Is Google making us stupid?

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   Michele Travisposted 13 years ago

   I typed the word "IS" into my Google search, and the fourth topic that came up was,  Is Google making us stupid.   
   That is kind of interesting.  Is Google making us stupid, Are we getting stupid, or are we getting smarter instead?

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      Shyron E Shenkoposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      No!  I love Google.

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         Shyron E Shenkoposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I think Google is making us lazy.  If you want to learn about something without any book research, just google it.

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      IzzyMposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Woo! What a question!
      
      I think the first thing we have to realise is that educational and library institutions do not use Google. They all have their own password-protected infraweb.
      
      I recently was privy to this infraweb when I asked our local librarian a question that I could not find an answer to on Google.
      
      She took me through their infraweb, and at the end of it I still did not have my answer, but had a greater understanding of the differences between the www and the infra-www.
      
      Their system only had data from well-known and respected institutions. I would suspect we have a long way to go before everything is available online.
      
      The www as we know it is full of info from wikipedia, ask.com. eHow.com, squidoo.com and dare I say it, Hubpages.com.
      
      All written by amateurs like myself.
      
      The infrawebs are written by professionals.
      
      Google concentrates on the amateur stuff.
      
      So, in answer to the question "Is Google Making us Stupid?"
      
      Um...yes.
      
      We believe what we read, by stuff written by amateurs like you and me, before we believe the professionals.
      
      We do not even see the professional writing. It is hidden by a password-protected infraweb.
      
      I happen to believe that everything I write is correct.
      
      I bet you do too, but the average Joe needs to know his info came from someone educated to to at least the level of his infant school teacher.

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         Michele Travisposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I have never even heard of  infra-www.   It can only be seen by professionals.   I guess that way, the information can not be stolen.  Professors can keep their tests secret

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      Deborah Brooksposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      well I do love Google.. I never heard of this.. I will research it.. Michelle you find the best information..
      Merry Christmas

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         Michele Travisposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks Deb,
         I keep looking up goofy things.  Like how many people are the Beast.
         There are a lot of people who are the Beast, if you look it up on google.

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      BlissfulWriterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Google is making us smarter.   We could now learn things that we never could have.

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   knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

   I got a memory but it has a personality of its own. I couldn't write without google unless I made up gobbly-gook. Good article. Then there was the library if you could find it in there, which probably not, after the time and expense of getting there, if there was a there-there. Now I get it instantly.
   Yes I can be really productive now, not I would if I could. But now - I can but can't would be not very esteemable. As with anything, you have to use it and not let it use you.

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   Michele Travisposted 13 years ago

   Well there is www.snopes.com 
   It tells you when people make things up.  And a lot of people make stuff up and up it on the internet and a lot of people believe it is true.

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      Shyron E Shenkoposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I like snopes also, when I need to know is what I am researching is true/false.

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   knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

   " password-protected infraweb" the in-crowd. Never trusted them myself. They are so in they never get out, so would they know anything?

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5. 66

   Michele Travisposted 13 years ago

   Infraweb is not protected by a password, and people can get into it.
   Check this out.
   http://www.egov.vic.gov.au/pdfs/DoI_1.pdf
   
   There is a lot more about ifraweb online  just google it....lol.,I have no idea
   just google it..

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      IzzyMposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      There are literally thousands of infrawebs online. The world wide web started off as an infraweb, only available to a few scientists, or was it the military?
      
      The one in my local library has a whole library of information online, and available at your fingertips. But I cannot access this infraweb from my home computer.
      
      Universities have their own infraweb, sometimes jointly with other learning institutions. Businesses have them. The police have them.
      
      I think Facebook started out on an infraweb within Harvard and quickly spread to other colleges and universities, before it was launched on the web.
      
      I think I am using the correct term.No doubt someone will point out if I'm not. These inter-connected computers share information that is not available to us, the general public.

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         Michele Travisposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         You are probably using the correct term.  Some may be available, and some not available

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   WriteAngledposted 13 years ago

   There have always been subscription-based databases and information services, accessible only to those who pay.
   
   In the past, it was possible to subscribe as an individual to many of them, and pay by volume of use. Today, however, most of them only provide institutional subscriptions.
   
   In many cases, though, it is possible to get access. Staff and students of universities and colleges have it. Some university libraries will also allow access to members of the public, who can make a good case for why they need it. Often a fee of some sort is involved.
   
   Public libraries may also make the services to which they subscribe accessible to the their members, usually at no cost. Unfortunately, the UK is far behind the US in this respect. However, you should be able to find out from your local library's web site what is available. Usually, all you need is the number of your library card to gain access, although some sites will want you to register and set up a user account.
   
   Here is a list of US government databases in a variety of subject areas, with free public access:
   http://www.library.fullerton.edu/guides … s/home.php

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   KawikaChannposted 13 years ago

   ... as with all things, you have to check their sources - or follow up with your own research to know for sure.  For me, I love google - use it often, but not entirely.  It goes back to what you are willing to believe... it appears on google so it 'must' be true.  lol.  Kawi.

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   ocbillposted 13 years ago

   Google's results are not always what you want. I sometimes have to go to Bing to get relevant results.

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      Michele Travisposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      That is a very good idea.   I probably should have named this forum topic, IS Everything Posted On Google True?

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