Is the Internet melting our brains? • Hacker News Board

Re: Is the Internet melting our brains?

#11

Post by lucifer » Sat, Sep 19, 2009, 10:31 PM UTC

marcusbooster wrote: post #5

"Far from heralding in a "2001: Space Odyssey" dystopia, Baron believes that social networking sites, blogs and the Internet are actually making us better writers and improving our ability to reach out to our fellow man." That's an odd movie reference. Maybe the writer is referring to the scene where the astronaut is watching a video from his family and reacts very distant and aloof. I thought that was more of a comm…

Beyond the temporal distance, there is the fact that the astronauts were under constant surveillance by HAL. Perhaps Frank Poole did not care to be demonstrative under the circumstances.

Re: Is the Internet melting our brains?

#12

Post by teeja » Sat, Sep 19, 2009, 11:54 PM UTC

The internet empowers many with an opportunity to be part of the conversation - to the extent that they're able and willing. It brings together collaborators and ideas that might otherwise never have met. It opens opportunities to explore facts and ideas, and for self-expression, that have never existed.

"Destroying the English language"? I think not. More likely, there are those who are afraid of the empowerment of the many. So, as they so often do, they throw up FUD. The times, they continue to be changing, Mr. Jones.

Re: Is the Internet melting our brains?

#13

Post by anonjon » Sun, Sep 20, 2009, 12:32 AM UTC

No. The advertising is. Drink Coke.

Re: Is the Internet melting our brains?

#14

Post by mcantelon » Sun, Sep 20, 2009, 1:26 AM UTC

teeja wrote: post #12

The internet empowers many with an opportunity to be part of the conversation - to the extent that they're able and willing. It brings together collaborators and ideas that might otherwise never have met. It opens opportunities to explore facts and ideas, and for self-expression, that have never existed. "Destroying the English language"? I think not. More likely, there are those who are afraid of the empowerment of…

And it improves the conversation by adding metrics and filtering. In my personal experience it has induced me to improve my writing and become a more reasonable, less ideological, person.