Sample Notes

Prompt: Take a position that defends, argues, or challenges the claim that the internet is making society more informed.

A. Directions:

The following prompt is based on the accompanying six sources.  This question requires you to integrate a variety of sources into a coherent, well-written essay. Refer to the sources to support your position; avoid mere paraphrase or summary.  Your argument should be central; the sources should support this argument. Remember to attribute both direct and indirect citations.

B. Introduction (Context & Perspectives)

        The information age has provided smartphones, tablets, laptops and more providing instant accessibility to information. With this accessibility comes convenience, the fact that information is easy to carry around and find. Adding to this picture is the ideas gained from technological ideas as they give us access to knowledge on various levels from the personal to the global. With all this to consider, the process of how and what is occurring has presented with two views. Advocates claim the growth of technology has contributed to making us smarter while critics argue that the “knowledge” gleaned from the “information age” may be only an argument on paper and not in reality, in fact, claiming the technology is weakening our minds.

C. Assignment (Task)

 Read the following sources (including any introductory information) carefully. Then, in an essay that synthesizes at least three of the sources for support, take a position that defends, challenges, or qualifies the claim that the “information age” is making us smarter.

D. List the sources you will use by author’s last name or organization.

Refer to the sources as Source A, Source B, etc.; titles are included for your convenience.

 Source A (Einstein)

Source B (Carr)

Source C (Kallayil)

Source D (Pappas)

Source E (Pinker)

Source F (Williams)

Internet: Ignorance or Bliss?

With the tap of a few buttons, a couple of keystrokes, or some clicks here or there, anyone can become an expert in any field- so long as there’s service, that is. With the advent of personal technological devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops, society has gained more access to information, with greater mobility, than ever before. What once lay hidden between fine-print lines in an antiquated encyclopedia is now no more than a Google search away. With the internet nestled safely in our pockets and our purses, society should be aware of issues ranging from a community level to a global perspective, and largely thanks to the spread of information via various media outlets. However, this is simply not the case, and the question now is whether the overwhelming access to media does more to make society ignorant than informed. The “information age” may be in need for a name change.

Perhaps the simplest way in which access to media and technology has encouraged ignorance is in the false confidence and illusions of intelligence that it creates. Searching the web is far faster than the alternative of browsing through books, and this speed means that it’s more efficient (and far easier) to simply Google a topic than to commit information to memory. Of course, the speed that is gained comes at a price. Quick searches and skimming online articles might be enough to glean information for a general idea, however the deep thought and discussion necessary for higher level understanding is neglected. Ultimately, information, simple facts and data, is not the same as knowledge, which involves personal experience and application of those facts. Whereas information can be shared, transferred, and posted online, one cannot simply download knowledge. Albert Einstein, theoretical physicist, simply stated that “information is not knowledge,” a belief shared by poet and playwright, T. S. Elliot:

Where is the Life we have lost in living? Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?

From these notable and greatly influential minds, it is clear that information and knowledge not only have vast differences, but values. So while the internet and technology may be a modern update to bookshelf after bookshelf in a library, the psychological and physical effects it creates as a consequence are far different.

Not only has extensive internet use altered our perceived intelligence, studies show that our brains are adapting, but not necessarily for the better. Numerous professors and scientists have researched the effects of the internet on the brain. According to studies, as a result of information overload- the onslaught of hyperlinks and filler information- our capacity for cogitative thought has deteriorated (Williams). It gets worse, Janna Anderson, director of Elon's Imagining the Internet Center, found that the ability to focus, levels of patience, and deep thought in young adults are deficient. (Pappas) Though there’s no clear consensus, the argument by some that screen-based technologies have encouraged spatial and visual capabilities and replaced the need for memorization with the room for potential analysis, gives little comfort when compared to the grim report by Oxford University professor of Synaptic Pharmacology, Susan Greenfield:

Our growing use of the Internet...has led to... a weakening of our capacity for deep processing...mindful knowledge acquisition, inductive analysis, critical thinking, imagination and reflection... (Williams).

With these largely negative effects, what of all the multitasking not only capable with, but advertised by technological products?

Multitasking is a misnomer. Rather than balance multiple jobs at once, the brain switches back and forth between them, often resulting in worsened quality and attention. Gopi Kallayil, an employee at Google, explained during a lecture the importance of creating priorities and managing online usage because of the inefficiencies that occur when people juggle using their phone, their computers, and their brains. Studies at Stanford University back this statement. People who do lots of media multitasking and those who do not were given cognitive tests. In comparison, those who were “heavy multitaskers” did very poorly and were “more easily distracted, had less control over their attention, and were much less able to distinguish important information from trivia” (Carr). Nicolas Carr, esteemed columnist and technological writer, summarized the comparisons:

People who are continually distracted by emails, updates and other messages understand less than those who are able to concentrate. And people who juggle many tasks are often less creative and less productive than those who do one thing at a time.

Despite the intuitive feeling that more is being done, research proves that multitasking, especially with technology- checking texts while typing essays and watching the news on tv for example- research proves again and again that it is detrimental to productive work and high quality results. While this might not be “ignorance”, it certainly brings society further from education and intelligence than toward it.

                The ultimate question in the ignorance versus intelligence battle, is whether the technological age is stifling creative and scientific thought or nurturing it. Steven Pinker, Professor of Psychology at Harvard University defends the efficiency and usefulness of resources such as PowerPoint and Google, reminding critics that research and reasoning are not automatic results that come from flipping through pages of a encyclopedia, nor are lost from finding the same information online. Now, the physical changes made to our brains as well as the troubles of multitasking come together, as Carr states that “our brains can’t forge the strong and expansive neural connections that give distinctiveness and depth to our thinking. Our thoughts become disjointed, our memories weak.” This weakening of connections greatly hinders not only the learning process, but the process of creation and imagination. Greenfield describes mid-21st century minds as infantilized, unable to empathize, and lacking identity. What little hope is left is minutely encouraged by the theory that activity once dedicated to rote memorization can now be spent in deeper thought (Pappas). However, as is often the case, ability does not guarantee action.

Technology is ever evolving as advancements, rapidly thrust upon consumers, are deemed obsolete nearly as quickly as they came. In one hand we can check our emails, the other, the weather. Computers, phones, tablets, and other technological devices and media outlets have truly linked the world. Social media sites and search engines alike have profoundly changed communication and education. However, these changes have not all been positive. Though the “Apples” of his day were merely fruit grown on trees, the Roman philosopher and statesman, Seneca, was all too relevant with his observation: “To be everywhere is to be nowhere.” The overwhelming access to technology provides easy access to information, however it’s not guaranteed to be relevant, and that overload often inhibits the ability to filter for valuable information and desensitizes audiences to critical issues. Studies and research disagree in some areas, but one thing is for sure- yes, we live in an information age, and yes, we have a world of knowledge at our fingertips, but the way technology...and our brains...are changing, we may soon find only ignorance at hand.

Works Cited

1. "Albert Einstein." BrainyQuote.com. Xplore Inc, 2012. 10 April. 2012.

2. Carr, Nicholas. "How the Internet Is Making Us Stupid." The Telegraph. The Telegraph, 27 Aug. 2010. Web. 22 Mar. 2012. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/7967894/How-the-Internet-is-making-us-stupid.html>.

3. Connecting the Internet to the Inner-net. Perf. Gopi Kallayil. YouTube. YouTube, 21 Mar. 2011. Web. 18 Apr. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3svV1S-VEw4>.

4. Pappas, Stephanie. "Discovery News." Discovery
News. LiveScience, 29 Feb. 2012.
Web. 23 Mar. 2012.
<http://news.discovery.com/human/brain-internet-smart-stupid-dumb-expert-120229.html>.

5. Pinker, Steven. "Mind Over Mass Media." Editorial. The New York Times [Truro, Massachusetts] 11 June 2010, New York Edition ed.: A31. NY Times.
The New York Times. Web. 12 Apr. 2012.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/opinion/11Pinker.html>.

6. Williams, Ray. "Is the Internet Making Us Dumber?" Editorial. Is the Internet Making Us Dumber? Psychology Today, 19 July 2011. Web. 14 Mar.
2012.
<http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-success/201107/is-the-internet-making-us-dumber>.