I’m happy to report that my essay Is Google Making Us Stupid?, which appeared last year in The Atlantic, has been selected for inclusion in three anthologies: The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2009, edited by Elizabeth Kolbert; The Best Technology Writing 2009, edited by Steven Johnson; and The Best Spiritual Writing 2010, edited by Philip Zaleski. The first two anthologies are available now; the third will be published early next year.
“Is Google Making Us Stupid?” also appears in the new edition of the popular textbook Writing Logically, Thinking Critically.
great piece of reflective thinking!i haven’t realised that indeed i am used with the 500 words lenght articles….and this made reading yours quite a challenge :-) ; excelllent food for thought! thanks for taking the time to elaborate it, mia
Re: your inclusion in Writing Logically, Thinking Critically.
I am not surprised at all :-) Whenever I hear people speak disparagingly about the level of online discussion and lack of critical thought, I always refer them to your blog.
Great read, Nick. Not sure what impressed me more, the fact that I made it through the read or that you made it through it’s writing. For us lesser literary lights, I think email represents a latter day manifestation of Nietzsche’s typewriter, and one can only imagine the full scope of the Twitter-effect. Thanks for maintaining an oasis in the desert that is today’s written communication.
Congratulations, Nick. The perceptiveness of that piece is even more obvious now than when it was originally published.
In my personal opinion the title of this article was a cheap tactic to get reader attention, as nowhere in the article does the author address the issue presented in the title. Yes, you have shown us studies that prove that brain patterns change as we use process information in different forms, but how does that mean Google (in particular) is making us stupid?
Apart from the fact that the article did not address the title, it was a good piece of reflective writing – very thought provoking and intriguing. I also have to say I applaud you for including the line, “ So yes, you should be skeptical of my skepticism.” This line made the whole article a worthy read.
The magazine editors, not the author, chose the title.
And a darn good one it was.
I wouldn’t go as far as saying that Google is making us stupid, it seems more like Google is making us lazy. While at the same time it’s helping us save time, and maybe help our multi-tasking skills. In my opinion I believe it has a lot to do with the certain person whether in fact Google is making them stupid or no. Although I do question whether staring at a light screen for long periods of time can affect brain activity.