25 of 51

No

Write now Article Tools

The human mind was designed with one overall arching theme, the same theme that is found in the unintelligent design of all living things, efficiency. Our minds work to understand our immediate environment to the extent that the environment can be used to meet our evolutionary needs of survival and procreation. Whether it is a 12 year old boy learning how to flirt with three girls at once on Instant Messenger, a young chimp learning to crack open a nut with rocks, or a fox seeking shelter in his hole, life demands that we use all available tools. Technology is provided to the modern mind throughout life as just one more aspect of our environment, one that must be understood and used in the most efficient way possible.

A child born to a society filled with modern technology faces different challenges than one born to a society without agriculture. Neither child is being denied chances to enrich their mind, however they will develop different cognitive skills. A child born to a pre-agricultural society most develop a highly detail oriented visual memory in order to know which plants are safe and in order to remember how to kill and butcher and animal. Children in our society have different but equally challenging cognitive strategies to master. Using a modern computer requires an understanding of an artificially created space, iconic representations, and analysis of design intention.
While some may argue that technology makes us lazy, I would argue that technology is taking away older mental challenges in order to make room for new ones. I doubt very few people born in first world countries over the past hundred and fifty years would know how to properly make soap, but the loss of this tedious and back breaking chore has not impoverished our minds. Instead, the time we would spend doing this chore has been replaced by time we can spend in leisure which may include participating in public discourse on the internet or socializing with other humans. Furthermore, everyday simple tasks for those exposed daily to technology are nearly impossible for the computer illiterate. Using a modern computer requires an understanding of an artificially created space, iconic representations, and analysis of design intention.
Does technology impoverish the mind? No, of course not. The human mind like the mind of all animals has developed to understand and use their environment. Technology provides the modern human with one more aspect to be understood and used. Our minds may work differently than those of humans born in societies without modern technology but both minds are equally complex and enriched. Furthermore, our daily chores may be less labor intensive than those of only a few hundred years ago, which is not to say that we have become lazy, if most people had a choice they would prefer to not perform many of the chores they had to perform for survival.

Learn more about this author, Laura Hogan.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Does technology impoverish the mind??
We want to hear your view. Write now!