tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6538917798088258920.post8938314163219440201..comments2008-11-13T11:36:43.986-08:00Comments on PsychoBabble: The Brain: Improved by the Internet?Emily Oettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16657334753349750268noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6538917798088258920.post-60276681283685725352008-11-13T11:36:00.000-08:002008-11-13T11:36:00.000-08:00It is difficult, at most optimistic, to tell what ...It is difficult, at most optimistic, to tell what the long term effects of living in a digital age will be, and whether these findings indicate brain activity that is “good” or simply “different.” I think that the findings must be further studied to find out what we can do to keep the next generations from relying wholly on the internet. I am of the unique age group who came into my own at the same time that the internet was doing the same thing. In essence, I grew up as the internet was growing up. Kids who are being born today are being thrown into a world of information that may be too big for them to handle. Do you think that this will affect these children in a positive or negative way? I know that in my very life I have noticed a sort of “google syndrome” outlined by Clive Thompson. Truthfully the only phone numbers I still know by heart are those of my 7th-8th grade friends. Is this a travesty? Or am I freeing up that brain concentration for new things? Which is more important, knowing answers or knowing how to find answers? <BR/><BR/>This post addresses in a scientific way, and almost inadvertently, a very serious Issue regarding how technology changes the social interactions of humankind. We change, our society evolves, and at our very core, we are different people based on technological advances throughout history. I’m sure that as the television, radio, automobiles, even electricity itself was emerging there were similar societal issues regarding generational responses. Though, I can’t imagine that any affect people at the cerebral level of the internet. It is an important undertaking to learn the effects of internet, as the more we learn, the more we can shape our children’s education and upbringing in the developmentally positive way. My only fear is that with studies like these we may be opening Pandora’s Box to find a never-ending field of study.Michael Eckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11495962993802126963noreply@blogger.com