Summary and Response to Artifact 3

The central issue in Nicholas Carr's book, The Shallows: What The Internet Is Doing To Our Brains, questions whether we are sacrificing our ability to read and think deeply while online. Carr argues that intellectual technologies such as the internet have dramatically affected what information flows from our short term memory to the distinctive depths of our long term memory. Carr emphasizes that being focused on one singular act is a very unnatural thing for people in today's society, however the book is one tool that still promotes deep processing, reflection, introspection, and critical thinking. It is the simplicity of the book, the rather static nature of the paperback that does not diminish our ability to concentrate on the text in front of us. On the contrary the internet is rather dynamic in nature and this is evident in its overall structure as a hypertech system. On any given page internet users are subjected to various advertisements, multimedia, and hyperlinks; therefore increasing the chances of its users to be interrupted or distracted. Carr acknowledges that the internet has fostered great creativity as well as productivity but in doing so it has also generated a nation of multitaskers.  Due to the popularity of the internet,  millions of people across the world now suffer from the restless energy of a haunted mind  People are always looking ahead to the next task/assignment, checking their emails, blogging, and tweeting. Carr doesn't refute the power of the internet and its ability to keep people connected but he does complain that dialogue between individuals has become much shorter.  For example, Carr critiques Twitter and the 140 character limit it allows for its posts. Carr claims that the constraints that social network sites put on texts in addition to the growing norm/perception that CMC must be diminutive, adds to his growing concerns that the internet can be fingered as the main culprit as to why so many people lack quality reading comprehension skills. Carr concludes by reminding us that although the internet may appear to have a hold over us, we still have the power to break free and become untangled from its web. Most of us cannot escape the internet because of work and school related obligations but we are not forced
into shifting the emphasis of how we read, write, or think. When we are online we can maintain a singular focus. We don't have to click on that pop-up or watch the most uploaded video on Youtube. According to Carr we must maintain a certain balance between our connected existence and the time we spend in solitude (contemplation). Carr believes that when we are disconnected we are more likely to be calmer and more attentive, therefore allowing us not only think rationally but act in that manner as well.
For the most Nicholas Carr made a strong logical argument. I agreed largely in part on his theory about the shrinking size of the text we post either through CMC. On the other hand I don't credit the internet and its various distractions with diminishing my ability to process information and store it in my long term memory bank. If anything I credit the internet for generating a curiosity/buzz about books that will make me go out and read them. I can honestly say that every book that  I've read outside the classroom, I heard about it on the internet through various blogs or articles. In that sense the internet aided me in the process of sitting down and focusing my attention on one singular purpose, instead of otherwise being on the phone or in front of the television.