Intellectual Slaves to the Internet

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Recommended: reflection about Neuroplasticity

These changes in the brain are related to its neuroplasticity. According to Nicolas Carr in The Shallows neuroplasticity is how our brains processes and reacts to information as it has been trained to do (Carr, 2010, p. 120). The Internet is causing major changes in the plasticity of the brain. Many studies have found that, “plasticity not only of adult brain function, but brain composition as well is proven to show that consistent use of the brain in particular ways strengthens the neurological pathways and modes of thought conducive to those activities” (Murray, 2013, p. 74). Meaning that those areas of the brain we use more become stronger and over power other parts of the brain. This is what the Internet is altering in our brains. Agreeing with Carr, Emily Mandel says, “I began to realize that after all this time on the Internet, I’d trained my brain to expect a new stimulation every few minutes” (2010). She began to notice her brain thinking differently because of the Internets training. She gives an example of this change when she says, “After a short period of concentration on a given task, my brain would do what I’d trained it to do; it would turn its attention to something else” (Mandel, 2010). She found she could only concentrate for a short periods of time due to her brain training. The Internet with all of its information and ads trains our brains to quickly skim something and move on to the next snippet of information.
Due to the distractive nature of the Internet, people’s memory is decreasing which further decreases intelligence. The Internet is made up of ads and links that draw attention from the desired information, making it difficult to concentrate on what is really important. Murray points out that, “ It is ...

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... African schools: a first probe." South African Journal Of Education 23.3 (2006): 246-252. Print.
Strickland, J. (n.d.). What is the future of the Internet?. HowStuffWorks. Retrieved March 25, 2014, from http://computer.howstuffworks.com/future-of-the-internet2.htm
Szalavitz, M. (2012, March 14). Do E-Books Make It Harder to Remember What You Just Read? | TIME.com. Time. Retrieved March 27, 2014, from http://healthland.time.com/2012/03/14/do-e-books-impair-memory/ week-online-texting-092010569.html W.W. Cohen, P. (2011, July 14). Internet Use Affects How We Remember. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/15/health/15memory.html?_r=0
Yu, H., Zhao, X., Li, N., Wang, M., & Zhou, P. (October 10, 2009). Effect of excessive Internet use on the time-frequency characteristic of EEG. Progress in Natural Science, 19, 10, 1383-1387.

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