Quick Knowledge?

In the new age of technology things are changing quick. These days, the way we attain knowledge is completely different. More and more people have turned to computer screens, and less to pages of books. People are finding alternatives to the old paper backs.

In the article by Sven Birkerts "Into The Electronic Millennium" he talks about how a professor sold all of his books and bought a computer to store all of his information. Although this may seem a little over the top, this is a reality in our technological age. Students are no long turning to books for knowledge but finding it much more accessible to learn through sources of media such as t.v. or the internet. People are becoming less literate in actual writing, and becoming much more competent in electronic communications.

Instead of actually reading books, students will find the "Spark Notes" online. In the digital age, physical copies of books are becoming obsolete. With inventions like the "Kindle," it has never been easier to read books on the go. The Kindle is the object pictured here. It is an "electronic reader". It allows you to download books in just 30 seconds without any wires attached. Audio books downloaded to ipods or other audio players allow people to listen to a book instead of actually reading it. With the growth of technology it has made knowlodge increasingly easier to attain.

The problem with the ease and quickness that is attained through technology comes in laziness. Now instead of studying a text, people will just quickly check the Spark Notes to pass a test. Technology is a blessing and a curse in this sense. It can be used in so many ways to benefit knowledge, but steps must be taken to assure that one does not dismiss learning in their hastiness.

Comm 203
Joel Heslop