The internet has of course revolutionised how we communicate and access information.
And recently, we read with great interest the results of some research revolving around increased use of and reliance on the Internet that we could TOTALLY relate to.
Namely, that far from enhancing our underlying knowledge base, regular use of the Internet actually reduces our memory capacity and therefore, by definition, our propensity to learn!
This is all a result of convenience.
When we go to scour the Internet, we know that 9 times out of 10 we are going to be able to find the information we are looking for if we try hard enough and allow for the fact that the first hit we find might not always be the right answer - see our post entitled "Never assume your 1st search engine result will give you the information you are looking for!".
Global accessibility to the Internet, however, means that we do not need to remember the information we find, as we subconsciously know we can always search again should we forget.
So we more easily let the knowledge we have gained from our search go.
This has happened to us on numerous occasions and we just couldn't put our finger on why until now.
Effectively, use of the Internet is improving our skills of SEARCHING for knowledge we need at a particular time, but reducing our ability to RETAIN that knowledge for future use.
To address this deficit, we plan to do the following:-
● make a written note of internet research findings to refer back to
● talk to one another about what we have learned online regularly
● make a mental note when we review search findings not to dismiss them once they have served their immediate purpose, as they could be of equal use some time down the line
● and email ourselves relevant links in case all the above fail and we forget anyway!
We hope you find that info and our tips to be useful.
HAPPY, SAFE & EFFICIENT SURFING
LouLoU™&