The other day the television stopped working suddenly. I spent almost an hour trying to figure out how to fix it. Then my 17-year-old daughter walked in, took the remote from my hand, and had the thing working again in about a New York nanosecond. I have known, for years now, because of similar experiences with computers, cell phones and cameras, that my daughter's brain operates in a wholly different way than my own. When any of these electronic devices stop doing what they're supposed to be doing, I can spend hours trying to figure out how to reprogram them (if that is even the right word) -- all to no avail. It won't
matter how much time I take to attend to the task. I won't figure it out. And my daughter will.
Does my daughter text on her cell phone? All the time. Does she play video games? Every day. Does she read? Only when she has to (for school) and never for pleasure. Has she changed the structure of her brain by growing up being essentially a non-reader, and by spending hours a day living electronically and remotely? I think so. Is it for better or worse? Is she improving civilization or moving it toward its logical end? The jury is still out on those questions.
One of the signs of verbal fluency in a literate society is the degree to which people are interested in reading complex, thoughtful material. It takes exposition, which itself takes time, to think about and discuss complex issues. According to a report by the National Endowment for the Arts, fewer than half of Americans over 18 read novels, short stories, plays or poetry. Even a cursory look at any newsstand in the country will reveal what people are reading: magazines that are more like television than reading material; reading material is flipped through much as one surfs through television channels or the Internet. This generation of my daughter's does not know, as I do, the pleasure of opening a book in eager anticipation precisely because it is long, and because I know I am going to be lost in its world for weeks to come.
As any elementary textbook in brain physiology tells us, the brain consists of two hemispheres that perform different functions. The right side is the visual and emotional side; the left side is the verbal and logical side. Largely because of television first, then the computer, and now cell phones (as mini-computers), we have become a society that functions primarily from the right side. No one seems to mind. There was even a bestselling book a few years back, "Drawing from the Right Side of Your Brain," extolling the virtues of accessing the visual hemisphere (as though we don't already do enough of that).As James Glick says in "Faster: the Acceleration of Just About Everything": "We have learned a visual language made up of images and movements instead of words and syllables."
The virtual world may be creating a virtual brain. In the virtual world, we see spoon-fed menu options as opposed to free-ranging inquiry. Contracted text messaging lacks the verbs and conditional structures that are essential for complex thinking. Our children have not learned to think linearly or conceptually nor in a layered way. They are right-brain geniuses; but they are akin to idiot savants in the limited capacity of their left brain operations for the "fine grained analysis," as Richard Restak says, that is important for thinking logically and conceptually.
Nine-tenths of the writing today takes place in the business world, and it is done on a computer. The computer, like television, consists of a mosaic of images, back lit screens and near instantaneous speed. These attributes engage the right hemisphere. Yet, when we are reading or writing printed material, we are employing language, which engages the left hemisphere. Restak posits that when we use words on the computer -- reading or writing -- both hemispheres are stimulated, but not in an integrated way. Rather, the hemispheres are conflicting -- even competing -- with one another. To the brain, reading and writing on a
computer is an entirely different activity -- neurologically disorganizing -- than reading and writing using paper, which is a neurologically organizing activity. (And, in spite of my being no good at reprogramming television glitches, my brain has apparently re-framed itself into 21st century capability sufficiently such that I am writing these words, thinking about them, organizing my thoughts, as I am looking at my computer screen. It took a while for me to retrain my brain to think in this way since I acquired my first computer 30 years ago, but I have thankfully succeeded.)
It is possible that the trade-off for the brain's adaptability may be severe. Research conducted by David Snowdon, in the study that has come to be known as the "Nun Study," shows us the relationship between Alzheimer's and thinking capability. With 90 percent accuracy, Snowdon was able to predict which nuns would suffer from Alzheimer's. He looked at the nuns' writings from when they were young women, and found that those with the simplest sentence structure, and with the fewest ideas, were the ones who were most likely to develop Alzheimer's later in life. David Snowdon was not looking at what had been learned over the course of the educational experiences of these nuns. He was looking at the very organization of the brain. He was looking at the linguistic expression of the nuns' sequencing ability. The ability to think, to draw connections, to extend memory from the beginning to the end of a complicated sentence or paragraph, to develop a complex idea: these are all aspects of good left-brain sequencing and functioning.
Still to come: home exercises that will stimulate and re-balance the brain, and announcements about Brainercize classes I have created and will be offering at my holistic day spa, La Casa Spa.
Follow Jane G. Goldberg, Ph.D. on Twitter: www.twitter.com/janegoldbergny
Myles Spar, M.D.: How Physical Exercise Promotes Brain Health
The modern world contains many challenges, one of them is learning to adapt to social changes, the other is adapting to newer technology.
Are these new techno-toys just that, toys, or are they the Wave Of The Future, in which interconnectedness and instantly accessible information will seem like essentials after time, a standard before which all was simply the stone age?
These electronic devices arose however, from the plans and dreams of people who were paper-only, working with the most rudimentary electrical components of their time. The first computers such as ENIAC occupied an entire room. Before things like ENIAC, you had rooms full of people that had to be able to perform computations repeatedly, and accurately. Today, all that math is hidden in little plastic boxes, and the user has no obligation, desire, nor reason, to really learn it. However, the future could still hold excellent mathematicians who are tutored by their computers. The capacity of computers to educate, to instruct, to inform, and assist, has yet to be successfully plumbed. But, what happens when the computers 'wake up', and start thinking for themselves. Or, have they done so already?
Lawyers engage in research, but most case law exists in online collections. You'd be mistaken to think that lawyers spend sleepless nights turning pages. The books look good in the background of the commercials though.
Accountants use spreadsheet programs. Teachers use lesson planning programs daily.
I'm not sure how many lawyers, doctors, accountants or teachers you know, but it seems as if your impression of their experience is a bit dated. My sister is a teacher. Four of my friends are recent graduates from Northwestern's law program (only one of which has a job, so button pushing skills shouldn't be ignored... i.e. Walmart). The law classes I took in college consisted primarily of theory and how to use online research tools.
Doctors need to have well-developed spatial and fine motor skills.
Anyone who works for a corporation knows that the use of technology is a must-have skill. I don't see how a person could get a job if they couldn't use a smartphone, have intermediate knowledge of most Windows office apps and could troubleshoot most problems. Workers who are constantly calling IT typically don't last long.
At some point, IT departments will become obsolete... to the degree where every employee will expect to maintain their own equipment. IT/IS departments will exist only to do the most specialized installations, programming, maintenance, and repairs.
A. Virtually.
Dr. Goldberg, that was a great read and I found myself laughing out-loud right off the bat. Your describing of the way your daughter just waltzes in and reprograms the TV is hilarious and reminds me of sitcom writing. Good stuff.
On a more serious note...I am very concerned about the kids and their lack of face-to-face social skills.
You're 100% right---they are right brain geniuses and are, in many ways, more-than-adept in that regard.
The jury may be out on the frightening questions you posed; however, I do not see how this current trend is improving civilization. Whatever happened to the days of front porch socializing?
I'm working with a company that is doing all it can to restore communities and bring back the concept of front porch communicating. If you'd like...I'll keep you posted on our progress. Thank you.
We are just old. :-)
CS-