105 replies to this topic

[Beckys_Mom]

Professor T, on 15 November 2012 - 07:55 PM, said:

Technology does have it's down-sides........ period!

Don't forget,  it has a lot more cons

[Professor T]

Beckys_Mom, on 15 November 2012 - 08:11 PM, said:

Don't forget,  it has a lot more cons

Lol..
I'm thankfull I can sit in front of a flash piece of Technology to debate the dumbing down of people because of it..

Otherwise we'd be sending each other smoke signals..

Don't know how that would work over 3000+ miles...

[Neognosis]

Knowing how to operate a cell phone: Turn it on, find the correct app, understand what an app is, access the phone book app, locate the person, select them, choose the option to either call or text... these things require more "intelligence," as they are literally solving a problem, than it takes to merely memorize 7 numbers.

We are merely trading the trend of memorizing things with the ABILITY and knowledge how to quickly find them.

I don't know what the factors were that started the Crimean war. But I know how to find a limitless number of papers and peer reviewed articles online, and I can temporarily know all I need to about any topic in less time than it used to take to get in the car and head to the library. Nevermind look up the information AT the library....

[Beckys_Mom]

Professor T, on 15 November 2012 - 08:18 PM, said:

I'm thankfull I can sit in front of a flash piece of Technology to debate the dumbing down of people because of it..

Oh the IRONY  lol

[Nathan DiYorio]

Beckys_Mom, on 15 November 2012 - 07:46 PM, said:

Watching TV also is good for educating  you..  Many people  ( myself included )  love to watch movies and it has not dumbed us down ... In fact, I am creative, I love to write...  Sometimes I am inspired by what DVD's I have watched..   .. TV for so many can make kids lazy, but I do not think it dumb's  them down..  

Oh? You don't think TV "dumb's" people down?

Tell me more about how smart you are.

[Likely Guy]

People aren't dumber. They're just less self reliant for their everyday existence.

Oops, that was self contradictory.

[Beckys_Mom]

Xetan, on 16 November 2012 - 03:54 AM, said:

Oh? You don't think TV "dumb's" people down?

Go ahead and explain  in your own words, how it dumbs people down?   If a kid watches TV all day, it can get him hooked and he becomes lazy...   We cannot blame an object on dumbing anyone down..  We blame ourselves

Quote

Tell me more about how smart you are.   

I'm intelligent enough  not to allow TV  to 'dumb me down' and blame objects / tools  on my own failings

EDIT to add.. People fail when they cannot take responsibility for their own actions ..It is pathetic to blame any object on your own failings

Edited by Beckys_Mom, 16 November 2012 - 11:05 AM.

[Nathan DiYorio]

Well, for starters, it makes people think "dumb's" is the same as "dumbs" when they're actually saying "dumb is."

[Beckys_Mom]

Xetan, on 16 November 2012 - 10:50 AM, said:

Well, for starters, it makes people think "dumb's" is the same as "dumbs" when they're actually saying "dumb is."

You're attempt to blame an object  for dumbing people down  is weak and a cop out..  
Bottom line - You cannot blame mere objects and tools  for anyone failing...

Edited by Beckys_Mom, 16 November 2012 - 10:59 AM.

[Nathan DiYorio]

Beckys_Mom, on 16 November 2012 - 10:52 AM, said:

You're attempt to blame an object  for dumbing people down  is weak and a cop out..  
Bottom line - You cannot blame mere objects and tools  for anyone failing...

*Your*

Actually, I can. The television, with its flashing colors and loud noises, is immediately attractive to our brains. It has all the necessary stimuli to completely rip human attentions right out of reality and convince them to sit there, staring, for hours, with drool hanging from their lip. It is designed to do just that.

Not even to mention the effects of stimulation overload and the whole "You are what you eat" situation which applies intellectually as well. You might think that watching a documentary makes you smarter, but unless you're putting a significant amount of brain power into the act of learning, it isn't doing you any good. The learning part of your brain is almost completely shut off while watching television.

[Beckys_Mom]

Xetan, on 16 November 2012 - 11:21 AM, said:

*Your*

Correction, I meant to say - You're attempting to blame an object.  I said  attempt  instead of attempting.... Do not sit and waste my time over a typo, it makes you look desperate and weak to use that to get back at me for not holding your point of view..If you wish to counter my points, then get to the point.. Your odd bit of  'look at me I can correct a mere typo'  is pointless  

Quote

Actually, I can. The television, with its flashing colors and loud noises, is immediately attractive to our brains. It has all the necessary stimuli to completely rip human attentions right out of reality and convince them to sit there, staring, for hours, with drool hanging from their lip. It is designed to do just that.   

Only if you allow it.. If you are willing to plant yourself in front of a TV for endless hours a day, then  YOU are at fault.. Nothing is forcing you to sit there  all day..  YOU decide what YOU do   Blaming the television  is a cop out for your own laziness... If you really think the bright colors and loud noises  will turn you into a drooling slob, then you may fetch your tin foil, wrap it around your head, and chant - The TV People are going to get me, they want my brain !!

I cannot say I have ever sat for hours in front of a TV, I always had other interests. .  Yes, I found much of it interesting and informative, but it did not distract me from doing other things ..   I am in control of myself and what I do, not a TV  or any other form of entertainment  

Quote

  You might think that watching a documentary makes you smarter, but unless you're putting a significant amount of brain power into the act of learning, it isn't doing you any good. The learning part of your brain is almost completely shut off while watching television.

In my own opinion, documentaries  do not make you smarter,  they do however encourage you to learn more and take interest..

Edited by Beckys_Mom, 16 November 2012 - 12:06 PM.

[tipsy_munchkin]

A lazy person will use technology simply to make life easier. A smart person will use it to gain greater knowledge. As Beckys mom states its not the tool that is to blame.

We now have more information that we can gather far faster. We still have to asses how valid that information is and apply it to whatever it was being gathered for.

None of this really fits the premise of the article though. All that is stating is that mutations in areas connected to intelligence are more likely to be passed to the next generation. This is more about our social structure in western society. Certain mutations that cause lower intelligence do not stop a person from growing old enough to have children and for those children to survive. It by no means suggests the aptitude of those without those mutations is any less than any previous era but that an accumulation of such will be statistically significant in the future for the average intelligence to be less than in the past. While it states this process is already in progress the dramatic changes are anticipated rather than current. It even goes on to suggest its a situation we may learn ways to avoid.

Edit to add: Many tasks eliminated by technology are more time consuming than they are intellectual or difficult.

Edited by tipsy_munchkin, 16 November 2012 - 02:03 PM.

[Nathan DiYorio]

Beckys_Mom, on 16 November 2012 - 11:49 AM, said:

Correction, I meant to say - You're attempting to blame an object.  I said  attempt  instead of attempting.... Do not sit and waste my time over a typo, it makes you look desperate and weak to use that to get back at me for not holding your point of view..If you wish to counter my points, then get to the point.. Your odd bit of  'look at me I can correct a mere typo'  is pointless  

Actually, it's not. You used yourself, and continued to do so, as evidence that TV does not make you dumber. Evidence is open to scrutiny. I am scrutinizing it. If you don't like it, don't use yourself as evidence.

[Beckys_Mom]

Xetan, on 16 November 2012 - 08:49 PM, said:

Actually, it's not. You used yourself, and continued to do so, as evidence that TV does not make you dumber.

I watched TV, it caused me to make a typo or two,so you say I am dumber as a result... *sigh*   You cannot judge a persons full intelligence  on a mere typo .. If that is what you call evidence, you fail miserably.. Fact of the matter is simple  TV cannot dumb a person down, you do that yourself with laziness   To blame an object on your own failures, is a dumb excuse, and that is basically what your logic is - A dumb excuse ...Blame the object and not the person

Edited by Beckys_Mom, 16 November 2012 - 10:20 PM.

[Nathan DiYorio]

Beckys_Mom, on 16 November 2012 - 10:17 PM, said:

I watched TV, it caused me to make a typo or two,so you say I am dumber as a result... *sigh*   You cannot judge a persons full intelligence  on a mere typo .. If that is what you call evidence, you fail miserably.. Fact of the matter is simple  TV cannot dumb a person down, you do that yourself with laziness   To blame an object on your own failures, is a dumb excuse, and that is basically what your logic is - A dumb excuse ...Blame the object and not the person

I'm not excusing anyone. If anything, I'm arguing that people should watch less TV and keep their brains from spilling out.

Also, not just judging on your typos. Judging on your speech mannerisms, sentence structure, inability to narrate thoughts, and, in general, anecdotal opinions.