The Negative Effects Of Technology In The Shallows By Nicholas Carr

In The Shallows by Nicholas Carr, Carr argues that technology negatively effects the way humans think and function. He believes that technology can reprogram the memory, mind, and concentration due to his personal experiences, as well as supporting evidence from research studies. In addition, he discusses the “plasticity” of the human brain, reading hardcopy vs. online, writing, and the detrimental effects of the internet on the brain. In the book The Shallows, Nicholas Carr argues that technology promotes superficial reading, alters the way individuals think, and stimulates cursory learning. Nicholas Carr shares his own experiences with technology and discusses the plasticity of the brain. He noticed that when he started using computers,

First, he provides an overview of the history and development of the book as well as the development of reading. Carr analyzes and explains the effects of these developments on the individuals. Furthermore, he notes that the Internet recreates and alters a medium’s content by the use of hyperlinks, which ultimately distracts readers, and by separating the content into organized chunks. These characteristics make the content “searchable” which stimulates skimming behavior or superficial reading. As a result, readers retain less information due to the lack of deep, analytical reading. In addition, online texts often incorporate opinions, beliefs, or skewed viewpoints of certain topics, which can have negative effects on readers. Carr also addresses that some opponents believe that hardcopy reading was a result of “impoverished access” (111) and that the desire to use the fast paced web is a result of a quickening pace of life and work over the past few

Individuals are forced to adapt to the function, as well as the form of technology when they use it. Individuals who use technology may lose a skill or a natural function performed by brain because technology is used as a replacement. Lastly, Carr states that neural mirroring is becoming evident in computer uses. He quotes, “neural ‘mirroring’ helps explain why we’re so quick to attribute human characteristics to our computers and computer characteristics to ourselves – why we hear a human voice when ELIZA speaks,”