The Ethics of Climate Change

John Broome talks about how what we do today will have an affect on the future generations. The deteriorating ozone layer and natural disasters are just two of the many events that are happening as we walk this earth because of our selfishness and wastefulness. In order to help save our planet, people have to be aware of what's going on and the harmful things that are damaging it. In order to help save our planet people need to budget their money and not be wasteful of resources just because they are there for us now. Soon enough, we WILL run out of these resources and there will be no turning back around. We have to look into the future and see asks ourselves what we can do to help the future generations.

The money market is a big topic. People spend thousands of dollars on things that they don't even need. Instead of using their money to help save our planet, people are out buying fancy cars, million dollar homes, and new technology to replace their old technology that they just bought last week. In order to make a difference and to really change the pace of our planet's deterioration, we need to be aware of how we spend our money and how it is affecting our environment.

George Carlin Stand Up

George Carlin's stand up connects to Phelan's article because they both talk about the environment and evolution. Both Carlin and Phelan believe that things really arent going to make a huge difference in the world. Phelan describes how there really hasn't been evolution in humans except in a few odd cases. I feel that Phelan has more of a positive view of the earth and the people who live on it, while Carlin has a more negative view of the earth. I mean granted he is doing a stand up in front of an audience so there has to be some fun and negativity in his act, but overall his view is pessimistic towards environmentalists. Carlin states that whatever we do is not really going to be good enough to save the world. The world has been around for such a long time that it is impossible to make a difference just by recycling a few cans and plastic bottles. Carlin makes a joke saying how can we take care of our world when we can't even take care of ourselves.

Just Add Water

One symbol in the film that serves best as the "small object" was Ray. I think that Ray is the small object in this film because although he was the main character in the movie, he is only viewed as a small person in a big world or even in the town of Trona if you want to narrow it down further. Ray, although only one person, had the drive and the determination to make a change in his town. And with the help of others, he was able to achieve that goal after a thought out plan to bring down Dirk and his posse. Even though Ray was just one person with not a lot of power in the beginning of the film, he was able to completely change everything around as time continued. Not only did he make a drastic, positive difference in his life, but he changed the lives of others as well. It just goes to show you that no matter how small something is, does not limit the power it has to change the world.

Blogging

For me, blogging is a writing experience that I feel is very fun and easy to do. Being able to post works online for anyone to see is so amazing because of the freedom. Having the freedom to write a blog and go off on a tangent is such a great feeling and does not involve any stress at all. I enjoy writing blogs so much better than writing on paper because I can type a lot faster than write when I am thinking. When I type up a blog I am less likely to lose my train of thought. I write way too slow to be successful at getting everything that is going on in my brain onto the paper.

As much as I enjoy writing blogs, I also enjoy reading them as well. I think it is awesome that we are able to see the work of our classmates and acknowledge their hard work by commenting on their individual posts. We all share our ideas to one another and which is beneficial to everyone.

The Writing Center

I felt like the writing center can be very useful to students on campus if they are lucky and sign up with a good helper. My writing center experience was horrible. The whole day I was stressing about going to the right building and being there on time and I stressed myself out for nothing. The tutor was late and he was NOT enthusiastic at all. To be honest, I thought being in the writing center for him was the last thing on his list of things to do. I was there for about 15 minutes and did not accomplish anything. I don't even think he understood the paper that I had to write even though I tried to explain it to him, and I had the instructions printed out for the appointment. Alright, maybe I'm exaggerating a little bit, but I wish that my experience at the writing center was a little bit better. Maybe I would actually consider going there again for help if I had a better first experience.

Faustion Economics

Wendell Berry talks about the dangers of having no limit to things in the world. He argues that we, people who live on this earth, are damaging our planet because we are taking advantage of our resources on the earth. He describes how greedy people are and careless of their environment. When it comes to resources, the green monster (greed) comes out and people forget about the values and morals of life.

In order for Wendell Berry to get his point across to his readers, he uses plays and events that are happening in the world to support his claims about people and them being greedy, selfish and careless.

Need to Know Questions

1. What are the meanings of everyone's name?
2. How is the empty food market supposed to feed the people who live in the town?
3. What is the meaning of the movie taking place in a rundown, dry, hot neighborhood?
4. Ray seems unhappy with his home-life. Why does he remain married to his wife?
5. What was the filmmaker's purpose to use a voice over to narrate the movie?
6. Does Ray want to be more than just friends with Norah?

Just Add Water

Easy mac, just add water. How lazy can people possibly get? So many changes in life that try to help us out and make things easier actually hurt us in the end. Our race has become so accustomed to everything being premade for us that we don't even work for, cook or boil water to make a meal anymore. We just toss things in the microwave and call it dinner.

Greed

Greed, there is nothing like it. Going up to the stove to shovel food onto the platter you hold in your hand and filling the plate with food as if you haven't eaten in days is not thinking about others. You know there is no way you will be able to consume all of that food, but you don't care because you can just throw it away when you are sick of eating. Greedy is not caring about others and forcing yourself to get up from the table because you are so full to fill your plate with a second round of the meal before you have even cleared your plate a little bit.

A Writer

A writer is someone who goes above and beyond everyone else. A writer is someone who expresses his or her own ideas in the most original way. To me, everyone is a writer. We all have original opinions and ideas that we are able to share with others. We all have our own unique story to tell. Sharing these stories with others can change open the minds of others. Writing is a form of collaborative learning because we learn off of each other.

Poems by R. Jones and R. Hass

Both poems address nature in the making. These authors show us that language is very important when writing and can create imagery. Rodney Jone’s Hubris at Zunzal, says “No image like the image of language.” Language helps us tell stories and ideas. Both authors use language to show us their individual views. For Robert Hass, the problem of describing trees struggles to best describe a tree. To Hass the try has many characteristics and it is difficult to find the words on, what the tree did. He tells us the tree's actual physical structure, mentioning its "wobbly stems" and the trees cells. However, Hass humanizes the tree by saying that is a "dancer". When he says the tree is a slippery vehicle, this can be interpreted multiple ways. For example, the problem of describing trees is purposely vague, its meaning is mostly likely subjective.

“Derrida: Fear of Writing”

In Derrida’s fear of writing, Derrida says “I’m not afraid when I’m writing but I’m afraid when I dream about what I wrote.” I think that as soon as you start writing, even if it is under your real name, you start to function as somebody slightly different, as a “writer”. You establish from yourself to yourself continuities and a level of logic which is not quite the same as your real life. All this ends up constituting a kind of neo-identity which is not identical to whom you really are, this is what motivates his fear. I think he was scared about people thinking badly about who Derrida really is. For me the fear in writing comes when I have the idea, I know just exactly what I want to say and the angle at which I want to present it, at this point it’s a thing not any words, an object of thought, but the fear comes when I have to choose the words to portray the mental substance and it doesn’t announce itself right away perfectly, that’s when I feel the fear about writing.

Collaborative Learning

Collaborative learning is a situation in which two or more people learn together and is a great new technique to help students learn and understand the material. The article by Kenneth A. Brufee states that students did not want to receive help with work when it was offered. I think that the best way for students to get the help they need in order to succeed in school is to make it mandatory. The article says, "These programs failed because undergraduates refused to use them. Many solutions to this problem were suggested and tried, from mandated programs that forced students to accept help they evidently did not want. . ." I think that if students are required to get help for school, it will force them into the right direction and will make them think more because they will be working with someone else.


I think collaborative learning will be a great style of learning that will help students learn the most that they can. Working with other people is a great way to learn because peers bring new ideas to the table that maybe someone else in a group would have never thought of. Collaborative learning helps diversify ideas because everyone involved in the group is exchanging his or her own opinions. Sometimes students prefer to work with peers rather than working with teachers or professors because they have that comfort level of someone who is in the same situation as they are. Also, peer tutoring helps students because they bounce ideas back and forth off of one another. The article says, "To provide that alternative some colleges turned to peer tutoring."

Having conversations with others and discussing the thoughts that students have enables us to broaden our horizon and understand things that we otherwise would not know. Conversation allows students to debate and share ideas, which in the end helps students learn. Trying to think when one is alone does not enable that person to experience and generate ideas as much as he or she would if they were involved in conversation. The article says, To the extent that thought is internalized conversation,then, any effort to understand and how we think requires us to understand the nature of conversation;and any effort to understand conversation requires us to understand the nature of community life that generates and maintains conversation."

Sport Royal

Maria: Sport royal, I warrant you. (II, iii, 170)

Maria is saying this when she is plotting against Malvolio to try to trick him into thinking that Olivia wrote a letter to him. When Maria says sport royal, it can be translated into lets play. Maria is saying game on. Maria, Toby, and Andrew all want to watch Malvolio's reaction to this letter so they can get some entertainment out of the scheme.

Sport Inkshed

I think that sport plays an important theme in Shakespear's play because it talks about sport being related to the game of love as well as a physical activity. The sport of winning the love of someone that you have your eye on. Viola is trying to win the love of Orsino even though she is posing as a man. Olivia is trying to win the love of Cesario who is Viola, and Orsino is trying to win the love of Olivia.

New Media Project

I really enjoyed the new media projects. It was nice to see the ways how other students in our class interpreted the themes that Shakepeare uses throughout the play. Also, just looking at the collage of pictures that our classmates enabled us to use our imagination to connect how the pictures were related to Twelfth Night. I was able to piece together a little story in my own head while I was watching the projects.

Shakespeare's Concodance

Question: Where is the data you retrieved found? What is happening in context when Shakespeare employs this particular theme or image?

For our group, we looked up music and related themes in Shakespeare's concordance. Music is mentioned throughout the play, but our first hit was found in I.i. Duke Orsino was talking about music and how he relates it to his love for Olivia. He states that he wants excess of music because it makes him feel good inside.


Question: How does the data you retrieved support your first thoughts on Shakespeare's obsessive use of a particular image? What can you argue about Shakespeare's figuration?

The data that we retrieved supports our first thoughts on Shakespeare's obsessive use of a particular image because he relates most of his phrases about music back to love. We can argue that Shakespeare views music as an expression of feelings of caring and love of another. Music relaxes and brings people together.

Conclusions About Shakespeare Concordance

I think that a concordance is very useful. It is easy to use and allows you to search any word that may be used in the text. I think that using a concordance will be helpful to me when I wirte my paper because I will be able to look up and find words easily that are used throughout the entire play. As of now I am researching music and any other words that are related to music like, song, lyrics, emotions and so on. The results after you type a word in are so specific including the act, the scene, and the line or lines that the word is used.

Shakespeare Concordance

I thought that using the Shakespeare Concordance was interesting and helpful because the search engine finds exactly what you are trying to find right away. I like that you are able to type in any words related to what you are searching for and all different findings come up. For example, I typed in music and and several hits. Then I typed in song and found even more hits. I think that the Shakespeare concordance will be very helpful for me when I starting writing my paper.

Quote 3

Viola: "I am the man" (II.ii.25).

Viola is confessing that she is the man that Olivia wants, because she fell in love with the disguise that she has been wearing. Viola says that if Olivia loves her, than she might as well be dreaming because Viola is not really a man. Viola states that both her love for Orsino is hopeless because she is pretending to be a man, and Olivia's love for her is hopeless also because she is pretending to be a man.

Quote 2

Malvolio: "...and yet to crush it a little, it would bow to me..."(II.v.143-145).

This quote was said when Malvolia was reading a letter that was written by Olivia. The translation of the quote means that Malvolio is changing the true meaning of the words around in the letter to make the letter directed towards him. Malvolio starts to believe that Olivia might be in love with him because he is looking into too much depth with what was written in the letter. Malvolio tries to make the words in the letter seem that they are directed towards him and that Olivia is expressing love to him, but they are really not doing that at all.

Quote 1

Viola: "Then think you right. I am not what I am."
Olivia: I would you were as I would have you be" (III.i.148-9)

Olivia thinks Cesario(Viola) is the man that she is in love with. Viola tries to explain to Olivia that she is not the man that Olivia thinks she is. While trying to tell Olivia that she is not who she thinks she is, Cesario(Viola) has to get rid of Olivia's feelings that she has for Cesario without telling her that Cesario is really a woman pretending to be a man. Olivia liking Cesario will create more problems because Orisino is ultimately the one that likes Olivia.

Inkshedding

Quote - "Come, sir, you peevishly threw it to her, and her will is it should be so returned" (II,ii,13).

Malvolio is stating that Olivia game him the ring to return it back to Viola. The secion on it being returned means the ring is being returned to Malvolio to give to Viola, when he foolishly gave it to Olivia with no true meanin behind it. Olivia does not want to take the ring because Cesario (Viola) gave it to her Orinsino's behalf. Olivia does not want to take anything from Orisino because she does not love him and she thinks that he is a coward because he won't come and talk to Olivia in person.

Paper 1

The iPod: Not So Small After All

Today, the average American's life, which can be labeled as a spoiled consumer, revolves around the iPod. There are so many applications that are made for the iPod that can keep you busy for hours on end. Every time a new song is released, everyone scrambles to download that song onto his or her iPod. The iPod has become such a huge product that not only college students are using, everyone is using them. Starting from children who are seven or eight years old, going to adults who are in their fifties.
The iPod is such a brilliant piece of technology. It is user friendly and enables people to do almost anything they want. Not only are you able to listen to music on it, you can watch music videos and movies, download pictures, play games, and even go on the Internet. Apple has created iPods to hold so much memory that it is virtually impossible to fill all of the space up. It seems like every week Apple releases something new for the iPod. iPods have become so important in our lives that we spend hundreds of dollars just decorating and buying accessories for our iPods. Apple sells hard shell cases, leather cases, rubber cases, and sock cases that come in a variety of different colors. Accessories for the iPod include, iHome radios, headphones, remotes, and speakers just to name a few. The iPod also has over 100,000 applications available to be downloaded with new applications being created every day. These applications include almost everything imaginable. Apple has created applications that can give you recipes for cooking, you can look up words in the dictionary, it provides you with GPS for when you travel, and even an application that enables you to download full books. The iPod is truly an amazing machine.
Thinking about all of the advertisements used to sell iPods, I find it amazing how many different places you can see an iPod pop up. Apple has advertisements in all of the right places: on giant billboards, in commercials, on pop-ups on the computer, facebook, myspace, and magazines. It is ubiquitous. Producing that much advertisement is bound to make people buy their product. We are surrounded by it constantly.
Everything we do involves the iPod. Almost everyone I know has one. It is almost impossible to go a single day without seeing or hearing about this tiny machine we can fit in the palm of our hands. I notice while walking from class to class, not one person can walk alone without their iPod in their hand. There are so many accessories available for your iPod that it is almost impossible to get bored with it. But, amazingly enough, we still do. Why does our society always want the newer and better things? I have to admit; myself that I bought an iPod Touch before my "old" iPod was even broken. In fact, my "old" iPod still looked brand new. Craving the new technology helped push me into buying a newer and frankly more expensive object. The new technology that gets released is usually so superior to the prior piece of technology that was out that everyone has to get it.
Apple makes it look so easy keeping up with their consumers buying their products. As soon as there is a noticeable dip in consumption of their product, they release something new that seems to be a better product to the public. Just recently a new iPod Touch was released because it claimed to be faster than the previous model. The release of a new product sparked sales once again. One of my friends bought the new iPod Touch and gave away her old iPod Touch. I thought she was completely insane because her old iPod Touch was not even a year old. This just goes to show you that people cannot help but buy new products regardless of the condition that their other products are in.
Another product that Apple just released to the public that is keeping them ahead of their competition was the iPad. To me, this looks and acts exactly like and iPod, it is just a few inches bigger. Already people are buying this iPod/computer without knowing anything about the product. Who knows, maybe people think that having better technology than everyone else will make them seem more important in the world. We have become very materialistic within the past decade because of all the new technology that comes out in such a small amount of time. Although it is great to have all of these nice things, should it really be as important as we make it seem to own them.
According to some people, they believe that advanced technology is making us “stupid.” In Nicholas Carr’s article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid” he talks about how people have lost patience in trying to do a simple thing like reading. He states that we have become so accustomed to attaining information with the click of a button that we no longer are able to sit down and read a book without getting distracted. Carr talks about how he feels when he reads now and describes how he feels when he says, “Now my concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages. I get fidgety, lose the thread, begin looking for something else to do” (Carr 1). Having an iPod makes it even easier for people to access information now that iPods have wireless Internet built in. People don’t even need to sit down and look up information on desktop computers anymore, they just click a few buttons on their iPod and a full webpage appears. Is that really a bad thing?
Is it really a big deal that we don’t read as much anymore? Having iPods can help us look up exactly what we need to know in just a few minutes. This cuts the amount of time that would be needed to look up information if one was to do research by reading dramatically. How could anyone think that is a bad thing?
For every good side, there is a bad side as well. Since iPods have become so big, they have also become a big problem. Because our society has become so spoiled and greedy, we buy the newest product that is available as soon as it gets released and throw away our old devices. This creates a problem because we discard our “old” technology into landfills, which can be very detrimental to our environment. According to Chris Carroll in his article “High-Tech Trash,” our old technology gets dumped into landfills including places like Ghana and China. This creates a problem because the technology that is burned releases toxins that go into the air and water. In order to reduce the amount of toxins released into the environment, we need to reduce the amount of technology that we discard.
Another negative effect is that iPods can be a distraction. This can potentially be very dangerous. Many people use their iPods in their cars, which causes them to be distracted from the road. It is scary to think that people can last a half hour driving without fidgeting with their iPod. iPods have been a big cause of car accidents from people between the ages of 18 to 24. “According to the article, iPods are the Cause of Numerous Car Accidents,” by Kenneth L. Christensen, he states: “The dangers of using an iPod, or any other distracting device, are real” (1). iPods have become a big danger for drivers because people are so attached to them and always need to be listening to music or scanning through their iPod.
Another negative effect that iPods have on society is that they are damaging the hearing of people who listen to them. People who are constantly listening to music on their iPod are raising the volume each time they listen to music. This is damaging their hearing and a lot of people don’t even know it. Apple even states on their website that iPod users have to listen to their music responsibly. Drawing from personal experiences here at Hofstra, as I walk to class I can literally hear the song that students are listening to because their iPod volume is turned up so much. I can’t even imagine that they do not hear it and that is why it is turned up so loud, because the music is completely blasting. I was sitting in study hall the other day and from across the room, I was able to hear that a girl was listening to “Jesus Take the Wheel” by Carrie Underwood. This constant loud music is so damaging to the ear and people don’t even seem to care. As long as they have their iPod and their music is on, they are happy.
Over the past decade, technology has advanced and incredible amount. iPods have become such a huge success that almost every home in America contains an iPod. Because there are many accessories and applications available for the iPod, the result has been American consumers becoming greedy and spoiled.

Writing the Essay

For me, writing the small object/large subject essay was fun but stressful. I really liked my topic that I chose to write about, which was the iPod. I found that there was so much to write about that I didn't even know where to start and how to organize my paper. After a while though I realized that I didn't really have that many ideas to "fill up" five pages. I felt like I ran out of ideas to write about very quickly. Before I starting, I thought that the paper was going to be really easy because I really like talking about my topic. My paper I feel was very confusing because I felt like I kept jumping around with different topics because I didn't know how to keep my paper flowing into the different topics that I wanted to talk about. Hopefully my paper turned out okay.

I thought doing the research for my paper was easy because all I really had to do was go to the Apple store. I found myself getting distracted sometimes because I am so obsessed with anything to do with Mac computers or the iPod. It probably was a perfect topic for me to pick and write about because I love it so much.

Unanswered Questions

1. What is everyone's relationship to one another?

2. What tragedy did Olivia survive that her brother didn't?

3. Where are the characters in the play?

4. Does everyone dislike Andrew?

5. Who is Maria?

6. Why did Viola dress up like a man?

Abstract: Taking Wildness in Hand: Rescuing Species

In "Taking Wildness in Hand: Resuing Species," by Michelle Nijhuis, she talks about the increase in the amount of organisms that are having trouble adjusting to a warming climate. Because of global warming, many species are becoming extinct. For example, the Florida torreya tree, which was known for being a rot-resistant species, is now "adult trees [that] were reduced to a handful of mossy trunks, rotting in riverside ravines" (1). We can see here that the species was greatly affected by the climate, and in order to reverse this problem, changes have to be made. Nijhuis also provides us with check marks to make us aware that global warming is actually happening. She states, "Escalating average global temperatures? Check. Rising seas? Check. Plants and animals scampering uphill and toward the poles? Check" (2). Nijuis brings this to our attention so she is able to make a suggestion on how to save species that are in danger of becoming extinct.

A graduate student by the name of Brian Keel proposed an idea of assisted migration. Assisted migration is moving species into climates that are more natural to them and will help them to survive. "Connie Barlow, a writer and a naturalist, and the Florida torreya pushed this debate into the open" (2). Although many people disagree with assisted migration because they believed it to be unnatural, there is no guarantee that species will be able to survive without moving them to a new habitat. In order to help save our planet and to help save the the species that live on it, we have to make drastic changes in order to do so.

Virtual Iraq-Abstract

Today, people are using virtual machines to help reduce the effects of P.T.S.D. Many soldiers who return from war suffer from this illness. Our generation was raised on high technology and video games. So can this virtual reality world really work? According to Sue Halpern,"Virtual Iraq is a tool for doing what’s known as prolonged-exposure therapy. . ." (2). This type of therapy will give patients the opportunity to relive the horrors that they have witnessed during war, but will slowly try to detach them from their horrible memories. Halpern also explains what one of the goals of Virtual Iraq is when she states, "The idea is to disconnect the memory from the reactions to the memory, so that although the memory of the traumatic event remains, the everyday things that can trigger fear and panic, such as trash blowing across the interstate or a car backfiring—what psychologists refer to as cues—are restored to insignificance" (2). This virtual world is a great way to help patients overcome their fears and anxieties. Although patients will never fully be cured from P.T.S.D., Virtual Iraq is a great way to help them get back into touch with their everyday lives.

Abstract-High Tech Trash

Think about all of the technology that we throw away. Where is all of our old computers, VCRs, cassettes, CDs, and iPods going. According to the article High-Tech Trash by Chris Carroll, all of our "old" technology goes to landfills to places all over the world including places like Ghana. Some of these machines that get thrown away are burned which produces toxins that are released into the atmosphere and even go into the water. This poses a problem to people all over the world. In order to help prevent future problems from these disposed materials, the EU is trying to go green. Carroll states, "Recently a new EU directive encourages "green design" of electronics, setting limits for allowable levels of lead, mercury, fire retardants, and other substances" (Technology). Setting limits on what can be disposed and how much of it can greatly help reduce the amount of waste that is entering into our environment.

small object, LARGE SUBJECT

Today, the average American's life revolves around the iPod. There are so many applications are made for the iPod that can keep you busy for hours on end. Every time a new song is released, everyone scrambles to download that song onto his or her iPod. Not only are college students using iPods. Everyone is using them. Starting from children who are seven years old, going to adults who are in their fifties.

Everything we do involves the iPod. Almost everyone I know has one. It is almost impossible to go a single day without seeing or hearing about thing tiny machine we can fit in the palm of our hands. I notice while walking from class to class, not one person can walk alone without their iPod in their hand. There are so many accessories available for your iPod that it is almost impossible to get board with it. But, amazingly enough, we still do. Why does our society always want the newer and better things? I have to admit, myself that I bought an iPod Touch before my "old" iPod was even broken. In fact, my "old" iPod still looked brand new. Craving the new technology helped push me into buying a newer and frankly more expensive object. Our lives have been consumed into thinking we always need new things. We have become very materialistic within the past decade.

Thinking about all of the advertisements used to sell iPods, I find it amazing how many different places you can find an iPod. Apple has advertisements in all of the right places: on giant billboards, on commercials, on pop-ups on the computer, facebook, myspace, and magazines. It is ubiquitous. Producing that much advertisent, is bound to make people buy their product. We are surrounded by it constantly. Is it really a bad thing though? It has the potential to be bad. We as consumers have to be cautious about how we are spending our money.

American consumers buy so many materials that we do not really need, we can call ourselves a very greedy society. Advertisers know how hard it is for Amercians to resist a brand spankin' new shiny object.

Analysis: Is Google Making Us Stupid

Google is lessening the amount of reading that is being done by people all over the country. Nicholas Carr gives an example of himself that states, " . . . my concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages [of reading]. I get fidgety, lose the thread, begin looking for something else to do." People are so used to accessing information instantly through the Internet that they lose concentration and become bored when trying to read an article. Carr supports the idea of everything is at the click of a button when he says, "Research that once required days in the stacks or periodical rooms of libraries can now be done in minutes." This quote proves the fact that the amount of time that is needed to research something has been extremely cut down.

While writing this article, Is Google Making Us Stupid?, Nicholas Carr also assumes that other people are being affected in a negative way because of the Internet. Carr even states, "I'm not the only one [who is having trouble reading]." Here we can see that Carr assumes that other people are having problems with reading that are using the Internet more and more.

Is Google Making Us Stupid Response

After reading the article, I do believe that Google along with other search engines have a negative effect on our lives. The Internet has become so fast and efficient that it is so easy to look up a desired fact with the click of a button. The way the article is bashing the Internet I feel is a little harsh. I do not believe that the decrease in the amount of time a person can focus is only affected by the Internet and is not happening as fast as they make it seem. I feel that with all of the technology used today everything is just getting better and faster. Take cell phones for example. People can send hundreds of text messages a day to other people. All of this texting is very quick and to the point. After someone sends a text, they can do something else on the side while they are waiting for a response. Going back to the Internet making us stupid. I do feel that the negative effects of the Internet are bad even though I would never give up my computer so I can have more focus when I read. All though school I never enjoyed reading. I always found it difficult to concentrate and understand what I had just read. To be honest, it was hard for me to even get through this article and understand the important details that were being discussed. But how can I tell if it is difficult for me to read because I spend so much time on the computer surfing the internet. Maybe I'm just not a reader. I find myself more of a math and science person anyway so how can I ever really find out if the Internet is bad for me. I feel that rather than looking at the negatives of the Internet. We should look at the positives. The Internet shortens down our time that we have to research something by so much. All of the information that we want to find up can be found on the computer. Why spend hours looking for a book in the library when we can find exactly what we are looking for in just a few minutes. Although some people do take the Internet to an extreme when doing a research project, the Internet should not be completely bashed. Now that I think about it I feel that the Internet can even make us smarter because we have everything so readily available to us. I know that if I want to find something out I would rather type in into Google or Yahoo then go to my public library and read about it. It takes too much time. Today everything is quick. Especially if you live in New York. New Yorkers always like to do things fast. I feel that with the technology that we have today and the technology that is going to come out in the future we should take advantage of it. Technology is only trying to make things easier for us. I believe that maybe within the next 20 years, books will be completely gone and everything will be looked at on the Internet. I mean if you think about it, everyone nowadays owns a computer. I know in my house we have four computers. One laptop for each of my family members, and then a regular computer that stays in our house. I can't think of anyone in this day and age that does not own a computer. I think that having the Internet around should not be as bad as the article makes it seem. We should embrace the amazing technology that we have today and not bash it. So all in all, after thinking about the positives and negatives of Google and the Internet I do not believe that it is making us stupid.