Arguments in "Is Google making us Stupid" Social Sciences Essay

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Arguments in "Is Google making us Stupid"
INTRODUCTION
Since the dawn of technology, there have been numerous concerns about its effects on the mind of its users significantly. Is Google making us stupid is an article written by Nicholas Carr that evaluates the manner that the internet has affected the attention spans of people and also how it diminishes critical thinking. Carr (2) mentions that the constant use of the internet may harm the abilities of the users as they cannot gradually read more extended details and to comprehend deeper meanings from long and complicated articles. His overall argument that will be assessed is that technology has become a convenient manner for numerous individuals in obtaining information. Therefore Carr is afraid that this obsession with using the internet may negatively affect various cultures and also a person’s intelligence. The paper will highlight the manner that the author utilizes claims on why Google diminishes critical thinking. It will also provide examples on the how the author supports his arguments on this issue. The paper will finally illustrate the instances of persuasion applied by the author in making a successful argument concerning how Google makes its users stupid.
The author highlights several claims on the manner that the use of Internet search engines such as Google has reduced his ability of thinking critically. In Is Google making us stupid?, Carr indicated that ever since he started using the internet, his thought process diminished significantly as this was highly apparent when he was reading. Before he began utilizing search engines search engines such as Google, reading a lengthy article or a book was easy (Carr 2). However, this was rarely the case anymore as his concentration started drifting while reading a book or an article after a short period. As an author, he has discovered that the internet is valuable too; however, it has a negative implication on his concentration. This position is further highlighted when he provides an example of how his fellow writers have experienced similar changes when reading books and maintaining their attention effectively. The author reveals that he felt as though his brain had been reconstructed through reprogramming and remapping it. This is due to the reduction in critical thinking and a decrease in attention span (Carr 7). With the increased use of Google and the internet, people have traded the intelligence they have acquired to the superficial nature of the internet. Additionally, people have concluded that search engines such as Google have all the answers and therefore, some people never take enough time when conducting thorough research. All daily activities we engage in frequently have an impact on our brains in various ways. In most societies, Carr admitted that culturally, people read a lot more due to the vast amount of information found on the internet. However, our capacitates on interpreting a text and making essential mental connections that form from reading thoroughly without being distracted remains a significant challenge. Due to our insatiable demand for information, we have created superficial skimming, influential media and fast communication with the assistance of the internet. People currently want and need more (Carr 7). All these claims provided by the author in the article adequately highlight how the more people heavily utilize and rely on the internet, the more their critical thinking capacities will diminish.
The author supports his arguments by clearly illustrating the cause and effects of using Google. He accomplishes this by providing the detrimental impacts of how the use of Google affects its users. The author’s position here is that the use of hyperlinks by most internet users is another issue associated with attention spans. As people rely on the internet in mediating their comprehension of the world around them, their intelligence also flattens into artificial intelligence. In this area, the main problem lies with the internet users and all the internet does is expose their weaknesses. People currently seek online for new information and hyperlinks that allow them to jump from one website to another before they can fully understand the information at hand (Carr 13-14). This has only led to a fleeting attention span, and Carr effectively questions our freedom and restraint. The flexible aspect of the brain has been highly positive; however, the author highlights the negative implications of this element. Since our experiences shape our minds, we should be vigilant not to be enslaved by technology. In hi...