AWR 201- writing research

Dr. Jeff Neely

Short paper

For class, we have read three selections from They say, I say on the topic, are we in a race against the machine?" in nicholas carr's essay, we have been presented with arguments that computers and digital technologies are endangering our intellectual abilities to think deeply, and instead replacing them with scattered attention and diffused concentration. In the excerpt from the "smarter than you think," live Thomson suggests that thinking has always been augmented by various technologies (the printed word, pen and paper, etc). The answer to the question, "which is smarter-the computer or the brain?" is neither.
Your responsibility is now to find at least three additional sources outside of they say, I say, to formulate your own response to this topic that is either critical or supportive of the reole digital technologies have come to play in our lives. You may approach this from a more cognitive perspective (e.g Carr and Thompson), or you may choose a more social/ relational perspective (e.g Gladwell). I would caution, however against focusing solely on the practical advantages that digital technologies afford us. All three of the authors we have read so far acknowledge benefits of speed and convenience afforded by new technology. You want to identify a position that is more debatable or controversial.

You need only to use these three sources in your paper. You should not include the selections we already read for class. Be careful not to fall into the binary trap of being either apocalyptic (doomsday prophet) or utopian (blindly idealistic). Consider and respond to your three chosen texts specifically. That is you should identify certain claims or positions explicitly from yor references you've chosen and respond to them with specific detail.