there are already drugs that are able to allow a human to stay away longer, be more aware and to be more focus than usual. If the progression of the drug increases, then there would definitely be no problem with humans being unable to stay on topic and being able to read deeply. Shirky emphasizes that new norms were created “around newly abundant and contemporary literature… increasing, rather than decreasing the intellectual range and output of society.” Carr talks about how new media causes everything to change, but does not include the possible positive effects that could come as a result. Shirky is right that with an increased freedom due to the media does create throwaway material, but it also makes “good new stuff possible.” These “good new stuff possible” are the possible positive effects that could come as a result.