This assignment was focused on answering the question “Is the internet shortening our attention?”. It started off by reading 11 articles on our brain, multitasking, improving focus, effects of the internet, and much more. Following this, we watched a lecture video by professor Gernsbacher, titled “How Is The Internet Affecting Our Attention”. Finally, we had to make a discussion board post in which we discussed one of the main points from the lecture video, referring to different articles or videos from the assignment that are relevant to that specific point.
Rather than explaining all of the separate articles, I think it is more important to reveal the 12 main points of the lecture video we watched. The first few points are that every technological invention has been feared to distract our attention and ruin our memories, everything we do affects our brains but it’s unlikely that the Internet is rewiring our brains, there’s no evidence that our attentional spans have decreased or increased over the past several decades, because specific efforts to train attention usually result in only specific gains on the specific skill being trained, and because other human inventions, such as reading, which have been around a lot longer, have not rewired the human brain.
Adding on to this, millennials are no better at multi-tasking than Baby Boomers, millennials are better at many single tasks, but they are not proportionally better at multitasking, people who think they are better at multi-tasking usually aren’t, the more similar two tasks are, the more difficult they are to do together, so texting, which requires visual attention, and walking, which also requires visual attention are not good candidates for multi-tasking, and texting and driving are even worse. Finally, taking short, controlled breaks on the internet improves attention.
For my discussion board post, the point from Professor Gernsbacher’s lecture video that I chose to expand upon was “While it’s true that everything we do affects our brains, it’s unlikely that the Internet is rewiring our brains”. In the video, she explains that even though humans have been reading for hundreds of years, it has not rewired the human brain. There are not any reading specific circuits that have been created to handle reading. In turn, the internet, which is much more recent, has likely not rewired our brains, and probably never will.
However, it is important to note that everything we do affects our brains, and there are three relevant articles that relate to this point. Muhunthan’s article describes the concept of neuroplasticity, and how everything makes an impact on our neural circuitry. Stafford’s article touches on the same concept, echoing that everything we do changes our brain, even something as simple as just having a cup of tea. Kane’s article takes an approach to apply this concept, explaining that by the time we finish reading his article, our brains will never be the same.
So, thinking about this overall point, it is somewhat fascinating to think about. Every thing we think about or do in everyday life affects our brain, which is kind of mind blowing to really consider. However, even though everything impacts the brain, most things don’t rewire the brain. They are minor changes that take place over time, so we don’t have to worry that one tiny decision will change everything in our brain.
Reflecting on this assignment, there were a ton of different articles to read, which was a bit annoying. However, at least different topics were covered in different articles, for the most part. Reading this many articles allowed me to obtain a holistic perspective on how the internet effects us and our attention. Although there were many articles, it was nice that most of them were shorter and to the point.
Additionally, I really liked how professor Gernsbacher’s video explained all of her points in depth at first, and then ended with a list of those main points. I always enjoy her stories about the past, and what things were like when she was growing up, and then she relates it to today and to the course material. The list of points at the end is significant because while hearing about a bunch of different topics, some can be easily forgotten, so the list at the end provides another chance to take in each piece of information.
Also, I liked how we got to choose 1 of the points from the video to reflect on in depth, rather than having to touch on multiple. This allowed me to go back and survey the articles to find relevant information, and relate it to things that were explained in the lecture video. It also allowed me to really feel confident on that specific point, so I will be also able to retain that information further into the future.
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