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Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

theguardian.com

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Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#71

Post by milchek »

rr808 wrote: post #49

Memory is OK its the concentration. I just can't read a whole novel now, its too long. Sitting down and doing work is ridiculously hard to concentrate.

The book “The Shallows: What the internet is doing to our brains” [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shallows_(book)] by Nicholas G Carr discusses this as well. Essentially, the content we consume is just one part of the picture if you think about how our minds are shaped, the medium we consume that content through also shapes how we think.

Many of us don’t read left-to-right top-to-bottom anymore, we skim over blog posts and articles looking for keywords and then read the paragraphs or sentences around those keywords.

Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#72

Post by wawjgreen »

rmbyrro wrote: post #68
rr808 wrote: post #49

Memory is OK its the concentration. I just can't read a whole novel now, its too long. Sitting down and doing work is ridiculously hard to concentrate.

I solved it by practicing a sport, exercising regularly. Going outdoors for an extenuating exercise during an hour every other day. Improved everything about my cognitive abilities in a big way.

Thank you for the tip.

Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#73

Post by bentcorner »

AshamedCaptain wrote: post #6

Is your GPS ruining your spatial orientation skills? Etc. Etc. Most of these articles are pure clickbait designed to trick ageing people whose skills naturally degrade into an non-old-age related explanation for such degradation.

I love using Google Maps but I always use it with a North-up orientation with a 2-dimensional slightly-zoomed out view, so I can have context about where I am and where I'm going, so even though it's telling me where to go, I have an idea of the path I'm taking.

I used to have a strong opinion that spell check was harmful, but I've relaxed on that somewhat.

I wonder how language geeks feel about the recent rise of inline grammar checkers like Microsoft Editor or Grammarly.

Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#74

Post by dumpsterlid »

uhtred wrote: post #52

It's ok, we will be forgotten in history as humans at the very brief between stage of humans with no tech enhancements and humans with computer brain enhancements. Much like Uber drivers are between regular old taxi drivers and autonomous driver less taxis.

Uber drivers are just taxi drivers but with worse labor conditions that backslided because of late stage capitalism. If they are a stepping stone to anything, it is to a miserable future.

Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#77

Post by thaumasiotes »

pessimizer wrote: post #60
thaumasiotes wrote: post #4

This isn't an idea I'd just dismiss out of hand, but I would note that it is exactly the same complaint people registered about the technology of writing.

That's because writing destroyed people's memories.

If so, was that a problem, or was it one of the best things that ever happened? Did history become more or less accurate thereafter?

Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#78

Post by kayodelycaon »

cja wrote: post #55
kayodelycaon wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For myself, I have limited working memory and time blindness. No amount of practice can fix the brain malfunctions that cause them.

Research ADHD. Those are both symptoms. If you have it then medication is likely to help

I’m bipolar and medication doesn’t fix everything.

Re: Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’

#80

Post by thaumasiotes »

jacquesm wrote: post #22
thaumasiotes wrote: post #4

This isn't an idea I'd just dismiss out of hand, but I would note that it is exactly the same complaint people registered about the technology of writing.

The memory feats of people able to recite the whole of the Quran have always impressed me very much, and it makes me wonder how well they fare on remembering other things.

Note that memorizing the Quran is a cultural feature that depends on writing; oral works are not memorized word-for-word but produced improvisationally on demand.
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