Research has shown that the brain is being changed and is adapting to the internet. Studies have found that the brains that were tested showed more activity when reading and searching the internet than when reading a book. Gary Small, the researcher who is responsible for the research, claims that while the brain is being proven to be more active while searching the internet, it is changing social interaction. He states, “but at the costs of subtle skills [are] picking up facial nuances of facial expressions. He also claims that the growth of the internet will change our children’s brains. They will adapt to the development of the internet. Younger brains are more malleable, more plastic, and more advent to change. I suppose only time will the to see how the internet will change the development of the generations to come. Time will tell how our childrens’ brains will adapt to the internet. Since the internet has been proven to stimulate brain activity more, what positives are left in the use of books? After the internet establishes access to all the books known to man (internet library), will authors still publish their books? Or will books be presented as artifactual objects?
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article5014746.ece
4 Comments
October 27, 2008 at 12:14 pm
The use of books is diminishing as technology continues to improve. The reason being is that those same books are now available online. However, books are still far from being of no use. Until all books are available online, books will continue to be used worldwide. Although the Internet is much more efficient than books, books are easier to read and are less to handle. For example, few people would rather read from their laptops instead of a book or magazine on a plane or while laying in bed. Once the Internet Library is available, authors should continue to publish their books but their sales will likely decrease. I believe the Internet Library will be used as a supplement or extra dimension to books rather than a pure replacement. Though, a pure replacement of books may be true hundreds of years from now.
October 28, 2008 at 4:43 pm
I think this is one of the biggest concerns with the internet. Although there is an increase of books downloaded online and people using the internet for research and things like this, there is also a very large use of books from actual libraries and stores like Barnes and Noble and Borders are still popular as ever. I think authors should definitely continue to publish their books because if they don’t its basically like giving up hope and not even giving true book lovers a change to do what they love. I think it is a little far-fetched that books will entirely be replaced as well and I don’t see this happening anytime soon.
October 30, 2008 at 5:24 pm
Wow. This is very interesting. I never thought of it this way, but i now am starting to realize how true this may actually be. The fact that the internet is a widely used source in this country makes it one that most people can relate to and one that the brain can become used to as well. Books are no longer our primary source of intrigue or entertainment and thus the brain doesnt react as much when one is reading a book. Even i find that reading no longer interests me as it used to many years ago; and although this may be due to other factors and stresses i also believe that the internet and my fascination with things online helps to divert my attention from tangible books. For instance, I’d even rather read a book online than on paper!
November 2, 2008 at 11:16 pm
In my opinion, it was only a matter of time before the internet would be so dominate as to actually affect the minds of adolescents/individuals in society today. Books have already been slowly drawn out of the intellectual and scholarly world, and the internet and its sources brought in. Throughout an individual’s years of education, the internet is more used than the textbook, and online research becomes an active source of learning. I personally would prefer books, but in comparison to students in 10 years from now, they will most likely have a definite preference to online activities and internet sources instead of true reading. However, this is the direction technological innovations are moving, and it is the direction society as a whole is moving.