Is the internet making people dumber?

Question

Do you think having nearly instant access to the information we want is making us dumber as a result?

Answer 1

Well, I don't think it is making society "dumber", but I do think it is making us less dependent on ourselves. Intelligence is a product of genetics, environment, and effort. For example: Most trigonometry problems can now be done with a calculator, therefore, I think more people can now do a trigonometry problem...but what happens if they do not have the calculator. Convenience has made our society lazier, but the Internet gives us access to a much broader perspective than before. Creative ways to solve problems have been replaced with a push of a button.

Answer 2

I think it makes people lazy but not necessarily dumber.

Now people are less likely to go down to the library, sift through card catalogs, find a book, and spend hours sitting and reading in a quiet sterile room just to find out something they can quickly research online from their home in a matter of minutes. The problem is it makes learning "convenient" but you still need to know how to find it.

The internet is just a tool. With it you can grab nearly any information you want from all over the world. It's rather amazing if you really think about the amount of content available. It's just up to the user to find out how to use it and use it effectively to educate themselves.

It clearly has the potential to educate people in ways that were never possible 10-15 years ago, but the problem is there are a lot of people who don't know how to search "properly" yet to make it an effective learning tool for them. Also there's so much junk is out there that they aren't able to sift what's real from what's fluff and heresay.

I think the human mind becomes sort of like a Wikipedia on here. We can get all this information from everywhere but still we need to stay alert and filter out the BS. If you get too lazy and just take anything you read off the internet as fact, then it's not the result of being dumb, just too lazy to delve deeper into the vast sea of knowledge that is on the web.

Answer 3

A couple months ago a would have said no. I still say no to instant access isn't the problem. It's the instant access that is the problem. People don't have to go library think what category, get the right section by author or...wasn't easy when you learned it the old was is it people. no you just go click, click. I'm still on dial up but I use Dads dsl and it's like bam your their . cut copy paste let Microsoft word do your work for you and give appropriate credit and homework done. I can remember at times spending hours just looking up the information and then having to write it down my answer is definitely YES.

Answer 4

How can instant access to information make people dumber? It makes them wiser. Unfortunately some become "extremely wise" to do some stupid things. That's the problem.

Answer 5

I believe what you use the internet for determines this. Someone who spends hours on IM or myspace I do believe is suffering intellectually, but on the other hand there are people who use it to actually learn things. Without the internet I feel I would be far dumber it has allowed me to learn so many things, and challenge myself.

Answer 6

You still have to think up the correct search terms.

I learned a LOT by reading search results that did not necessarily pertain to the original issue being researched.

I believe 'instant access' facilitates our ability to reach conclusions faster regarding higher level questions. We therefore are capable of making better and faster decisions, thus helping us to work more productively.

But if you never challenge your brain, you know what they say "if you don't use it, your lose it..."

Answer 7

I heard somewhere that the current generation has poorer memory than generations past... but we're better at finding and gathering information. So no, we're not necessarily getting dumber.

Rather, more and more people are PROVING to the rest of us that they are dumb. Before the internet, idiots went relitavely unnoticed, unless they were in government. Today, the internet makes it easier to spot the morons. The bad spelling and grammar (and idiotic questions and answers on this site) make it painfully obvious who is painfully moronic.

Answer 8

I think the amount of misinformation on the Internet is making some people dumb.

I think the use of computers/calculators has made people dumb when it comes to simple math.

Answer 9

It depends on how they use it. Sometimes it comes in very handy. However, I do think the internet is more often a distraction than a benefit.

Answer 10

I think it's making them "socially" dumber.