It is a linky sort of day since I have more school to cope with than I would prefer.
- A new look for ereaders: dual screens. They are mainly being marketed to students as a textbook replacement. Seem kind of pricey though.
- Ebook readers and the iPad continue to elicit death of print prophecies from techno-evangelists. You know the saying, to wish to live in interesting times, or however it goes? Well, I think these are interesting times but I’m not entirely sure I wouldn’t mind it to be a little less interesting now and then.
- Because all this technology and time on the internet means lots of people worrying about the loss of deep reading. Poor Carlyle, he already isn’t read much, now he and others like him that require attention and concentration really may be doomed.
- But is the Internet changing our brains and our ability to think? Some say no, not really things are the same as always the Internet just makes us more aware of all the bozos in the world. Brain scientists are skeptical, but even they found it hard to unplug and realized they gained greatly when they did.
- But it could be that the rules of modern productivity which require us to put subjects in silos and to specialize instead of being “Renaissance” men and women might have something to do with it. We can see it in the ways the reading of our leaders have changed over time.
- But maybe a website like Five Books will help us all expand our reading choices and somehow start to break down the silo walls and make connections again.
Or maybe trying to impress a librarian will help?
My cat Waldo says he really doesn’t give a tuna’s fin about all this as long as he can sit in my lap and have his chin scratched. He’s giving me the big “I’m so cute you have to scratch me” eyes. I’d better obey.
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Isn’t Five Books fascinating? A friend mentioned it to me last week and I spent a happy hour or two sifting through it over the weekend. A passionate lover of any kind of list, how could I not be intrigued?
The most recent article I’ve seen on eReaders (from the NYT) judges their users to be more approachable when reading in public than those who cling to ‘dead trees’. Oh dear. Now I’m not just a luddite, I’m also antisocial.
All the stuff about ebooks and shortening attention spans and the loss of deep reading make me want to get off the internet and go read a book … I suppose I should be interested in those topics, but … I guess I have a short attention span for those things!
What wonderful links, Stefanie. I was having a conversation about this with Mister Litlove just last night, and am forwarding them to him immediately! My experience is that I think better and am much happier when I am not rushed and busy and confused with lots of stimulus, but that doesn’t have to be digital stimulus. I’m just better working at a slower pace altogether.
You’ve seen me change my mind on this more than once, Stefanie. I’m a currently in a holding pattern which says we aren’t there yet. If we grew up with books, we’ll hold on to them. It’s those that don’t grow up with books as a normal delivery system of information and entertainment that won’t know what all the fuss is about.
I don’t think print is really in trouble until someone finally invents an indestructible, drool- and teething- and generally baby-proof eReader made for showing the big, colorful picture books in all their glory. At that point, print really will be a dead man walkin’.
Claire, Five books is fantastic. I’m planning on doing some exploration when summer class is done. I fear for my TBR list. And people reading on ereaders are more approachable? When reading in public I generally get annoyed when people interrupt me so perhaps I should be sure I am always reading a paper book!
Dorothy, lol! I know what you mean about feeling the urge to get off the internet and read. I’m thinking about having an unplugged Labor Day weekend.
Litlove, glad you lilke the links and I hope they provide fuel for your discussion with Mr. Litlove
I really liked the article about the brain scientists on thr rafting trip.
Cameron, I think you are right, it’s the kids who don’t grow up getting their information from books that will make the difference when it comes to print. But that won’t be for some time yet because, as you say, there is no baby-proof ereader.
Thanks for these links. I just loved the clip containing two of my favorite British actors (from Keeping Up Appearances and The Vicar of Dibley) – even if I can’t remember their names. Now that the Kindle is down to $139 I was tempted. But I’m someone who still uses a fountain pen every day and not likely to be the sort who’d like an eReader. We do all our research and most of our communication over the internet at work so I deliberately do not have internet at home. An entire weekend without being on-line (or even being tempted to be) is refreshing.
Babies can destroy anything, and look cute doing it.
Stefanie, Thanks for the great links. I have to admit that I’m a complete Luddite, I haven’t even listened to an audio book, except on the radio, or should I say wireless!
I believe that those eReader thingmybobs are helpful to people with dyslexia.
I really like the article about “the Internet changing our brains and our ability to think”! Thanks for all the great links Stefanie
Stefanie:
According to this article in the WSJ, readers claim they are actually reading more on the e-book, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703846604575448093175758872.html. But more is not necessary deeper, is it?
marksinthemargin.com
Grad, I’ve not seen the Vicar of Dibley but Keeping Up Appearances I have seen many episodes of. It’s such a hoot! Grad you are a woman after my own heart. I love fountain pens and have several as well a a large array of bottled inks. Fountain pens and ereaders are not mutually exclusive, but I totally understand your reluctance to satisfy your temptation.
Cameron, lol, that’s one reason why babies are evil
Katrina, I’ve heard audiobooks but they are not my favorite format. Your “wireless” reference made me laugh. Wireless has taken on a whole new meaning than it used to have.
Lua, glad you enjoyed the article!
Richard, I missed that article the other day, thanks for the link. And you are right, reading more does not equal deep reading.
Fascinating links. I loved the scientists on a road trip and their idea that working memory might be taken up just with the anticipation of new email. So maybe it’s not the technology, it’s us having more to anticipate regularly. Interesting.
I definately notice that since I’ve been working (and am attached to a computer pretty much all day in an office job) it takes me longer to settle back into a state of focus where I can read without thinking of other things. However I think some of that’s got to be down to the fact that I just don’t have the long, uninterrupted stretches of time to slow myself down and readjust my minds pace that I used to have. I have to get reading into a certain amount of prescribed hours. I’d really like to see some sort of study about the difference between children and teens reading (on average longer stretches of down time) and working adults reading to go alongside all the ones about hwo technology might be distracting us.
Bookgazing, I know exactly what you mean about taking longer to settle into a state of focus. Even if it isn’t technology related my brain can’t help but think of all the things at home at work and at school that need to be done and it is hard to get it to stop. That would be an interesting study. I’d be hesitant to compare adults and adolescents though, maybe working adults and retired adults?
Re “wireless”. It can be funny when language moves on. I well remember the look on my son’s face when I told him that his dad once got a tranny for a birthday present. I of course meant transistor radio, but Duncan thought transvestite! Apparently that’s what a tranny means nowadays. La-di-dah!
I really like this post. As an IT person and Kindle owner, I love ebooks, but I in no way think they are the death of print. I do find it a little easier to do close reading on my Kindle than in my paper books. I think it’s because I don’t care how much I highlight or annotate. I don’t feel I’m messing the book up. However, the only paper books I annotate are professional reading and textbooks. You should have been a fly on the wall in my class’s discussion of Brave New World this week. We were listing positives and negatives of the Internet and TV, and the students thought of a surprising number of negatives. They are much more self- aware than they are given credit for. I actually had to remind them of some of the positives. I know part of it is probably that their frame of mind was toward a dystopian vision because of the book under discussion, but still, it was really interesting.