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Is Google Making Us Stupid? - The Atlantic

Is Google Making Us Stupid?

What the Internet is doing to our brains
NICHOLAS CARR
JULY/AUGUST 2008 ISSUE

TEXT SIZE

TECHNOLOGY

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IllustrationbyGuyBillout

"Dave,stop.Stop,willyou?Stop,Dave.Willyoustop,Dave?Sothesupercomputer
HALpleadswiththeimplacableastronautDaveBowmaninafamousandweirdly
poignantscenetowardtheendofStanleyKubricks2001:ASpaceOdyssey.
Bowman,havingnearlybeensenttoadeep-spacedeathbythemalfunctioning
machine,iscalmly,coldlydisconnectingthememorycircuitsthatcontrolits
articialbrain.Dave,mymindisgoing,HALsays,forlornly.Icanfeelit.Ican
feelit.

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Icanfeelit,too.OverthepastfewyearsIvehadanuncomfortablesensethat
someone,orsomething,hasbeentinkeringwithmybrain,remappingtheneural
circuitry,reprogrammingthememory.MymindisntgoingsofarasIcantellbut
itschanging.ImnotthinkingthewayIusedtothink.Icanfeelitmoststrongly
whenImreading.Immersingmyselfinabookoralengthyarticleusedtobeeasy.
Mymindwouldgetcaughtupinthenarrativeortheturnsoftheargument,andId
spendhoursstrollingthroughlongstretchesofprose.Thatsrarelythecase
anymore.Nowmyconcentrationoftenstartstodriftaftertwoorthreepages.Iget
dgety,losethethread,beginlookingforsomethingelsetodo.IfeelasifIm
alwaysdraggingmywaywardbrainbacktothetext.Thedeepreadingthatusedto
comenaturallyhasbecomeastruggle.
IthinkIknowwhatsgoingon.Formorethanadecadenow,Ivebeenspendinga
lotoftimeonline,searchingandsurngandsometimesaddingtothegreat
databasesoftheInternet.TheWebhasbeenagodsendtomeasawriter.Research
thatoncerequireddaysinthestacksorperiodicalroomsoflibrariescannowbe
doneinminutes.AfewGooglesearches,somequickclicksonhyperlinks,andIve
gotthetelltalefactorpithyquoteIwasafter.EvenwhenImnotworking,Imas
likelyasnottobeforagingintheWebsinfo-thicketsreadingandwritinge-mails,
scanningheadlinesandblogposts,watchingvideosandlisteningtopodcasts,or
justtrippingfromlinktolinktolink.(Unlikefootnotes,towhichtheyresometimes
likened,hyperlinksdontmerelypointtorelatedworks;theypropelyoutoward
them.)
Forme,asforothers,theNetisbecomingauniversalmedium,theconduitformost
oftheinformationthatowsthroughmyeyesandearsandintomymind.The
advantagesofhavingimmediateaccesstosuchanincrediblyrichstoreof
informationaremany,andtheyvebeenwidelydescribedanddulyapplauded.
Theperfectrecallofsiliconmemory,WiredsCliveThompsonhaswritten,can
beanenormousboontothinking.Butthatbooncomesataprice.Asthemedia
theoristMarshallMcLuhanpointedoutinthe1960s,mediaarenotjustpassive
channelsofinformation.Theysupplythestuofthought,buttheyalsoshapethe
processofthought.AndwhattheNetseemstobedoingischippingawaymy
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capacityforconcentrationandcontemplation.Mymindnowexpectstotakein
informationthewaytheNetdistributesit:inaswiftlymovingstreamofparticles.
OnceIwasascubadiverintheseaofwords.NowIzipalongthesurfacelikeaguy
onaJetSki.
Imnottheonlyone.WhenImentionmytroubleswithreadingtofriendsand
acquaintancesliterarytypes,mostofthemmanysaytheyrehavingsimilar
experiences.ThemoretheyusetheWeb,themoretheyhavetoghttostay
focusedonlongpiecesofwriting.SomeofthebloggersIfollowhavealsobegun
mentioningthephenomenon.ScottKarp,whowritesablogaboutonlinemedia,
recentlyconfessedthathehasstoppedreadingbooksaltogether.Iwasalitmajor
incollege,andusedtobe[a]voraciousbookreader,hewrote.Whathappened?
Hespeculatesontheanswer:WhatifIdoallmyreadingonthewebnotsomuch
becausethewayIreadhaschanged,i.e.Imjustseekingconvenience,butbecause
thewayITHINKhaschanged?
BruceFriedman,whoblogsregularlyabouttheuseofcomputersinmedicine,also
hasdescribedhowtheInternethasalteredhismentalhabits.Inowhavealmost
totallylosttheabilitytoreadandabsorbalongisharticleontheweborinprint,he
wroteearlierthisyear.Apathologistwhohaslongbeenonthefacultyofthe
UniversityofMichiganMedicalSchool,Friedmanelaboratedonhiscommentina
telephoneconversationwithme.Histhinking,hesaid,hastakenonastaccato
quality,reectingthewayhequicklyscansshortpassagesoftextfrommany
sourcesonline.IcantreadWarandPeaceanymore,headmitted.Ivelostthe
abilitytodothat.Evenablogpostofmorethanthreeorfourparagraphsistoo
muchtoabsorb.Iskimit.
Anecdotesalonedontprovemuch.Andwestillawaitthelong-termneurological
andpsychologicalexperimentsthatwillprovideadenitivepictureofhowInternet
useaectscognition.Butarecentlypublishedstudyofonlineresearchhabits,
conductedbyscholarsfromUniversityCollegeLondon,suggeststhatwemaywell
beinthemidstofaseachangeinthewaywereadandthink.Aspartoftheve-year
researchprogram,thescholarsexaminedcomputerlogsdocumentingthebehavior
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ofvisitorstotwopopularresearchsites,oneoperatedbytheBritishLibraryandone
byaU.K.educationalconsortium,thatprovideaccesstojournalarticles,e-books,
andothersourcesofwritteninformation.Theyfoundthatpeopleusingthesites
exhibitedaformofskimmingactivity,hoppingfromonesourcetoanotherand
rarelyreturningtoanysourcetheydalreadyvisited.Theytypicallyreadnomore
thanoneortwopagesofanarticleorbookbeforetheywouldbounceoutto
anothersite.Sometimestheydsavealongarticle,buttheresnoevidencethatthey
everwentbackandactuallyreadit.Theauthorsofthestudyreport:

Itisclearthatusersarenotreadingonlineinthetraditionalsense;indeed
therearesignsthatnewformsofreadingareemergingasuserspower
browsehorizontallythroughtitles,contentspagesandabstractsgoing
forquickwins.Italmostseemsthattheygoonlinetoavoidreadinginthe
traditionalsense.

ThankstotheubiquityoftextontheInternet,nottomentionthepopularityoftextmessagingoncellphones,wemaywellbereadingmoretodaythanwedidinthe
1970sor1980s,whentelevisionwasourmediumofchoice.Butitsadierentkind
ofreading,andbehinditliesadierentkindofthinkingperhapsevenanewsense
oftheself.Wearenotonlywhatweread,saysMaryanneWolf,adevelopmental
psychologistatTuftsUniversityandtheauthorofProustandtheSquid:TheStory
andScienceoftheReadingBrain.Wearehowweread.Wolfworriesthatthestyle
ofreadingpromotedbytheNet,astylethatputseciencyandimmediacy
aboveallelse,maybeweakeningourcapacityforthekindofdeepreadingthat
emergedwhenanearliertechnology,theprintingpress,madelongandcomplex
worksofprosecommonplace.Whenwereadonline,shesays,wetendtobecome
meredecodersofinformation.Ourabilitytointerprettext,tomaketherich
mentalconnectionsthatformwhenwereaddeeplyandwithoutdistraction,
remainslargelydisengaged.

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Reading,explainsWolf,isnotaninstinctiveskillforhumanbeings.Itsnotetched
intoourgenesthewayspeechis.Wehavetoteachourmindshowtotranslatethe
symboliccharactersweseeintothelanguageweunderstand.Andthemediaor
othertechnologiesweuseinlearningandpracticingthecraftofreadingplayan
importantpartinshapingtheneuralcircuitsinsideourbrains.Experiments
demonstratethatreadersofideograms,suchastheChinese,developamental
circuitryforreadingthatisverydierentfromthecircuitryfoundinthoseofus
whosewrittenlanguageemploysanalphabet.Thevariationsextendacrossmany
regionsofthebrain,includingthosethatgovernsuchessentialcognitivefunctions
asmemoryandtheinterpretationofvisualandauditorystimuli.Wecanexpectas
wellthatthecircuitswovenbyouruseoftheNetwillbedierentfromthosewoven
byourreadingofbooksandotherprintedworks.
Sometimein1882,FriedrichNietzscheboughtatypewriteraMalling-Hansen
WritingBall,tobeprecise.Hisvisionwasfailing,andkeepinghiseyesfocusedona
pagehadbecomeexhaustingandpainful,oftenbringingoncrushingheadaches.
Hehadbeenforcedtocurtailhiswriting,andhefearedthathewouldsoonhaveto
giveitup.Thetypewriterrescuedhim,atleastforatime.Oncehehadmastered
touch-typing,hewasabletowritewithhiseyesclosed,usingonlythetipsofhis
ngers.Wordscouldonceagainowfromhismindtothepage.
Butthemachinehadasubtlereectonhiswork.OneofNietzschesfriends,a
composer,noticedachangeinthestyleofhiswriting.Hisalreadyterseprosehad
becomeeventighter,moretelegraphic.Perhapsyouwillthroughthisinstrument
eventaketoanewidiom,thefriendwroteinaletter,notingthat,inhisownwork,
histhoughtsinmusicandlanguageoftendependonthequalityofpenand
paper.
Also see:

LivingWithaComputer(July1982)
"Theprocessworksthisway.WhenIsitdowntowritealetterorstarttherstdraft
ofanarticle,Isimplytypeonthekeyboardandthewordsappearonthescreen..."
ByJamesFallows
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Youareright,Nietzschereplied,ourwritingequipmenttakespartintheforming
ofourthoughts.Undertheswayofthemachine,writestheGermanmediascholar
FriedrichA.Kittler,Nietzschesprosechangedfromargumentstoaphorisms,
fromthoughtstopuns,fromrhetorictotelegramstyle.
Thehumanbrainisalmostinnitelymalleable.Peopleusedtothinkthatour
mentalmeshwork,thedenseconnectionsformedamongthe100billionorso
neuronsinsideourskulls,waslargelyxedbythetimewereachedadulthood.But
brainresearchershavediscoveredthatthatsnotthecase.JamesOlds,aprofessor
ofneurosciencewhodirectstheKrasnowInstituteforAdvancedStudyatGeorge
MasonUniversity,saysthateventheadultmindisveryplastic.Nervecells
routinelybreakoldconnectionsandformnewones.Thebrain,accordingto
Olds,hastheabilitytoreprogramitselfonthey,alteringthewayitfunctions.
AsweusewhatthesociologistDanielBellhascalledourintellectual
technologiesthetoolsthatextendourmentalratherthanourphysicalcapacities
weinevitablybegintotakeonthequalitiesofthosetechnologies.Themechanical
clock,whichcameintocommonuseinthe14thcentury,providesacompelling
example.InTechnicsandCivilization,thehistorianandculturalcriticLewis
Mumforddescribedhowtheclockdisassociatedtimefromhumaneventsand
helpedcreatethebeliefinanindependentworldofmathematicallymeasurable
sequences.Theabstractframeworkofdividedtimebecamethepointof
referenceforbothactionandthought.
Theclocksmethodicaltickinghelpedbringintobeingthescienticmindandthe
scienticman.Butitalsotooksomethingaway.AsthelateMITcomputerscientist
JosephWeizenbaumobservedinhis1976book,ComputerPowerandHuman
Reason:FromJudgmenttoCalculation,theconceptionoftheworldthatemerged
fromthewidespreaduseoftimekeepinginstrumentsremainsanimpoverished
versionoftheolderone,foritrestsonarejectionofthosedirectexperiencesthat
formedthebasisfor,andindeedconstituted,theoldreality.Indecidingwhento
eat,towork,tosleep,torise,westoppedlisteningtooursensesandstartedobeying
theclock.
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Theprocessofadaptingtonewintellectualtechnologiesisreectedinthechanging
metaphorsweusetoexplainourselvestoourselves.Whenthemechanicalclock
arrived,peoplebeganthinkingoftheirbrainsasoperatinglikeclockwork.Today,
intheageofsoftware,wehavecometothinkofthemasoperatinglike
computers.Butthechanges,neurosciencetellsus,gomuchdeeperthan
metaphor.Thankstoourbrainsplasticity,theadaptationoccursalsoatabiological
level.
TheInternetpromisestohaveparticularlyfar-reachingeectsoncognition.Ina
paperpublishedin1936,theBritishmathematicianAlanTuringprovedthata
digitalcomputer,whichatthetimeexistedonlyasatheoreticalmachine,couldbe
programmedtoperformthefunctionofanyotherinformation-processingdevice.
Andthatswhatwereseeingtoday.TheInternet,animmeasurablypowerful
computingsystem,issubsumingmostofourotherintellectualtechnologies.Its
becomingourmapandourclock,ourprintingpressandourtypewriter,our
calculatorandourtelephone,andourradioandTV.
WhentheNetabsorbsamedium,thatmediumisre-createdintheNetsimage.It
injectsthemediumscontentwithhyperlinks,blinkingads,andotherdigital
gewgaws,anditsurroundsthecontentwiththecontentofalltheothermediaithas
absorbed.Anewe-mailmessage,forinstance,mayannounceitsarrivalaswere
glancingoverthelatestheadlinesatanewspaperssite.Theresultistoscatterour
attentionanddiuseourconcentration.
TheNetsinuencedoesntendattheedgesofacomputerscreen,either.As
peoplesmindsbecomeattunedtothecrazyquiltofInternetmedia,traditional
mediahavetoadapttotheaudiencesnewexpectations.Televisionprogramsadd
textcrawlsandpop-upads,andmagazinesandnewspapersshortentheirarticles,
introducecapsulesummaries,andcrowdtheirpageswitheasy-to-browseinfosnippets.When,inMarchofthisyear,TheNewYorkTimesdecidedtodevotethe
secondandthirdpagesofeveryeditiontoarticleabstracts,itsdesigndirector,Tom
Bodkin,explainedthattheshortcutswouldgiveharriedreadersaquicktasteof
thedaysnews,sparingthemthelessecientmethodofactuallyturningthe
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pagesandreadingthearticles.Oldmediahavelittlechoicebuttoplaybythenewmediarules.
Neverhasacommunicationssystemplayedsomanyrolesinourlivesorexerted
suchbroadinuenceoverourthoughtsastheInternetdoestoday.Yet,forall
thatsbeenwrittenabouttheNet,theresbeenlittleconsiderationofhow,exactly,
itsreprogrammingus.TheNetsintellectualethicremainsobscure.
AboutthesametimethatNietzschestartedusinghistypewriter,anearnestyoung
mannamedFrederickWinslowTaylorcarriedastopwatchintotheMidvaleSteel
plantinPhiladelphiaandbeganahistoricseriesofexperimentsaimedatimproving
theeciencyoftheplantsmachinists.WiththeapprovalofMidvalesowners,he
recruitedagroupoffactoryhands,setthemtoworkonvariousmetalworking
machines,andrecordedandtimedtheireverymovementaswellastheoperations
ofthemachines.Bybreakingdowneveryjobintoasequenceofsmall,discrete
stepsandthentestingdierentwaysofperformingeachone,Taylorcreatedasetof
preciseinstructionsanalgorithm,wemightsaytodayforhoweachworker
shouldwork.Midvalesemployeesgrumbledaboutthestrictnewregime,claiming
thatitturnedthemintolittlemorethanautomatons,butthefactorysproductivity
soared.
Morethanahundredyearsaftertheinventionofthesteamengine,theIndustrial
Revolutionhadatlastfounditsphilosophyanditsphilosopher.Taylorstight
industrialchoreographyhissystem,ashelikedtocallitwasembracedby
manufacturersthroughoutthecountryand,intime,aroundtheworld.Seeking
maximumspeed,maximumeciency,andmaximumoutput,factoryownersused
time-and-motionstudiestoorganizetheirworkandcongurethejobsoftheir
workers.Thegoal,asTaylordeneditinhiscelebrated1911treatise,ThePrinciples
ofScienticManagement,wastoidentifyandadopt,foreveryjob,theonebest
methodofworkandtherebytoeectthegradualsubstitutionofscienceforrule
ofthumbthroughoutthemechanicarts.Oncehissystemwasappliedtoallactsof
manuallabor,Taylorassuredhisfollowers,itwouldbringaboutarestructuringnot
onlyofindustrybutofsociety,creatingautopiaofperfecteciency.Inthepast
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themanhasbeenrst,hedeclared;inthefuturethesystemmustberst.
Taylorssystemisstillverymuchwithus;itremainstheethicofindustrial
manufacturing.Andnow,thankstothegrowingpowerthatcomputerengineers
andsoftwarecoderswieldoverourintellectuallives,Taylorsethicisbeginningto
governtherealmofthemindaswell.TheInternetisamachinedesignedforthe
ecientandautomatedcollection,transmission,andmanipulationofinformation,
anditslegionsofprogrammersareintentonndingtheonebestmethodthe
perfectalgorithmtocarryouteverymentalmovementofwhatwevecometo
describeasknowledgework.
Googlesheadquarters,inMountainView,CaliforniatheGoogleplexisthe
Internetshighchurch,andthereligionpracticedinsideitswallsisTaylorism.
Google,saysitschiefexecutive,EricSchmidt,isacompanythatsfoundedaround
thescienceofmeasurement,anditisstrivingtosystematizeeverythingitdoes.
Drawingontheterabytesofbehavioraldataitcollectsthroughitssearchengineand
othersites,itcarriesoutthousandsofexperimentsaday,accordingtotheHarvard
BusinessReview,anditusestheresultstorenethealgorithmsthatincreasingly
controlhowpeoplendinformationandextractmeaningfromit.WhatTaylordid
fortheworkofthehand,Googleisdoingfortheworkofthemind.
Thecompanyhasdeclaredthatitsmissionistoorganizetheworldsinformation
andmakeituniversallyaccessibleanduseful.Itseekstodeveloptheperfect
searchengine,whichitdenesassomethingthatunderstandsexactlywhatyou
meanandgivesyoubackexactlywhatyouwant.InGooglesview,informationisa
kindofcommodity,autilitarianresourcethatcanbeminedandprocessedwith
industrialeciency.Themorepiecesofinformationwecanaccessandthefaster
wecanextracttheirgist,themoreproductivewebecomeasthinkers.
Wheredoesitend?SergeyBrinandLarryPage,thegiftedyoungmenwhofounded
GooglewhilepursuingdoctoraldegreesincomputerscienceatStanford,speak
frequentlyoftheirdesiretoturntheirsearchengineintoanarticialintelligence,a
HAL-likemachinethatmightbeconnecteddirectlytoourbrains.Theultimate

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searchengineissomethingassmartaspeopleorsmarter,Pagesaidinaspeecha
fewyearsback.Forus,workingonsearchisawaytoworkonarticial
intelligence.Ina2004interviewwithNewsweek,Brinsaid,Certainlyifyouhad
alltheworldsinformationdirectlyattachedtoyourbrain,oranarticialbrainthat
wassmarterthanyourbrain,youdbebettero.Lastyear,Pagetoldaconvention
ofscientiststhatGoogleisreallytryingtobuildarticialintelligenceandtodoit
onalargescale.
Suchanambitionisanaturalone,evenanadmirableone,forapairofmathwhizzes
withvastquantitiesofcashattheirdisposalandasmallarmyofcomputerscientists
intheiremploy.Afundamentallyscienticenterprise,Googleismotivatedbya
desiretousetechnology,inEricSchmidtswords,tosolveproblemsthathave
neverbeensolvedbefore,andarticialintelligenceisthehardestproblemout
there.WhywouldntBrinandPagewanttobetheonestocrackit?
Still,theireasyassumptionthatwedallbebetteroifourbrainswere
supplemented,orevenreplaced,byanarticialintelligenceisunsettling.It
suggestsabeliefthatintelligenceistheoutputofamechanicalprocess,aseriesof
discretestepsthatcanbeisolated,measured,andoptimized.InGooglesworld,the
worldweenterwhenwegoonline,thereslittleplaceforthefuzzinessof
contemplation.Ambiguityisnotanopeningforinsightbutabugtobexed.The
humanbrainisjustanoutdatedcomputerthatneedsafasterprocessorandabigger
harddrive.
Theideathatourmindsshouldoperateashigh-speeddata-processingmachinesis
notonlybuiltintotheworkingsoftheInternet,itisthenetworksreigningbusiness
modelaswell.ThefasterwesurfacrosstheWebthemorelinksweclickandpages
weviewthemoreopportunitiesGoogleandothercompaniesgaintocollect
informationaboutusandtofeedusadvertisements.Mostoftheproprietorsofthe
commercialInternethaveanancialstakeincollectingthecrumbsofdataweleave
behindasweitfromlinktolinkthemorecrumbs,thebetter.Thelastthingthese
companieswantistoencourageleisurelyreadingorslow,concentratedthought.Its
intheireconomicinteresttodriveustodistraction.
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MaybeImjustaworrywart.Justastheresatendencytoglorifytechnological
progress,theresacountertendencytoexpecttheworstofeverynewtoolor
always
controversial

machine.InPlatosPhaedrus,Socratesbemoanedthedevelopmentofwriting.He
fearedthat,aspeoplecametorelyonthewrittenwordasasubstituteforthe
knowledgetheyusedtocarryinsidetheirheads,theywould,inthewordsofoneof
thedialoguescharacters,ceasetoexercisetheirmemoryandbecomeforgetful.
he was right, but the pros of writing are more important

Andbecausetheywouldbeabletoreceiveaquantityofinformationwithout

properinstruction,theywouldbethoughtveryknowledgeablewhentheyarefor
themostpartquiteignorant.Theywouldbelledwiththeconceitofwisdom
reminds me of how sometimes I can parrot information but not truly know it

insteadofrealwisdom.Socrateswasntwrongthenewtechnologydidoftenhave
theeectshefearedbuthewasshortsighted.Hecouldntforeseethemanyways
thatwritingandreadingwouldservetospreadinformation,spurfreshideas,and
expandhumanknowledge(ifnotwisdom).
ThearrivalofGutenbergsprintingpress,inthe15thcentury,setoanotherround
ofteethgnashing.TheItalianhumanistHieronimoSquarciacoworriedthatthe
easyavailabilityofbookswouldleadtointellectuallaziness,makingmenless

wouldnt this make them more studious?

studiousandweakeningtheirminds.Othersarguedthatcheaplyprintedbooks
andbroadsheetswouldunderminereligiousauthority,demeantheworkofscholars
andscribes,andspreadseditionanddebauchery.AsNewYorkUniversityprofessor
ClayShirkynotes,Mostoftheargumentsmadeagainsttheprintingpresswere
correct,evenprescient.But,again,thedoomsayerswereunabletoimaginethe
myriadblessingsthattheprintedwordwoulddeliver.
So,yes,youshouldbeskepticalofmyskepticism.Perhapsthosewhodismisscritics
oftheInternetasLudditesornostalgistswillbeprovedcorrect,andfromour
hyperactive,data-stokedmindswillspringagoldenageofintellectualdiscovery
anduniversalwisdom.Thenagain,theNetisntthealphabet,andalthoughitmay
replacetheprintingpress,itproducessomethingaltogetherdierent.Thekindof
deepreadingthatasequenceofprintedpagespromotesisvaluablenotjustforthe
knowledgeweacquirefromtheauthorswordsbutfortheintellectualvibrations
thosewordssetowithinourownminds.Inthequietspacesopenedupbythe
sustained,undistractedreadingofabook,orbyanyotheractofcontemplation,for

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thatmatter,wemakeourownassociations,drawourowninferencesandanalogies,
fosterourownideas.Deepreading,asMaryanneWolfargues,isindistinguishable
fromdeepthinking.
Ifwelosethosequietspaces,orllthemupwithcontent,wewillsacrice
somethingimportantnotonlyinourselvesbutinourculture.Inarecentessay,the
playwrightRichardForemaneloquentlydescribedwhatsatstake:

IcomefromatraditionofWesternculture,inwhichtheideal(myideal)
wasthecomplex,denseandcathedral-likestructureofthehighly
educatedandarticulatepersonalityamanorwomanwhocarriedinside
themselvesapersonallyconstructedanduniqueversionoftheentire
heritageoftheWest.[Butnow]Iseewithinusall(myselfincluded)the
replacementofcomplexinnerdensitywithanewkindofselfevolving
underthepressureofinformationoverloadandthetechnologyofthe
instantlyavailable.

Aswearedrainedofourinnerrepertoryofdenseculturalinheritance,Foreman
concluded,weriskturningintopancakepeoplespreadwideandthinaswe
connectwiththatvastnetworkofinformationaccessedbythemeretouchofa
button.
Imhauntedbythatscenein2001.Whatmakesitsopoignant,andsoweird,isthe
computersemotionalresponsetothedisassemblyofitsmind:itsdespairasone
circuitafteranothergoesdark,itschildlikepleadingwiththeastronautIcanfeel
it.Icanfeelit.Imafraidanditsnalreversiontowhatcanonlybecalledastate
ofinnocence.HALsoutpouringoffeelingcontrastswiththeemotionlessnessthat
characterizesthehumanguresinthelm,whogoabouttheirbusinesswithan
almostroboticeciency.Theirthoughtsandactionsfeelscripted,asiftheyre
followingthestepsofanalgorithm.Intheworldof2001,peoplehavebecomeso
machinelikethatthemosthumancharacterturnsouttobeamachine.Thatsthe
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essenceofKubricksdarkprophecy:aswecometorelyoncomputerstomediateour
understandingoftheworld,itisourownintelligencethatattensintoarticial
intelligence.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
NICHOLAS CARR is the author of The Shallows and The Glass Cage: Automation and Us.
He has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired.

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