"Is Google Making Us Stupid" Response

In my opinion Nicholas Carr is correct that the internet, and more specifically Google, is revolutionizing the way humans comprehend and study all forms of rhetoric. What I strongly disagree with is that this digital revolution is in any way making us "dumber" than our more studious ways of before. I believe Carr's example of Socrates and his views on the popularity of writing translate exactly to what we are going through today. While it is believed there will be a major shift in how we communicate and read, there is no evidence to prove this "speed reading" will be a bad thing. Socrates claimed writing would make people forgetful and lazy. I think we can all agree today that writing as a form of literature has had enormous positive effects on our lives through history (imagine if the Declaration of Independence was simply spoken aloud rather than written down!) In the same manner I believe that humans "skimming" literature rather than delving deeply into it could have positive effects. Perhaps we will be more well-rounded and aware on a wider variety of issues, rather than only strongly informed on a couple topics. I believe people will always intensely study the matters that are truly important to them, so maybe this new style may just make people more rounded in areas they never were before. In the end, I agree with Carr that we are becoming more dependent on the internet and Google, which will change our overall literary behaviors. However, at this point there is no way to prove that it is in any way making us "dumber" as a species. In fact, this new rapid style may make us smarter than we ever were before in totally new ways.