Wednesday, January 23, 2013
"Mind Over Mass Media" and "Outdoors and Out of Reach"
Here is Steven Pinker's op-ed article from The New York Times, "Mind Over Mass Media," and here is the link to Matt Richtel's "Outdoors and Out of Reach." These two articles seem to be written from opposing viewpoints. Which one, in your opinion, builds the strongest case in its discussion of technology and the brain?
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In outdoors and out of reach, I can relate to that a lot. I love camping, but also own a commuter, iPhone, iPad, and lets even throw in an Xbox. All electronic devices. Even though I am attached to these devices, I still really enjoy just getting away from them. It's amazing that how a week on a fifty mile hike in the desert can really relax you. It almost seemed that I felt better knowing that I didn't have to worry about having my cell phone ringing or having to text.
ReplyDelete-Chris Quick
I camp at Lake Powell once a year for a whole week. No phones, watches, gadgets, or electricity. It is amazing how your life adapts and your inner clock syncs with the sun and only the sun.
ReplyDeleteI think we should have a day on earth when we shut down everything. Wouldn't that be cool?
Every summer my family and I go up to our cabin and stay for a few days. Because there is no reception there, we leave our phones and other devices at home. Even though I depend on my eletronics, I still enjoy taking a break and going camping. Its very relaxing to take a break from everything going on and not have to worry about time, phones ringing, or emailing people.
ReplyDeleteHaley Horiuchi
Personally, I agree with the article, "Outdoors and Out of Reach", but I think the first article, "Mind Over Mass Media" is stronger than the second article. The first article has quite proper facts from historical records, while the other one describes only the experimental trip. Of course, the second article's way is quite impressive, but I think, to persuade someone, the article needs something trustworthy, like data and facts. Therefore, I believe the first one, "Mind Over Mass Media" is more powerful than the opposite one.
ReplyDelete-Minsu Kim
I thought the Outdoors and Out of Reach article was very interesting. I know people that have their phones glued to their hands and sometimes it is quite ridiculous. I went to a movie with my brother a while ago and was annoyed that he couldn’t even put his phone away for just two hours to relax and watch the movie. And then there’s the whole driving and texting problem; it’s crazy just how obsessed people can get with their electronic devices.
ReplyDeleteI didn’t really care for Steven Pinker’s article. I think there were too many problems with it. His examples of comic books in the 1950s and crime being low, video games in the 1990s and crime declining, and decades of television and rock videos with high IQ scores, were all not very good. There could have been a number of other reasons for what happened during those time periods. There is no proof that video games or comic books made crime go down, it could just be something that happened around the same time. (This is an example of Post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy.) Although I agree with the main message, that technology is really important and can help to make us more intelligent in the world today, the problem I mentioned above, along with quite a few other problems I found, made me quite dislike Pinker’s article.
-Ashleigh Saunders