ipl-logo

Nicholas Carr The Shallows Analysis

507 Words3 Pages

How does technology take a toll on our minds through the increase of information from media? How does this affect the way we live our everyday lives? Nicholas Carr the writer of The shallows says that he thinks the internet is affecting the way our minds work, and it does in fact affect our everyday life. Throughout his book he uses personal experiences in other studies people have done in the past to support his argument. One of his personal experiences with how the Internet affects us is shown in chapter 1 “ I now have almost totally lost the ability to read and absorb a longish article on the web or in print.”Carr, (7). This gives a personal experience of someone who is personally affected by the Internet changing the way he thinks and lives his life. Throughout this chapter he gives many more examples of how the Internet is affecting his reading ability and comprehension. …show more content…

This gives evidence that the Internet does have a very large impact on the people today in the future generations to come. The impact of technology isn’t all bad it can help with keeping your mind sharp as stated in chapter 7 “ engages so many brain functions, may help keep older people's mind sharp.” Carr, (116) With this information we know the Internet can do good but keeping him on sharp in our old age. This affects the way we move our everyday lives by using the correct tools of technology to our advantage, and learning to sculpt our minds in a good

Show More
Related
971 Words | 4 Pages

He admits “The web has been a godsend to me as a writer.” He then goes on to list all of the ways that it has helped him in his profession. Carr says that he is able to research in minutes, and he no longer has to spend as much time looking for information. He shows that he too relies on the internet. If he claims that the internet has changed the way he thinks because he spends so much time on it, the reader may then begin to think about whether their behaviors and critical thinking abilities have changed from extended internet usage as

Read More
649 Words | 3 Pages

In the text, Carr brings up various forms of evidence that the internet is having an effect on the way that we think and the way that we

Read More
1558 Words | 7 Pages

He includes stories from organizations such as The New York Times and prominent figures who have had negative side effects including an ignorant attention span due to the Internet. Based on Carr’s essay, it can be said that we are a very distracted set of species. For example, scholars from the University of London conducted a study regarding the outcomes of research practices and their results showed that humans “typically read no more than one or two pages of an article or book before they would ‘bounce’ out to another site” (Carr 574). Based on this, it’s evident that we are, in fact, distracted and we “go online to avoid reading in a traditional sense” (574). Nicholas Carr's justified argument elucidates that media shapes the way we think and process information, which increases a high dependency on one source, a race with time, information distribution, and the inability to read printed

Read More
744 Words | 3 Pages

While it is true that internet is changing the way we think, but it is not making us stupid. The author speaks that he is not the only one, and that his friends have the same problems. For them it is hard to concentrate in long readings. “The more they use the Web, the more they have to fight to stay focused” (Carr 573).

Read More
643 Words | 3 Pages

In The Atlantic “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” by Nicholas Carr notifies us on the ways that technology is effecting our brains in a negative way. This article starts off by talking about the internet and how it is and can be the source for almost anything. That being said, we are becoming defenseless on technology in things like work, reading, and writing. This article demands that this technology is a very big disturbance in our lives. We practically live off of this technology and commonly this media has to live up to the expectations, which us, as the audience have everything handed to us.

Read More
1006 Words | 5 Pages

The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains The Shallows by Nicholas Carr demonstrates how the internet has been combined to our everyday lives, as well as altering our brain and the way we think. Carr’s goal is to assist his readers understanding of the significance that the internet has on people’s individuality. Carr emphasizes the fear that the internet is doing harm to the brain. He uses historical and scientific studies to prove that the internet is transforming our brain.

Read More
696 Words | 3 Pages

In today’s society, technology plays a very important role in its ability to function, it helps people find information, communicate with others far away and provides entertainment. In “Fahrenheit 451”, a book written by Ray Bradbury, a dystopian future where books have been made illegal is presented. In the article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” by Nicholas Carr, raises many questions about technology and its effects on society. It’s quite evident that we have become quite dependent on technology due to our overconsumption of it.

Read More
749 Words | 3 Pages

In The Shallows, on page 199, it says, "Although even the initial users of the technology can often sense the changes in their patterns of attention, cognition, and memory as their brains adapt to the new medium, the most profound shifts play out more slowly, over several generations, as the technology becomes ever more embedded in work, leisure, and education- in all the norms and practices that define a society and its culture. " The more technology is involved in their everyday lives, the more it will change how they think and do daily activities. These technologies have impacted their ability to think critically, remember information, and engage with others. According to Clifford Nass, "They're terrible at ignoring irrelevant information; they're terrible at keeping the information in their head nicely and neatly organized; and they're terrible at switching from one task to another. "

Read More
508 Words | 3 Pages

Society's perception of the world has changed as a result of the new options provided by digital technology. In his book The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to our Brains, Harvard-educated writer Nicholas Carr analyzes how contemporary technologies are affecting how people think. He offers insight into the psychological ramifications of each technological advancement throughout history and how culture has influenced how society goes about its daily business. In order to demonstrate how negatively digital technology is affecting our brains, he contrasts its impacts with those of earlier technologies like reading, writing, books, and calculators. Due to their over-reliance on the internet, people have allowed themselves to become cognitively

Read More
2389 Words | 10 Pages

The book, The Shallows, by Nicholas Carr is a very interesting piece of writing. A book that is supposed to be directed to what the ‘internet doing to our brains’ takes a lot of turns in other directions. The most apparent idea from the book, is that new things are damaging to our minds. Dating all the way back to the printing press, “innovation”, has been slowly hurting the way we live.

Read More
271 Words | 2 Pages

Nicholas Carr, What the Internet is doing to Our Brains The Shallows (2010) asserts that, “The price we pay to assume technology’s power is alienation.” He supports this assertion by saying, “They both ultimately achieve their mental and behavioral effects by shaping the synaptic organization of the brain.” Also by, “ We long to keep it activated.” The writer concludes in order for people to improve their thoughts, they will have to cope with the new technology and how they think. Carr believes that technology is taking over how people interact with each other.

Read More
1621 Words | 7 Pages

He ultimately claims that although there are many benefits that can come from using the Internet, it is harming our brains and changing the way we process information, read, write, remember, and do everything. When it comes to reading, whether it be news, fiction, literature, science, history, articles, or the like, reading on the Web is inherently different from reading from a physical printed book, magazine, or newspaper. Both the Net and print have many advantages and disadvantages. For example, the Net provides a wider range of access to information than a book does, however, the book provides a linear way of thinking and reading, whereas the Net causes non-linear thinking (Carr 104). The primary disadvantage of reading on the Internet is distractions.

Read More
434 Words | 2 Pages

Our way of thinking is beginning to change to the way that computers do. Advancements are made everyday. These new advancements are attempting to make life in general easier for everyone. Nicholas Carr makes the claim that, “as the internet because our primary source of the information it is affecting our ability to read books and other long narratives.” Carr suggests that using the internet is altering the way that our minds operate.

Read More
492 Words | 2 Pages

He starts his argument by telling us the effect the internet has had on him and others he has come across. The internet has changed his train of thought and his ability to focus and concentrate. He believes our brains have been reprogramed over time to adjust to the speed and convenience of the internet. Our ability to retain and digest traditional media has also been compromised since we are used to receiving information so rapidly. This is a strong opening argument for his essay.

Read More
1004 Words | 5 Pages

Nicholas Carr's argument against the internet was very strong, and it persuaded me. It is very difficult for me to go against his opinion. I agree that the internet is changing us, but not in ways we think. There are long-term effects of using the internet as often as we do. He states that the internet is changing the way our brains function such as having a shorter attention span, negatively changing the way we critically think, and negatively changing our reading skills.

Read More

More about Nicholas Carr The Shallows Analysis

Related Topics

Open Document