Our Brains And Digital Media

Internet has become the most significant source for satisfying the needs of the informative demands. Concentrating on this modernised lifestyle, it has been seen that internet provides the opportunity to enhance the knowledge by searching for the relevant documents and the informative materials. The internet becomes intertwined with the daily lives eventually. Moreover, it can be inferred that people become much depended on internet instead of using the self-intelligence. It is quite true that internet has been providing the opportunity to enhance the knowledge. On the other hand, people have been losing their self confidence and collective potentiality, as they are much depended on the digital media. Hence, the thesis statement of this study is hoisting an argument. The argument is based on the discussion if the internet is affecting the human intelligence. The study will be presenting the argumentative discussion in justifying whether the internet creating the negative impact on the human brain development.

Internet works as the driving force for the drastic changes of the modern society. It has been altering the way of gathering relevant information, creating and fostering social bonds, and consuming news. However, the question arises on the effects of internet on human brains. It can be implied that internet has changed the pattern of study and increased the productivity in a progressive way. On the contrary, Carr (2008) argued that humans become much depended on internet instead of using the self-excellence. In many of the educational field, the students come across with some of the controversial situations. For example, when any student is carrying a laptop to the classroom, the professors think that the computers or internet is the source of distraction. Conversely, it has been seen that internet saves the time and provides the relevant information for the educational purposes.

It is to be notified that the internet or the digital media has changed the human lives on a fundamental level. However, this statement is concerned with several argumentative discussions. First of all, it is important to know that the human brains are highly adaptable. Hence, people can thrive and survive in different environmental situations. When a human goes through any experience, it creates the linking between the different types of receptors presented in the brains (Mueller & Oppenheimer, 2014). The repetition of such experiences helps in strengthening the pathways. It is noted that the enrichment of the experience and learning capabilities is possible if the connections increase in a frequent way. Similarly, while using the internet, the different experiences influence the human brains. The activities performed through internet usually suspend the logical and conscious mind.

It is needless to mention that emergence of digital media has brought the significant evolution in this modernised world. Instant messaging, texting, using the social media sites, and browsing Google are undoubtedly distracting the people from other tasks. However, there are some of the benefits that internet has brought to the educational fields. Mueller & Oppenheimer (2014) mentioned that without the internet, it was quite impossible to generate so much of the information. The immediate access to the internet has thus optimized the education system. Apart from the educational field, the effects of internet on professional field are also much commendable. The universe of the information is available through different internet sites and it has enriched the human knowledge in a significant manner. However, it is also to be considered that the learning process through utilising internet is still not accepted widely. Both the educational field and professional areas are associated with “multitasking”. In fact, the time constraints have always been the major concern for the people who have been working on more than one activity. In such cases, the internet is the most useful way to reduce the stress and saving the time by providing the necessary information.

It is determined that there are the positive and negative sides of everything. Similarly, apart from the benefits, the internet sometimes creates some of the negative consequences as well. The research indicates that in the year of 1998, the average number of the Google search was 9,800, which has grown to over 4.7 trillion in today’s date (Academicearth.org, 2016). This particular information is signifying the instant information that people can derive from the internet sources. The experiment undertaken in the year of 2011, it was observed that college students started remembering less information, as they could get access to the internet to extract relevant materials. This consequence is clearly indicating that people do not wish to waste their time on learning with the self-effort. They become much depended on the internet that can provide them useful information easily.

The people in the society think that their knowledge is quite advanced to their past generation. However, the truth is the critical thinking in this current generation is somewhat declining. It is noticed that the internet has made the human lives easier. With the help of the internet, people can get access to any of the information as per their wish. Sir Nicholas Carr, an evaluator of internet and its impact, commented on the risk based on the internet use. He stated, “We are evolving from cultivators of personal knowledge into hunters and gathers in the electronic forest… dazzled by the Net’s treasures, we are blind to the damage we may be doing to our intellectual lives and even our culture” (Nshss.org, 2016). This particular illustration has been confirming that internet is the major driving force for spreading a systematic trend of findings the fact and reporting it to the people. In spite of the number of benefits that people receive from internet; the negative consequences of internet is affecting the human intelligence.

In this current era, people are much influenced by the perception of others instead of using their logical sense. In case of the academic field and the educational institution, this negativity has been affecting the students’ attributes. However, Pénard, Poussing & Suire (2013) presented the argument by stating that the internet has brought the more innovative ideas that are useful for this advanced world. The technology has developed the professional skills and improved the lifestyle of the people in the society. On the other hand, Ingram Neil, a critic of the “internet’s impact on society” presented his counter argument regarding such matter. He exclaimed, “We have become more insular, unadventurous, and less curious because of technology” (Nshss.org, 2016). The extensive usage of the internet is signifying the development of the systematic suggestions related to the scattered thinking and short term attention span. It is noted that when people are working online, their brains take the continuous pressure in searching required information. People usually open many links and some of the sidebar advertisements divert the attention. It is seen the web pages contain the attractive pictures and different animations. These distractions are somewhat overbearing the amount of information. It is noted that when people are continuously interrupted or distracted, the human brains face the expansive and string neural connection. This connection provides the distinctiveness to the thinking capabilities. In explaining such conceptualised idea, Carr commented,

“When Facts and experiences enter our long-term memory, we are unable to weave them into the complex ideas that give richness to our thought… Whereas long-term memory has an almost unlimited capacity, working memory can hold only a relatively small amount of information at a time….and that short-term storage is fragile: A break in our attention can sweep its contents from our mind”.

With this elaboration, it can be interpreted that the continuous disruptions people receive while working online, mould the human brains in a different way. Therefore, people are unable to use their brains to present any logical implication. However, no one can ever deny the fact that internet is making people more intelligent, as it provides the enormous information that is helpful enough to enhance the knowledge. Still some of the arguments arise regarding the negative consequences of the internet use. These arguments are raised due to the previously discussed factors. Castaño‐Muñoz, Duart & Sancho‐Vinuesa (2014) pointed out that the use of the internet has made the people less original and inattentive. People are now unable to make more comprehensions about any particular aspect.

It is needless to mention that internet is the integral part of this modern society. It will continue providing benefits to human life in the upcoming days. In concentrating on the argument based on the negative impact of internet, it is seen that the concept related to the effectiveness of the internet is somewhat falsified. Carr (2015) suggested that it is much required to use the internet in an advantageous way, which can effectively enhance the intelligence and smartness. Using internet for deriving ideas is beneficial, but it is required to identify the way of using it. More specifically, people need to use their self potentiality of exploring any particular aspect. It does not mean that people should not browse internet. The internet should be used when it becomes essential. It is true that internet makes things faster, but, it is not necessary that the faster things are better. In order to increase the productivity, the self potentiality is also required. Hence, the argument raised in this study is clearly portraying that internet is affecting the human brains.

The study is presenting the argumentative idea related to the impacts of internet on human brains. It is noted that in this modernised society, the internet has become the integral part. In spite of providing numerous benefits, internet is making people much dependent. It is noted that people have lost critical thinking capabilities as they get the frequent access to the internet. However, the argument based on this study is indicating the continuous disruptions on human brains due to the extensive internet use. Finally, it can be interpreted that it is necessary to use the internet in an advantageous way. Besides improving the human knowledge, it is important to explore the human potentiality. It is true that internet provides the opportunity to access the universe of the information. Due to such effects, people have been losing their self-confidence accordingly. The educational system is also much affected by the advancements of the digital media. The process of the education is signifying the drastic changes. Hence, it is to be interpreted that human engagements are more necessary than the use of the technological tools. The proper use of the internet will also help the human minds.

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