Reaction to the Readings

One of the most interesting articles I have ever read for a class is definitely the Steven Johnson, The Best Technology 2009 Writing article. I mean, where do I begin? I really did like this article and I even told my co-workers about it. It goes on to talk about how it is so hard to concentrate on any reading when you have so many digital or technological interruptions. Obviously, we encounter other interruptions, but if you really think about it, it is true. I check my text messages hundreds of times a day, even when I know I didn’t receive a text! It seems almost impossible to go a day without a phone, even the middle schoolers would agree. After all, they all seem technologically savvy with their blackberries in their hand, facebook pages, skimming youtube when really they’re supposed to have this “big” project due. I’ve witnessed this with my younger brothers who have been begging my parents for a phone. This goes on to say how we are living in such a digital world, that we forget that writing, for instance, was just as interesting as these iPads we are carrying around to those people in the early civilizations. Hard to believe, right? J

             Instead of these long, hefty, some would even go as far to say boring books, we now have the Web. Did Google really make us that stupid? Well, not really. Now we can skim until we find the right information. Face it, there is not enough hours in the day any college student can agree with that. It’s not impossible to read books and stay interested, Johnson says, people still do in mass numbers, and I agree with him. However, when in need of information quick, the internet is the way to go!

            An interesting point Johnson makes is how the Web unravels some phenomenoms. Lots of people are familiar with cyber-bullying, but really, it didn’t start with the Web. Bullying has been around for awhile, the web just makes it more visible. I completely agree with this. I also agree that people tend to be more brutally honest online than in person, whether they are commenting and responding on a matter or creating their own article. When reporters write for a newspaper, they have to mainly appeal to their editors, not their readers. The web has made it so somebody can appeal to their reader and heck, if you want to tell us what kind of shoes your wearing while you’re at it, go right ahead.

            The other articles were a bit more in depth. I didn’t really connect or relate to them as much. Inventing the Medium had some interesting points, I agree with how important it is for human beings to be so interested in creating and finding new tools even if when broken down, computers and other machines are just core stupidity.  I mentioned earlier how writing was once an invention, The Best Technology Writing 2010, brought that to my attention. Altogether, I liked these articles, I agreed with most of the points they brought up. Well back to my texting!