1 INTRODUCTION
The National Science Foundation (NSF)
relinquishing of its administration of the internet in 1995, and allowing its
privatization and commercial use, heralded yet another major landmark in human
history. In 1989 Tim Berners-Lee at CERN, the European Particle Physics
Laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland, was not only instrumental in conception of
the world wide web but also in its birth. These twin technological developments
opened a new chapter in information age.
The ability to globally network
computers and, access and exchange information, in varied forms and format, and
in real time, despite geographical dispensation, has presented the humanity
with a powerful enlightening tool. In addition to changing the way human beings
interact. However, according to the
internet antagonists, the internet is not helping in society advancement, but
is leading the humanity to a new dark age.
The internet has provided us with
unsurpassed tool that is effective in dispelling ignorance and making us more
knowledgeable than ever before. Nevertheless, internet, like any other tool,
requires proper grounding on how best to make use of it to fully enjoy its
benefits. Besides, internet should be used as a complementary tool to
traditional ways of doing things.
The focus of this discussion is on
effects of the internet on society on three main areas: digital Dark Age,
information overload and learning in digital age.
In this discussion terms internet and
wide world web are defined as follows:
(a)
Internet is defined according
to The Federal Networking Council (FNC)
definition : “Internet refers to the global information system that --
(i) is logically linked together by a globally unique address space based on the
(i) is logically linked together by a globally unique address space based on the
Internet Protocol (IP) or its
subsequent extensions/follow-ons;
(ii) is able to support communications using the Transmission Control
(ii) is able to support communications using the Transmission Control
Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) suite or its subsequent
extensions/follow-ons, And/or
other IP-compatible protocols; and
(iii) provides, uses or makes accessible, either publicly or privately, high level services
(iii) provides, uses or makes accessible, either publicly or privately, high level services
Layered on the communications and
related infrastructure described herein.
“(Federal Networking council, October,
24, 1995)
(b) Wide
World Web is defined as “as the universe of global network-accessible information” (Berners-Lee 1996)
Internet is increasingly becoming
indispensable. Drop in hardware prices and portability is making it easier to
access and exchange information. The importance and role of internet in the
society will continue to grow.
The concept
Dark Age is used to refer to the middle Ages and in particular early middle ages ‘because of its
lack of progress, its lack of significant literatures and histories, and
because of life being bleak--all a result of their lack of information and
disconnect from human reason’ (Vaughn 2008)
The
phrase Dark Age was coined by the Italian Scholar, Francesco Petrarch. Besides
lack of information, Dark Ages were characterized by religious conflicts and
barbarous practices. (All about history 2009)
The
term Dark Age is interestingly gaining currency. A new dark age is being
experienced thanks to the internet. According to Vaughn (2008) ‘The Middle Ages was stunted by a lack of information,
and the modern age is stunted by a glut of information and no idea how to judge
it or what to do with it. This is no small point. Mankind came through its
first Dark Age with a return to knowledge and reason’
Vaughn (2008) does not stop there, but continues to assert
that many in the West are technically literate, meaning their reading is limited and this is due to
‘negative new forms of communication’ which has made them to shift from ‘a
fluent, text- based literacy to a computer literacy’, and in particular the
internet. This has ‘left us (dumber) down and numbed, unable to think
critically or in a sophisticated manner’
The New Dark Age is characterized by too much information,
attention deficiency, uncritical thinking, poor reading habits, and death of
the community. These concerns raised by the internet critics are genuine and
merit attention, and they will be examined in detail in subsequent paragraphs.
However, as Carr (2008) clearly points out the Gutenberg’s printing press
critics worried that easy access to books would make people intellectually lazy
and weaken their minds. The critics nevertheless were blind to myriad benefits
to be derived from the printed word. A replicate of the same scenario is being
played out by the internet skeptics.
What I believe should real worry us most and is capable of
plunging us back into Dark Age is what is being referred to as the Digital Dark
Age.
Panos
(2003) cites Lyman and Varian who claim that the magnetic medium is becoming
the most preferred mode for storing information, and printed documents of all
kinds have dwindled to merely 0.003% of the total information being generated.
Consequently, Researchers, according to American Psychological association (2001),
are increasingly using internet for their research.
Internet
sources, in principle, are expected to last for eternity. This, however, is not
the case because most internet sources are lost forever. Brewster Kahle, an
electronic archivist, cited in Yaukey, and quoted by Panos (2003), laments that
‘the average life of a Web page is about 100 days. Within that time, most Web
pages are either changed, pulled, or they're forgotten about and they fade
away."
Danny
Hills as cited in Brand and referred by Panos (2003) has described this short
span of digital information as the ‘Digital Dark Age’.
Kuny (1997) aptly captures the Digital Dark Age
by stating that ‘we are moving into an era where much of what we know today,
much of what is coded and written electronically, will be lost forever’
So what are the main reasons for the impending
Digital Dark Age? Kuny (1997) provides us with answers:
·
Vast amount of digital
information is already lost, evaporated into the thin air for good.
·
Information
technologies frequency of change, of at least after every 18 months, without a
thought of compatibility of the new version and the older one.
·
Lack of
standards in the world of information technology, and varied media formats,
makes it harder, even after archiving a document, to successfully retrieve and
display the document.
·
Diminishing
financial resources for libraries and archives.
·
Intellectual
and property laws coupled with accessing licensing agreements.
·
Commoditification
of information by private organizations.
To salvage the society
from Digital Dark Age organizations and individuals should archive information
they create. Libraries have to incorporate preservation of digital information
in their traditional library services. Archives have to cast they net wider to
include also the digital information. Better still Brewster Kahle’s internet
archive initiative need to be supported and embraced. Started in 1996, the
internet archive purposes to offer permanent access for researchers,
historians, and scholars to historical collections that exist in digital
format. The beauty of the project is that the access to archived information is
free, unlike Google, who are also pursuing a similar project. (The Economy
2009; Panos 2003)
3 INFORMATION OVERLOAD
Carr (2008) asks ‘‘is Google making
us stupid?”, in reply Wolman (2008) answers and says ‘No, but it makes a handy
scapegoat for an inability to cope with information overload’. In his article
Carr shows how internet has affected the way we read and think, partly due to
too much information being spawn by the internet.
The term information overload was coined by
Alvin Toffle in his book Future Shock. The term is used to refer to having too
much information to make decision or remain informed in a given topic. It is
closely associated with computer mediated media and the web. (Abram 2008:25-26)
Crovitz (2008) contends
that “Research Company Basex estimates that more than one-quarter of the day of
the typical information worker is taken up by interruptions such as email,
instant messaging, Twitter, RSS feeds and other untamed information flows. Less
time is spent each day on activities such as writing emails, going to meetings
or searching for information. The researchers concluded that only about
one-tenth of the day is spent thinking and reflecting.”
According to
Nordenson (2008) ‘There are more than 70 million blogs and ISO million Web
sites today-a number that is expanding at a rate of approximately ten thousand
an hour. Two hundred and ten billion e-mails are sent each day. Say goodbye to
the gigabyte and hello to the exabyte, five of which are worth 37,000 Libraries
of Congress. In 2006 alone, the world produced 161 exabytes of digital data,
the equivalent of three million times the information contained in all the
books ever written.’
Basex research
team chose information overload as its 2008 ‘problem of the Year. Causes of
information overload include:
-
Increased rate of new
information being produced.
-
Ease of information duplication
and transmission across the internet.
-
Increased information channels.
-
Vast amount of information in
the internet to search through.
-
Contradictions and inaccuracies
of the available information.
-
Lack of information literacy. (Abram
2008).
The negative
impact of information overload includes inefficiency, decreased productivity
and innovation, and stress among others. (Abram 2008; Winkle 2008).
Is internet and its related technologies to blame
for information overload and its effects on human? I believe not. The blame squarely lies on undisciplined,
unskilled and uninformed humans.
Winkle analogy
clearly puts the problem of information overload in perspective: ‘Data is like
food. A good meal is served in reasonably-sized portions from several food
groups. It leaves you satisfied but not stuffed. Likewise with information,
we're best served when we can partake of reasonable, useful portions,
exercising discretion in what data we digest and how often we seek it out.
Unfortunately, we often do the opposite, ingesting information constantly to
the point of choking on it’
Another
important aspect is ‘the biological limits of our minds and the overload we
experience when they are pressed’. This ability for instance puts a check on a
number of people we can closely interact with, despite the thousands ‘friends’
in our internet social network site. (Dertouzos 1997:295)
Independent
research conducted by Dr.Marlow, who researched Facebook, and Bernard Huber of HP labs, who researched
Twitter, show that people only communicate more frequently to a limited and
specific number of ‘friends’. In Facebook average number of core ‘friends’ was
found to be 120, and in Twitter 80. This agrees with professor J.A Barners who
in 1950s defined the size of a social network as a group of about 100 to 150
people. (Economics 2009:77-78; www.answers.com
2009)
According to
Dertouzos (2002:207) people have always favored survival whenever threatened
and so what they will do with information overload is to ‘thrash the
information without a moment of bad conscience’
Don
Tapscott, quoted in Crovitz (2008), in his ‘Growing up Digital’ pointed out
that ‘For the
first time in history, children are more comfortable, knowledgeable and
literate than their parents with an innovation central to society." He
predicted that "it is through the use of the digital media that the Net
Generation will develop and superimpose its culture on the rest of society.’ In
sequel edition ‘Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation Is Changing Your
World’, he notes that those in 12-30 years value freedom of choice, customize
everything they do, collaborate, value integrity, live easily with information
overload and constant innovation. Unlike the earlier generation, this
generation ‘has been flooded with information, and learning to access, sort,
categorize and remember it all has enhanced their intelligence." They
"have had to search for, rather than simply look at, information.’
For organizations experiencing information overload they would better
hire information professionals and
librarians who will use their skills to help them to:
-search and find relevant information
-go beyond the free web
- Determine Authority
- Separate Fact and Opinion
- Filter and Add Value
- De-Duplicate
- Cost Effective Enterprises and Efficiency
- Credulity
- Content and Tool Awareness (Abram
2008).
For individuals they would better practice the
following data diet:
·
Give
cell phone and beeper numbers only to key people.
·
Avoid
office radios and televisions.
·
Limit
your reading to a few newspapers and magazines. Set time limits for online information searches, and download only two
or three of the best items. Learn when to stop gathering information for a
project.
·
Keep
your own correspondence short and to the point. Edit your outgoing E-mail
messages. Keep voice-mail messages brief, and others may do the same.
·
Let
people know the best ways to communicate with you. Tell them there is no need
to confirm receipt of less-important materials.
·
Need professional help to overcome clutter? Try the
National Association of Professional Organizers, in Austin, Texas: (512)
206-0151.( McCafferty 1998)
There is need to develop information search
software to reduce the waste of resources and time caused by the increasingly
saturated information. We require ‘Intelligent search software’ that will help
us quickly find information that we seek, and reduce internet junk. ( Guangrong
2003)
Reading and critical thinking are
two important learning ingredients. But what is internet doing to these basic
learning elements? Let’s sample Carr’s (2008) unfortunate experience:’ I’m not
thinking the way I used to think. I can feel it most strongly when I’m reading.
Immersing myself in a book or a lengthy article used to be easy. My mind would
get caught up in the narrative or the turns of the argument, and I’d spend
hours strolling through long stretches of prose. That’s rarely the case
anymore. Now my concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages. I
get fidgety, lose the thread, and begin looking for something else to do. I
feel as if I’m always dragging my wayward brain back to the text. The deep
reading that used to come naturally has become a struggle.’
Carr( 2008) asserts the
cause of his failing ability to read and think the way he used to is due to continue
use of net for writing and researching for more than a decade. Though, he
agrees that ‘The Web has been a godsend to me as a writer. Research that once
required days in the stacks or periodical rooms of libraries can now be done in
minutes’. But at the same time the net has been chipping away his ‘capacity for
concentration and contemplation’. And he is not alone:’ I’m not the only one. When I mention my troubles
with reading to friends and acquaintances—literary types, most of them—many say
they’re having similar experiences.’ Some of them have even stopped reading
books because the internet has altered their reading and thinking styles.
The above experience
typifies humans’ weakness in striking balance in their ways of doing things.
One wonders why the complainant stopped reading books, and yet books are being
published. According to The Association of American Publishers (AAP) annual estimate of total book sales
in the United States,2007 , estimated ‘ that U.S. publishers had net sales of
$25 billion in 2007; a 3.2 percent increase from 2006 with a compound growth
rate of 2.5 percent per year since 2002’ (AAP 2007)
Their over relies on net toppled the balance.
They were seduced by the ease and easy charm of the net at the expense of
giving up the arduous traditional reading. In this case the net is not blame.
It is might be true that
the net is changing our way of reading because it is altogether a different
media from the printed word as we know it. Carr (2008) quotes Maryanne Wolf, a
developmental psychologist at Tufts University, who asserts, ‘we are how we read.” Wolf claims that net promotes a reading style that emphasis
‘immediacy’, thus weaken our ability to read critically.
BBC News (2009) refers to
a research project at University College London that established that the
internet readers read rapidly and superficially. However, the head of the
project contends that the main problem with the ‘young web users is lack of the
information assessment skills of those trained to
use conventional libraries.’
As noted earlier the issue is not the internet
but lack of training in how to effectively use it. What young users of the
internet require most is training on how to read in the net, in other words,
the ‘art of digital reading’.
Science Daily (2009), alludes that research by Patricia
Greenfield, UCLA distinguished professor of psychology and director of the
Children's Digital Media Center, Los Angeles, shows that ‘our skills in
critical thinking and analysis have declined, while our visual skills have
improved’ this has been due to decline in reading for pleasure among young
people.
I concur
with what Greenfield alleges and especially her stand that ‘No one medium
is good for everything, {and} if we want to develop a variety of skills, we
need a balanced media diet. Each medium has costs and benefits in terms of what
skills each develops’. (Science Daily 2009)
Martin
Coles survey of children’s reading interests found out that children’s’ reading
habits have remained stable over the past 20 years. Coles established no causal
relationships between higher level of computer usage and lower levels of book
reading. Greg book’s review of national reading survey data in UK over the past
50years, argues that there is no evidence of any decline in reading standards
since the 1950s. (Harrison 2004:14-15)
There is
nothing new, and it seems new because the medium is new and unfamiliar. Task of
a computer reader is easier than that of the book reader. ‘At least computer
interface declares its novelty and offers socially acceptable permission to
succeed or fail. (If I succeed, it is because I’m good with technology. If I
fail, then I remind myself that those who succeed with technology are nerds,
and at least I’m not a nerd)’. What is
required is to support children to use DARTS- directed activities related to
texts- or similar approaches. This will equip them to read books and to make
effective use of the electronic media. (Harrison 2004: 16)
Let’s
respect reader’s rights as stipulated by Pennac in his book ‘reads like a
novel’, as quoted by Harrison (2004: 20):
1.
The right not to read
2.
The right to skip pages
3.
The right not to finish a book
4.
The right to reread
5.
The right to read anything
6.
The right to ‘Bovarysme’
7.
The right to read anywhere
8.
The right to browse
9.
The right to read aloud
10. The right to
remain silent
4.1 E-CONTENT
Shi-ratuddin,
Hassan, and Landoni quoted by Buzzetto (2007) define electronic content or e-content ‘as information
that is made available in digital formats and is viewed on screen rather than
on paper. E-Books are a type of e-content based learning object whose benefits
may include: hyper linking, nonlinearity, data density, customizability,
greater distribution, low costs, search ability, and other multimedia features’
E-book
range from a scanned version of printed publication, and has the ability to
provide the user a number of features which encompass multimedia, hyperlinks,
search features, and customizability to change text size or convert text to
meet needs of special readers.(Abbot & Kelly Cited by Buzzetto 2007).
It is
interestingly to note that ‘the newest generation of readers has been exposed
to e-books often before they can read or even walk through popular children’s
toys’ besides, ‘children’s DVDs and video games’ (Johnson & Harroff cited by Buzzetto 2007 ).
The
National Endowment for the Arts, 2004
research, “Reading at Risk : A Survey of Literacy Reading in America’ reported that less than half of Americas over
the age of 18 read books, novels, short stories, or plays. Another study by National Survey of America’s
College students found that half of four-year college students and 75% of two
year college students are lacking crucial literacy skills. (Buzzetto 2007).
A grim picture indeed, but I would like to side with Char-lotte Johnson
and William Harroff cited by Buzzetto (2007), who feel ‘E-books are more likely
to be a part of the solution rather than a symptom of the illiteracy problem.
Rather than focusing solely of digitizing print text and worrying about
redefining the term book, publishers of electronic materials should take full
advantage of the multimodal leaning styles that can be addressed by
well-designed electronic publications’
E-books
have not been so popular. Many people still argue that they prefer traditional
books. Though highly
portable, issues of screen size, battery life, readability, slow page turning,
and compatibility between devices has persisted and this could be contributing
to e-books unpopularity. (Buzzetto 2007).
Electronic publisher Versaware, cited in Rogers and cited by
Buzzetto (2007) claimed that 87% of the students polled favoured e-books over
traditional print volumes. In contrast, a number of studies have shown that the
majority of college students are not accepting of e-book (Mash cited by Buzzetto
2007)
Despite claims of E-books being unpopular, economical factors and
people gravitation towards the internet as preferred first port of calling in
search of information, will endear people to E-books. Take for example
Harlequin, publisher of romance novels, experiment of E-book of 2005, that
elicited such an overwhelming response that they decided to introduce 40% of
their front list as e-books, in additional to launching a series of minis which
can be downloaded for 99 cents. (Rogers cited by Buzzetto 2007)
E- Reading devices like
the Sony Reader and Amazon’s Kindle are gaining devoted following. What’s more,
it is easier and cheap to publish in the internet and reach a bigger audience.
‘No printing and shipping. No advances. Maybe publishing will survive after
all! Then again, if you can have publishing without paper and without money,
why not publishing without publishers?’ ( Grossman 2009)
Jeffrey
Cole director for the Center for the Digital Future (2009) declared:
‘We're clearly now seeing a path to the end of the printed
daily newspapers -- a trend that is escalating much faster than we had
anticipated," Cole said. "The decline of newspapers is happening at a
pace they never could have anticipated. Their cushion is gone, and only those
papers that can move decisively to the Web will survive’
It is Cristal clear that
the future of publishing and reading is on the net. The internet skeptics need
to wake up and smell the coffee.
4.2 MULTI-TASKING
Multi-tasking is yet
another side effect of the internet and its related technology. ‘We drive and
talk on our cell phones, check e-mail during meetings and presentations, eat
dinner while watching TV. A widely cited 2006 study by the Henry J. Kaiser
Family Foundation found that 81 percent of young people engage in some form of
media multitasking during a given week’ (Nordenson
2008)
Multitasking divides
attention and thus we can’t focus and since we can’t focus our attention we
can’t learn. ‘Edward Hallowell, a Boston-area psychiatrist, believes many of us
suffer from what he calls an attention deficit trait, a culturally induced form
of attention-deficit disorder. As he pointed out in a 2005 interview with Cnet
News, "We've been able to overload manual labor. But never before have we
so routinely been able to overload brain labor." According to Hallowell
and other psychiatrists, all these competing inputs prevent us from
assimilating information. "What your brain is best equipped to do is to
think, to analyze, to dissect, and create," he explains. "And if
you're simply responding to bits of stimulation, you won't ever go deep’ (Nordenson
2008)
Patricia Greenfield, UCLA distinguished
professor of psychology and director of the Children's Digital Media Center,
Los Angeles, analyzed studies on multitasking and established that multi-tasking "prevents people from
getting a deeper understanding of information’. Yet, for certain tasks, divided
attention is important, she added."If you're a pilot, you need to be able
to monitor multiple instruments at the same time. If you're a cab driver, you
need to pay attention to multiple events at the same time. If you're in the
military, you need to multi-task too," she said. "On the other hand,
if you're trying to solve a complex problem, you need sustained concentration.
If you are doing a task that requires deep and sustained thought, multi-tasking
is detrimental." (Science Daily 2009)
Studies have shown that
people become less efficient and likely to make mistakes when ‘they try to
tackle two cognitive tasks at once’. Nevertheless, multitasking is not
necessarily bad for our modern life. For this reason, therefore, what is needed
is for people to learn to prioritize tasks, learn do one thing at a time and to
focus in order to strengthen their attention span. (Jackson 2008)
Multitasking is very much part of
our modern life. We better learn the best ways to handle it. Millenials, those
born since 1982, are depicted by Oblinger as young people whose ‘learning
preferences tend toward teamwork, experiential activities, structure, and the
use of technology. Their strengths include multitasking, goal orientation,
positive attitudes, and collaborative style’ (Fields & Diaz 2008:36)
5. INFORMATION LITERACY
Most of the problems associated
with the internet seem to emanate from information overload. As already hinted,
I believe, one of the solutions to this core problem is through information
literacy.
UNESCO (2008) defines information literacy as ‘the
set of skills, attitudes and knowledge necessary to know when information is
needed to help solve a problem or make a decision, how to articulate that
information need in searchable terms and language ,then search efficiently for
the information, retrieve it, interpret and understand it, organize it, evaluate
its credibility and authenticity, assess its relevancy, communicate it to
others if necessary, then use it to accomplish bottom-line purposes.’
UNESCO (2007) further points out
that information literacy is closely allied to learning to learn, and to critical
thinking, both of which are not integrated into curricula, syllabi and lesson
plans.
Olsen and coon’s cited in
AIS404R Only study guide (2002:71)
define information literacy ‘as understanding the role and power of information
, having ability to locate it, retrieve it, and use it in decision making, and
having the ability to generate and manipulate it using electronic process.’
To be information literate means to
be ‘educated for survival and success in an information/ technology
environment; lead productive, healthy and satisfying lives in a democratic
society; deal effectively with rapid changing environments; solve…. Challenging
problems…in order to ensure a better future for the next generation; be an
effective information consumer who can find appropriate information for
personal problem solving; have writing and computer proficiency; and to possess
an integrated set of research strategy and education skills, and knowledge of
discipline related tools and resources’ (Rader and coons as cited in AIS404R
Only study guide 2002:71-72)
Information literacy also requires
that we know how to manage information creatively. This calls for growth in
reflection and self –knowledge, which is rooted in Critical thinking. (Fields
& Diaz 2008:71 citing Ward)
Information literacy should go
beyond the core principles of access, evaluation, and use to something that
enables individuals to think critically about the entire information enterprise
and information society. It should cover issues to do with privacy, copyright,
reliability of information, accuracy, bias and authority. (Fields & Diaz
2008:72-73)
It is imperative to equip students
in class with internet information literacy skills and critical thinking. Harmon
(2003:2-3) justifies the importance of this exercise: ‘
* The Internet
is here to stay. It is the first place that new generations will go for
information for the rest of their lives; this may be the last and best
opportunity for them to learn how to evaluate the quality of the information
they find there.
* Many educators
believe that Internet information literacy skills are best developed in the
classroom.
* Critical
thinking does not just happen; it has to be learned by doing. And what students
"do" happen in the classroom.
* Once learned,
critical thinking and information literacy skills have implications beyond the
classroom-in political discourse, media advertising, and wherever conflicting
information needs to be evaluated and incorporated into everyday life.’
According to
Metzger, Flanagin, and Zwarun cited by Harmon
(2003:2-3) college students use internet for information both for general and
academic purposes. Students are accessing highly decontextualized bits of
information and they don’t have an iota of an idea how to evaluate the quality
of the information.
Connor-Greene
and Greene as cited by Harmon (2003:2-3) contented
that "The Internet provides an ideal forum for teaching students to
evaluate and select useful, credible sources from a vast array of unfiltered
information. Because students rely so often on the Internet, it is imperative
that they become educated consumers of this medium"
Harmon (2003:2-3) rightly puts it when he writes ‘As a librarian, I can direct students to solid resources on both the
open and closed Web. But understanding the context of the material, and
thinking critically about the quality of the resource, cannot be taught in a
few minutes at the reference desk; that kind of evaluation takes place in the
classroom’ this makes for a strong case of incorporating internet information
literacy skills in the curricula.
Students should
not only be taught about critical thinking but they should be made to actively
engage in critical thinking. Equipping students with practical critical
thinking skills will help them navigate in any media of information with a lot
of ease and confident. The free nature of internet makes it critical that
students to be taught on how to evaluate the information found in there.
Critics of the
internet argue that internet is affecting the way we read and think. Reading in
the internet is superficial and gives no room for deep critical reading
associated with the traditional reading. The contributing factors for the poor
reading and lack of concentration is too much information in the internet and
need to multitask made necessary by off shot internet technologies.
Consequently, the internet might not only make us stupid but lead us into new
Dark Age.
Unlike the first
Dark Age that was characterized by lack of information the new Dark Age is
replete with too much information that we don’t know how to evaluate to derive
value from it.
Information
overload will, however, not lead us into new Dark Age as the internet critics
want to make us believe. What is mostly
like to take us there is what has been referred to as ‘Digital Dark Age’, a
term used to describe the short life span of most digital information. It has
been noted that the life span of digital information is 100 days. Digital
information is expected to last forever unlike the printed information, but
this is not the case. To arrest the situation organization and individuals are
encouraged to archive digital information with lasting value. Internet archive and Google initiative of
scanning books and archiving digital information are some of major global steps
taken to help preserve digital information.
Information
overload refers to having to deal with too much information and which may make
it difficult to make a decision. It is true that the internet is a reservoir
and a conduit for vast amount of information. However, it is lack of discretion
when using the internet that makes one to suffer from information
overload. Lack of internet information
literacy skills has made it difficult for people to deal with information
overload. In this case, therefore, internet, which is only a tool, need not be
blamed but our ignorance on how to use the internet creatively and
intelligently is to be faulted.
Internet has
also been held responsible for our inability to read critically. Though we read
more than before but our reading is superficial. In this case, again, internet
is unfairly treated. The problem is not the internet but is our lack of reading
skills and over relies on reading from internet. The ease of using the internet
endears itself to many. What is required is balance in our use of tools at our
disposal, training in reading both in traditional way and digitally.
E-publishing is
gaining popularity. It is easier and
economical to publish digitally, and on top of that, reach a bigger number of
readers. Newspapers have taken the cue and most of them are being published
online. In future most of books and other reading materials will go online.
Though research show most people still prefer the traditional book over the
e-book, but the convenience of e-book will soon see more people reading e-books
than the traditional books.
Multitasking has
become an entrenched feature in our modern life. This has lead to poor
productivity and efficiency. Therefore,
it is important to learn to be focused and balanced. Multitasking is not bad as
such because there are jobs that require multitasking. Once again let’s stop
censuring technology and using it as an escape goat for our human weakness.
Information literacy is the panacea to most
problems critics of the internet are fronting.
Internet is a powerful tool that has become very part of our own
existence. We buy, sale, communicate, learn, work, and do many other things
over the internet.
It is responsibility of
each internet user to learn how to evaluate the information found in the
internet. We need to use technology responsibly. Information literacy, critical
thinking and reading both in traditional way and digitally, should be
incorporated into school curricula, syllabi and lesson
plans. Internet has handed us freedom hitherto unknown to us; Great freedom
that has come with great responsibility. Therefore, it is our duty not to abuse
nor become a slave to it. For every invention has two faces, internet is no
exceptional. All said and done internet, is in deed, unparalleled tool for
enlightenment and human development. Internet is here to stay. After all, we
are all becoming denizens of the wired world. The sooner we accept this
reality, and learn how to live in this new world the better.
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