On “Pancake People” - or - Are Skimmers Really Stoopid?
In a fascinating and compelling cover article in this month’s Atlantic magazine called “Is Google Making Us Stoopid?” Nicholas Carr writes:
“My mind now expects to take in information the way the Net distributes it: in a swiftly moving stream of particles. Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski.”
He goes on to say that years of using “the Net” has begun to effect the way our (extremely malleable) brains are actually wired - and we’re reprogramming the neural network within our heads every time we go online. I’m in agreeance.
He goes on to cite historical changes in technology that have affected the brain - the printing press, the clock, the advent of Turing’s efficiency studies… in a very, very cool article.
I first heard of it from a friend who (ironically) hadn’t read the whole thing. I ran out and bought the publication in order to read it at my leisure (which could also be deemed ironic). I did read it all, and it’s both insightful and slightly frightening at the same time. Read it to find out why…
Meanwhile, my favorite quote from deep within the framework of the pages:
As we are drained of our “inner repertory of dense cultural inheritance,” Foreman concluded, we risk turning into “‘pancake people’—spread wide and thin as we connect with that vast network of information accessed by the mere touch of a button.”
I am, indeed, a “pancake person,” spread wide and thin. But I’m not stoopid. Maybe just stuffed.
Hi Janet,
I finally finished the article, thanks to the link in your post. Even though it was hard work getting through all that information, I have to admit, it was worth it.
I love the information onslaught that is the net, but I admit it can lead to snap judgements, unthought out conclusions, and bad ideas if not used wisely.
I think the moral of this story is to use discernment on all information you gather. Even when I was a kid reading books (before the Internet), my Dad used to say, “don’t believe everything you read, just because it’s in a book.” Good advice for all of us who use the info we see on the Internet. Double check, verify, go deep when necessary, and think independently!!!
Hey Kris,
I’m so happy to hear you made it through the whole thing! You’re right, go deep when necessary, and always think independently!
Cheers,
JLJ