The Struggle of Reading

While I read The Shallows by Nicholas Carr, I began to notice that I also was very fidgety when I sat down to read a book like he mentioned on page 5. My mind would wonder off, I'd start thinking about my plans for the weekend, how I have to get up early for work tomorrow and other things, my mind was far from the text I was supposed to be reading. Yes, I was physically seeing and reading the words but was not comprehending it at all. I feel like my brain can only read things I'm not interested in for a very short period of time because I'm so used to short articles that only covers what is important and not all the extra jargon that is written in a book. I tried my hardest To get through the whole three chapters without zoning out but it was a little difficult. When he started talking about all the brain stuff in chapter two, I couldn't stay focused because I didn't understand a word of it. It's hard to read and stay focused to a book that you are not interested in and that you don't understand. I know, I'm going to have to read a lot of terribly, uninteresting books throughout the rest of my college life. I just hope my ability to focus will improve or I'm going to have a long, tough four years.

Facebook

Through the Facebook assignment I have realized that you can be totally different person on your Facebook profile and in real life. I see it with some of my friends actually. They post rediculous things that they would never say in public and things of that nature. My profile pretty much shows how I am in real life. I normally don't post much on my Facebook, I just creep. I don't know why I'm so fascinated in what everyone else is doing. Most of the time the things I see just make me annoyed or jealous. I keep in touch with friends on occasion but I mostly use it to see what everyone is doing. Now that I'm not going to high school anymore I need to see what all my old classmates are up too.

Robots are Taking Over.

I am convinced that robots will someday take over. Us humans will be laid off from our jobs because it is cheaper to employ a robot than  a human that wants money. In some jobs that is already happening one job being working in factories on assembly lines. They have built technology to have robotic arms put parts together on an assembly line.
It is sad that our world is being taken over by these things. I can see someday down the line our world actually be like it was on the Disney movie Wall-E. It may not be in my generation but give all these technology people 100-200 years. It will happen.

Our Relationship with Technology

It amazes me that people these days actually think that any type of relationship with a robot is accecptable. Shelly Turkle described in her book Alone Together was accused "of harboring sentiments that would put me in the camp of those who have  for so long stood in the way of marriage for homosexual couples. " because she believed these types of relationships are wrong. I also believe that a relationship with a robot is just absurd. A book written by David Levy called Love and Sex with Robots is saying that, "Love with robots will be as normal as love with other humans..." I hope I'm not around when this begins to occur because that is just weird.
People are becoming so attached to their phones that they feel lost if they forget it somewhere. I will admit that I am the same way. I can't  go anywhere without it. We get escited when we here it vibrate. Someone we love is trying to communicate with us which bring us joy I assume. A quote from the book that really stood out to me about Iphones was, "It's like having a little Times Square in my pocketbook. All lights. All the people I could meet." This was said by a sixty year old woman who loves her Iphone becauase it doesn't make her feel so lonely. I agree that having that little phone in your possesion can give you hours upon hours of entertainment. It can make awkward situation less awkward as well. Our phones are taking over our lives everyday. We become closer to them and farhter away from our families and friends.I guess we will soon be having better relationships with this technoloy than human beings. 

We're Not All Dumb

The major thing that bothered me about The Dumbest Generation is that there was nothing but negative statistics. Mark Baurlein obviously believes that everyone 12-30 is dumb and that we are doomed for our future. Not all of us are stupid. I may not pick up a book all the time but I still plan on doing well in college and someday have a successful career. He has no hope for the future society. And I'd have to agree with that because there are some people that I have no hope for but not everyone is going to be stupid the rest of there life. Hopefully, the people that don't do anything now will realize that if they don't open a book and have some knowledge in them they will go nowhere. I have hope for our generation to get out of this rut of dumbness. Not all of us, but a majority of us will be successful, smart people in the future.

Dumbest Generation Blog Post

It amazes me how all this technology is dwindling down onto the younger children. I didn't get a cell phone until I was 13 and wasn't allowed to make a Myspace account until I was about 13 also. I've seen kids as young as six years old have facebook accounts and cell phones. I saw a little girl that goes to my church was texting someone as she was walking out of church and I was thinking Who could she possibly be texting? But I guess now a days everyone that age has it. It took me until I was 18 years old to get an Iphone and it bothers me a lot when I see 4th graders with them. Like really? They're ten years old and being spoiled like this. How are they going to be when they're my age? I'm sure there will be a new type of technology that the kids will want by then. It's sad that the learning process is being interrupted by all the technology there is and it's just going to get worse. A quotes that really stood out to me was, "...they are able to juggle a conversation on Instant Messenger, a Web-surfing session, and an iTunes playlist while reading Twelfth Night for homework.". The amount that they are actually comprehending from that book is probably slim to none with all the other media things distracting them. I'm scared for the current generations and the generations to come. We need to stop reading the Facebook newsfeed and read a book!

Dumbest Generation

After reading the first two chapters of The Dumbest Generation by Mark Bauerlein, I am now, more than ever, embarrassed to be a part of my generation. I’m embarrassed that if I was asked most simple historical questions I would probably not know the answer. I know I learned about all the wars and other historical things but at the time all I cared for was the A. I memorized what I needed to know for the test to pass it then forgot it. This book has inspired me to relearn the things I simply forgot from my elementary and high school days. Most kids forget because they don’t care. They have the attitude that the only information they need to know is what will be used in their everyday life. It’s sad how most college students forget the basics they learned in high school then they come to college and have to learn things that are even harder than the basics. I admit that I am like every other teenager and forget what I learn because I don’t need to use it and I don’t care. I am hoping to change that about myself though. I don’t want to be apart of those terrible statistics about how simple-minded my generation is.