Are Their Exceptions?

Thesis

Although the Internet has taught us to be information “hunter-gatherers,” there are certain skills that we have learned that enables a new form of deep reading. It is different than traditional deep reading but there are different ways to enjoy books.

Supporting claims

1. Music – Music (like I said in an earlier project) helps ‘use up’ some of the attention span  that we normally like to fill with using the Net. Depending on the song, music can help relax us, and our minds, in order to gain more deep reading ability.

2. Pick up something you want to read – If you pick up something that you enjoy reading, then it will be much easier to absorb. If the information that a person requires is boring then use other resources to find that information (like the Net.) When a person reads unfavorable content, it is much harder to get through. So why read it? Read interesting content and it will be a pleasurable experience.

3. Take breaks – If you are forced to read unfavorable content, then there is no reason to read it all in one shot. Read a chapter or two and walk away from it. The Internet has taught us: when we don’t like something or aren’t engaged by it, leave the page. The same goes for a book, it will get your mind thinking about the content (especially if there is a deadline to finish the book) and you will come back to it with fresh ideas and the patience to get through another chapter or two.

These claims may be subject to editing and changing. (Well that sounded a lot more like the fine print of an advertisement than I intended…)

I think that I am going to focus my project on the exceptions to Mr. Carr’s ideas. He gives great examples and I do agree with him but I think that he should focus on people like me and my sister. I have just recently gotten into reading more frequently but she… wait until you hear this… She literally read over 300 books last summer. Maybe I can do a little interview of her and see why/how she can freakishly read so many books. Not sure yet.

I think it makes a good topic because it shows another perspective to the Internet revolution. There are people who lose deep attention because of the Net but there are also people who may gain some skills because of it. I like it because I can relate to the points that I will raise. I hope there is research on this topic. Hopefully not everyone out there fully agrees with Nicholas Carr and there are some that publish notable work on the side that I would like to show.

My thesis will probably agree with Nicholas Carr (maybe even use a piece of the ‘percentage quote’ I talked about earlier) but show that their still are people who like to read. Obviously there are people that still like to read books but it is clearly fading. My sister reads real books but also has a Nook so maybe I can get some insider knowledge from her. It will say something like, ‘yes, clearly people have started drifting away from conventional books but are there exceptions?’ and then list a few reasons why or something along those lines.

So yes, the internet has altered the way we think but the adaptation is key. Our new brains can adapt to a situation if you give it a chance. Maybe the older version of deep reading has been lost to cyberspace but (and it’s a very big but) there are ways to bring on a new wave of deep readers that may not perform it in the most orthodox of ways. I guess new deep readers, like me, are rebels in a world that doesn’t want us to read books.

pg. 26

The adult brain, it turns out, is not just plastic but, as James Olds, a professor of neuroscience who directs the Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study at George Mason University, puts it, “very plastic.”

Turns out that a lot of previous conceptions of ‘neuroplasticity’ were wrong. There were those who thought that the brain was done adapting after developing. I don’t even see how they could think that though. The brain is constantly learning right? So wouldn’t it make sense that the brain can keep adapting? The skin on a farmers hand is rougher than the skin on the hands of a computer programmer but the brain of a computer programmer is different than that of the farmer. There is more development in areas of the brain involved with computers as the farmer has more development on his hands. The brain is as organic and susceptible to adaptation as much as any other organ is. But how plastic is it really? Is everyone susceptible to the changes? Are their exceptions? What if there are those that do not adapt the same way? What if people take the internet and use it as a tool to concentrate better?

pg. 137

Only twenty-seven percent said that the time they devoted to “in depth reading” was on the rise, while forty-five percent said it was declining. Just sixteen percent said they were giving more “sustained attention” to reading; fifty percent said they were giving it less “sustained attention.”

I guess I am in the twenty seven percent… I have been reading more lately now that I think about it. Twenty seven percent is still a decent percentage. Sure it is still smaller than the percentage of people that are losing their attention but it is still significant. I feel that the Internet has aided my newfound deep attention. I read with music if the material is boring. But, during my power outage I picked up a Stephen King book and couldn’t put it down. Sure it’s not the most intellectual pieces but it is well written and interesting as hell. I would even sit by candlelight and read even if it was unhealthy for my eyes. I finished the five hundred or so pages in a few days without a problem. I’m actually going to the bookstore in a few days to pick up more books. Can’t wait.

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