Has the internet made us smarter?

[The Driver]

Sliding scale, the spread of information has grown but so with it mis-information... an the mis-information spreads exponential more then the correct information.

Some humans weren`t mean`t to discover fire let alone the internet, just my take.

[Accumulator]

Some humans weren`t mean`t to discover fire let alone the internet, just my take.

But I`m sure glad the discovery happened anyhow

It`s a tricky question IMO, the "making info easily available to everybody", but a lot of the stuff that people are *shocked* about was always available tothose who bothered to look for it. It`s just that absent the internet, most people didn`t know how to do the research or were too lazy/easily distracted.

Regarding all the mis-information out there, I like to hope (eternal optimist me...) that the need for Critical Thinking will some day assert itself but so far it doesn`t seem to be a Hot Topic for most people. ("Hey, nothing wrong with how I think!")

The thing that makes me about the internet is how *so* many people spend so much time on [stuff] that simply has no benefit to them or anybody else. It`s like Talk Radio and [crappy] TV...it`s all just time wasted on preaching to the choir or reveling in outrage. There`s *so much to do* in life but people waste their resources on that [stuff]. Heh heh, I know a lot of people who would put Autopia in that category!

[Accumulator]

I work with two gentlemen that seem to know something about everything due to the internet. When it starts off with, "they say"...

I suspect that asking about the veracity of that "information" doesn`t get you very far I also suspect that when those guys discuss something about which you have expert knowledge they`re invariably *wrong*.

Though I *AM* in favor of everybody knowing "something about everything and everything about something" as Heinlein (IIRC) put it.

[yg1829]

This is a great thread. Very good points. The Internet is an amazing tool when used correctly.

Not to spin off but I often wonder what the Internet and technology will be like in 20 years. I am 34 and have grown up watching it go mainstream. It`s hard for my parents to keep up so I help them a lot. I wonder when my daughter is older if she will have to help my wife and I or if it will be easier for us because things are evolving more gradually.


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[trashmanssd]

I think the internet has made it very easy for someone to be more knowledgeable on pretty much any subject they`d like, but I wouldn`t really say it makes them smarter, and it definitely doesn`t do anything for common sense. My wife and I are building our home addition mostly ourselves and without access to all the info online I don`t think it would have been as easy for us to do as it has been.

I do totally agree with the "decline of morals and humanity at an accelerated pace".

How true that is, and how dangerous is a little new knowledge and no common sense to go with it.

[Lonnie]

The Internet and social media in general have allowed all who have access to these electronic forms of communication to become critiques and voice their opinions, right or wrong, with a great deal of anonymity and, hence, without personal loss of reputation or negative consequences of one`s character. We`ve become anesthetized and tolerant to "character assignations" and there is no long any "shock value" to what we see and here within these electronic platforms of communication.
It has also reduced one`s personal privacy to a level of non-existence. With the advent of smartphone cameras and hand-held access to the Internet, you and I are subject to anyone`s photographic endeavor and subsequent posting to YouTube or the like for whatever reason, and you may not even know it. Many personal careers and professional reputations have been damaged because of their personal-free-time-having-fun antics being posted on such media. HR professionals do not even want to talk to someone who is not within some Facebook or Linked-In group because they want to you to be communicating to the world what you are doing, and hence, we know a little bit about you and can make a character assessment and determine work environment compatibility without even meeting you face-to-face. it`s just the way business is today: you gotta be "out there" or you are a non-entity in today`s society.

Like any technology, it is both blessing and curse. The blessing is that we have access to more information than ever before. The curse is that we do not have to remember what seems to us "mundane information". From history to geography: dates, people, and locations are irrelevant to our knowing and remembering. Is it any wonder why we do not give direction to those who ask "how do I get there?" or do not know how Hitler rose to power in 1930`s Germany. It has become our memory for us. We don`t have to KNOW the answer; it`s somewhere on the Internet, just few taps of the keyboard within a search engine, and volae!, you have the answer. (Try playing a Scrabble word game with a young person without a smartphone to look for possible word combinations with letters they`ve chosen; it`s not a game to them then. Win anyway you can; you just don`t have to use your mind, just how to use technology that`s available.)

I will say that for myself, it has made detailing more productive and better for me. I would not have known about all the great products, tools, and techniques for detailing had it not been for the fellow Autopians within this forum who have so willingly posted their photos and typed out extensively detailed experiences and explanations. In that respect, I am indebted to many of you, even though I have never met any of you face-to-face. The downside it that I want my details to look as good, even better, than yours; but all the envy in the world will not replace lack of ability and expertise that so many of you possess. Doesn`t mean I cannot try, but that`s a whole different forum topic. Don`t even get me started on why so-called detailing wannabe `"experts or professionals" details will NEVER look like the one`s posted within this forum.

[jrock645]

Well, I keep telling people that I fear the silly film, Idiocracy, is looking to be more plausible as time passes.

I do believe the internet is a great resource, but I find it`s overwhelmingly full of crap. Tosh.O will always have material for his show.

It kinda scares me how realistic of a possibility that movie really could be

[Migue]

I will trust a habitual internet user`s opinion before that of a habitual Television user`s.

Short answer to the thread question is "yes". And I read some of the answers and agree with pretty much most if not all stated. I seriously believe that this "stupidity" that seems to be on the rise comes from Pop Culture and Television ,especially the fact that people prefer to waste their time following celebrities and gossiping about others rather than trying to learn about significant things, but then "significant" depends on an individual`s paradigm.

[DAC17]

This is a GREAT thread. It has more intelligent commentary than I`ve seen on ANY thread for many months.

Thanks for raising the question.

[Accumulator]

I`m still amazed that so many people care about all the [stuff] they do, much of which is more easily facilitated by the internet. I generally suspect it`s a matter of wanting to be distracted from the things those people would rather evade. People who claim they "don`t have time to do [whatever they might oughta be attending to].." still find time to spend on all sorts of other stuff, stuff that keeps them distracted from what needs doing.

[The Driver]

How true that is, and how dangerous is a little new knowledge and no common sense to go with it.

Makes you wonder how many times kids burn their hands on the stove more then once these days...

[Bunky]

I think we are smarter (have deeper knowledge in many areas) but due to technology we have lost some other skills. For example, if you grew with a car you could actually work on (pull a head, change spark plugs, drop the transmission, etc) you learned a lot of things that you just do not learn today. Many things are more complex and often disposable.

[craigdt]

Interesting question I saw posed on another forum.

Heh- thought I was experiencing dejavu.
You must be a member of Arfcom?


But to answer the question, I`d tend to say no.

[House of Wax]

Heh- thought I was experiencing dejavu.
You must be a member of Arfcom?


But to answer the question, I`d tend to say no.

I am lol. That place can be a cesspool (at least in the general discussion area ), but every once in awhile there`s a good nugget

[Lonnie]

How true that is, and how dangerous is a little new knowledge and no common sense to go with it.

As Will Rogers, the famous writer, once said, "I guess common sense isn`t so common!"